Multidisciplinary collaboration is needed to help children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an increasingly common neurodevelopmental disorder in children, characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. According to statistics, approximately 7.2% of children worldwide have this disorder.

Prof. Dr. Dang Van Phuoc, Honorary Rector of the University of Health Sciences (VNU-HCM) delivered the opening speech at the conference. PHOTO: KIM HUYEN

At the International Conference on Mental Health 2025 (MHC 2025) with the theme "Promoting multidisciplinary collaboration in assessment and intervention for children with neurodevelopmental disorders", researchers emphasized the close relationship between executive function and behavior of children with ADD.

According to reporter Nguyen Ngoc Doan Trang (Vietnam - France Psychology Institute), executive function includes the ability to plan, control inhibition, remember work and regulate emotions - important abilities that help people act with goals and in accordance with social norms. When these functions are impaired, children are prone to emotional outbursts, have difficulty controlling behavior, affecting their studies and relationships with friends.

Data from the workshop showed that more than 50% of children with ADHD showed signs of a decline in at least one component of executive function. This makes it difficult for children to maintain attention, follow rules, control impulsive reactions and is often misunderstood as naughty and stubborn - when in fact, this is a manifestation of neurological damage.

Reporter Nguyen Ngoc Doan Trang said that, in order to intervene effectively, it is necessary to build a multidisciplinary coordination model between family - school - mental health experts. Supporting children does not stop at training emotional control skills or focusing attention, but must be combined with adjusting the learning environment, building an educational program suitable for Vietnamese culture, in which social-emotional education and training working memory and behavioral inhibition are considered the focus.

Dr. Le Minh Cong, Director of the Mental Health Research and Support Program (ISSH Institute, University of Social Sciences and Humanities - VNU-HCM) said that although Vietnam has made many advances in child mental health care, the assessment and intervention of neurodevelopmental disorders still faces many challenges: lack of multidisciplinary cooperation model, limited professional human resources, inadequate standardized assessment tools, while community awareness is still limited and professional services are mainly concentrated in large urban areas.

Experts say that in the coming time, Vietnam needs to develop a specialized training system on assessment and early intervention for neurodevelopmental disorders, while promoting connections between the health , education and social work sectors - helping children with ASD to be understood, properly accompanied, and have the opportunity to develop comprehensively physically and mentally.

KIM HUYEN

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/can-su-phoi-hop-da-nganh-giup-tre-roi-loan-tang-dong-giam-chu-y-post817078.html