About Us

The HEADS-ED was developed by integrating concepts from the HEADS mnemonic (Cohen et al., 1991) and the communimetric Child Assessment of Needs & Strengths (CANS) based measure (Lyons, 2009).

There are two versions of the HEADS-ED:

The HEADS-ED Under 6, which is for use with infants and children from birth up to their 6th birthday, and
The HEADS-ED Over 6, for use with children, adolescents, and youth from ages 6 to 21 years.

Each of these tools include 7 domains, incorporated into the acronym HEADS-ED

The HEADS-ED Under 6
Home & Caregivers
Eating & Sleeping
Activities & Peers
Development, speech/language/motor
Safety
Emotions, behaviours
Discharge or Current Resources

The HEADS-ED Over 6
Home
Education & Employment
Activities & peers
Drugs & alcohol
Suicidality
Emotions, behaviours, thought disturbance
Discharge or current resources

Clinician using tablet to interview a 10 year old

These psychosocial items are used to classify the level of intervention required by the patient in each domain:

0 - No action needed
1 - Needs action but not immediate / moderate functional impairment
2 - Needs immediate action / severe functional impairment

A score of 0, 1, or 2 is assigned for each psychosocial variable and these scores are summed to obtain a total score. A higher overall score on this screening tool, particularly in any domains with a score of 2, indicates a greater need for more intensive or immediate MHA services.

For the HEADS-ED Over 6, in the Emergency Department, a total score of greater than or equal to 8 and/or a suicidality score of 2 recommends a need for a psychiatric consultation and/or admission.

For the HEADS-ED Under 6, a score of 6 or higher recommends priority consultation with a specialized provider for more immediate or intensive service.

Thank you for visiting the HEADS-ED website at www.heads-ed.com. HEADS-ED is a mental health screening tool developed at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is intended to serve as an information tool that may be used as a resource for Emergency Department physicians and other healthcare professionals in assessing mental health patients. Access to and use of the HEADS-ED website constitutes acceptance of and compliance with the following terms and conditions of use, which may be subject to change from time to time.

The content of the HEADS-ED website, including all text, graphics, images, and links (the “Content”), is provided solely for educational and informational purposes. The Content is not designed or intended to serve as or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Consultation with your physician, or other qualified health providers, should be sought for any questions you may have with respect to your own unique medical circumstances. The HEADS-ED website is also not a substitute for the personalized clinical judgment and/or care of a medical professional. HEADS-ED information should never be used as a substitute for specific professional medical advice or serve as a reason for delay in seeking it. HEADS-ED is an information tool that physicians and other healthcare professionals may refer to in the exercise of their own specific clinical judgment in the context of their own specific patient-physician relationships.

The information provided on the HEADS-ED website is believed to be accurate and reliable at the time of posting. However, the HEADS-ED design team and its affiliates do not guarantee or warrant the currency, accuracy, or any other aspect of the suitability of the information provided when posted. All risk associated with the use of all information posted on the HEADS-ED website is assumed by the user of the site. The HEADS-ED design team and its affiliates assume no obligation to ensure currency of information or to report on further developments with respect to the information posted on the HEADS-ED website. Information supplied is considered “as is” and the HEADS-ED design team and its affiliates shall not be liable for any damages or injury, including but not limited to special or consequential damage resulting from the use of any information on the HEADS-ED website.

Certain links contained in the content of the HEADS-ED website lead to resources located on servers maintained by third parties over whom the HEADS-ED design team and its affiliates have no control or jurisdiction. As such, the HEADS-ED design team and its affiliates make no representation or warranty with respect to the accuracy or any other aspect of the information contained on such third party servers. The HEADS-ED design team and its affiliates do not recommend or endorse the content of any third party websites, nor do they endorse any physicians or other health professionals, treatment, services, products, procedures, opinions, or any other aspect of information that may be referenced in the content of third party websites.

The HEADS-ED website and its use are governed by the laws in effect in the Province of Ontario and the federal laws of Canada applicable in Ontario. Any dispute or claim based on use of the HEADS-ED website is governed by those laws.

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