Anxiety disorders receive inadequate attention among psychiatric disorders, despite being the most common mental disorders. 29 percent of people in lifetime have an anxiety disorder. With the many subtypes of anxiety disorders; e.g., phobias, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and separation anxiety disorder, is high comorbidity and risk for secondary depression and substance use. Anxiety disorders in youth affect one in eight children or adolescents. This high prevalence occurs when adolescents need considerable biopsychosocial adaptability and flexibility for learning and development. Through varied psychosocial events and challenges, teens need skills enabling them to adapt and mature. Yet those with anxiety disorders have high risk for increased psychopathology. High school and college school counselors are overwhelmed by the numbers of such youth needing help. Many youth in underserved populations have neither family support nor resources to secure care. Dangers from anxiety disorders are frequent when sufferers cannot get helpful treatments. Untreated, anxiety disorders lead to diverse problems. They can affect the patient’s ability to make interpersonal and intimate relationships, relate to family and grow into functioning adult roles. Substance abuse, risky sexual behaviors, suicidal ideation, and frank suicide are outcomes of anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorders can cripple youth’s path to young adulthood. Recognition of common detrimental consequences of anxiety on youth, as well as undertreatment, has led to increased clinical and research focus on developmentally informed treatments. The Youth Anxiety Center (YAC) at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia and Weill Cornell opened six years ago. With strength in child and adolescent psychiatric programs at both sites, a multidisciplinary and integrated team of clinicians and scientists developed fruitful collaboration. YAC provides care at multiple clinics and partial-hospitalization programs. The treatment volume measured by numbers of clinical encounters was over 70,000 since 2014. Treatments range from psychopharmacology to our unique contextually-rich and flexible psychotherapy treatment, and incorporates technology including virtual reality and youth-focused apps. This program was started and sustained with outstanding support of Anna Wintour and her colleague Dr. David Shaffer.
Learning Objectives
- Improve knowledge of developmental aspects of anxiety disorders among youth
- Identify challenges to access to care by underserved youth
- Recognize promising innovative treatments
- Elucidate the presence and detriment of food access as it relates to mental health.
- Discuss the role psychiatrists should play in improving the quality of nutrition to help mental well-being.
Target Audience
Psychiatrists
Estimated Time to Complete
Estimated Duration: 75 minutes
Begin Date: August 1, 2022
End Date: August 1, 2025
How to Earn Credit
Participants who wish to earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credit ™ or a certificate of participation may do so by completing all sections of the course including the evaluation. After evaluating the program, course participants will be provided with an opportunity to claim hours of participation and print an official CME certificate (physicians) or certificate of participation (non-physicians) showing the completion date and hours earned.
Continuing Education Credit
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
The APA designates this enduring CME activity for a maximum of 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Faculty and Planner Disclosures
Program Presenters
- Herbert Padres, M.D. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
- Cristiane Duarte, PhD, MPH. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
- Justin Mohatt, M.D., Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
Program Planners
- Katie Putnam, Membership Development Specialist, American Psychiatric Association. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
- Ally Brown, Associate Director, Online Learning, American Psychiatric Association. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
Accessibility for Participants with Disabilities
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Technical Requirements
This internet-based CME activity is best experienced using any of the following:
- The latest and 2nd latest public versions of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Safari
- Internet Explorer 11+
This Web site requires that JavaScript and session cookies be enabled. Certain activities may require additional software to view multimedia, presentation, or printable versions of the content. These activities will be marked as such and will provide links to the required software. That software may be: Adobe Acrobat Reader, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Windows Media Player.
Optimal System Configuration:
- Browser: Google Chrome (latest and 2nd latest version), Safari (latest and 2nd latest version), Internet Explorer 11.0+, Firefox (latest and 2nd latest version), or Microsoft Edge (latest and 2nd latest version)
- Operating System: Windows versions 8.1+, Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) +, Android (latest and 2nd latest version), or iOS/iPad OS (latest and 2nd latest version)
- Internet Connection: 1 Mbps or higher
Minimum Requirements:
- Windows PC: Windows 8.1 or higher; 1 GB (for 32-bit)/2 GB (for 64-bit) or higher RAM; Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver; audio playback with speakers for programs with video content
- Macintosh: Mac OS X 10.5 or higher with latest updates installed; Intel, PowerPC G5, or PowerPC G4 (867MHz or faster) processor; 512 MB or higher RAM; audio playback with speakers for programs with video content
For assistance: Contact educme@psych.org for questions about this activity | Contact learningcenter@psych.org for technical assistance