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Facilitator training will include:

• Objectives of SENG Model Parent Groups (SMPGs)
• Characteristics of Parents in SMPGs
• The Role of SMPG Facilitators
• Group Facilitation Techniques
• Content Learning of Session Topic Areas:  Characteristics, Motivation, Discipline, Stress Management, Peer Relations, Sibling Rivalry, and Tradition Breaking.
• Practice of Facilitation Techniques
• Potential Problems and Solutions in SMPGs
• How to Organize a local SMPG

Facilitator Trainers: Lori Comallie‐Caplan, Sheri Plybon and Heidi Molbak

Date and Times: 8:00 AM – 9:00 PM Friday, April 20, and 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM, Saturday, April 21, 2012

Location: Hilton Garden Inn, 3330 Harding Blvd., Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70807. Call 225-357-6177 to make a room reservation (room rate $99.00 for 4/19 and 4/20). Please let
them know you are with SENG.

Cost: Early Registration $275.00 through March 31, 2012. After March 31, 2012 registration will be $325.00.

Materials: A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children, and Gifted Parent Groups: The SENG Model, 2nd Edition.

Jan. 23, 2012 News Release: SENG Concerns for Gifted ADHD Diagnosis

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Recommended Resources

SENG Video: The Misdiagnosis of Gifted Children

NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Marianne Kuzujanakis, M.D., M.P.H., SENG Director and Medical Liaison

Marianne.Kuzujanakis@sengifted.org

Click for additional resources

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 23, 2012

SENG Embarks on International Campaign to Educate Pediatricians

About Possible Misdiagnosis of ADHD in Gifted Children

POUGHQUAG, NY – January 23, 2012 – Intellectually gifted children whose needs are neglected or misunderstood may exhibit traits and behaviors that resemble those of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and be wrongly diagnosed, possibly resulting in unnecessary medication and unintended harm, according to the international nonprofit organization Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted (SENG).  SENG is developing a public awareness effort to alert the pediatric healthcare community to the potential for misdiagnosis. Giftedness education is currently not a standard teaching component in medical schools and is addressed infrequently in the pediatric medical literature.

SENG recently sent a letter of concern to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in response to the AAP’s new guideline discussed in “ADHD: Clinical Practice Guideline for the Diagnosis, Evaluation, and Treatment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity in Children and Adolescents”(Pediatrics, 2011, Vol 128 [5], November, pp. 1-17.). The new AAP-directed guideline extends the range of ADHD diagnosis from ages 6-12 to ages 4-18, and fails to include the critical possibility that a child’s intellectual giftedness may contribute to symptoms similar to ADHD. Thus, precocious preschoolers may be at even greater risk for misdiagnosis.

“There is a reasonable amount of professional literature supporting the need for physicians to consider intellectual giftedness…However, the ADHD rating scales have not yet incorporated this consideration into their manuals, and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) only mentions it in passing. Our opinion is that a substantial number of intellectually gifted children are being incorrectly diagnosed as having ADHD,” according to a letter from SENG leaders James T. Webb, Ph.D., ABPP-Cl; Marianne Kuzujanakis, M.D., M.P.H.; and Rosina M. Gallagher, Ph.D., NCS.

In response to SENG’s letter, the AAP indicated that it will share the information with its committees reviewing the issue, consider the feedback in its next revision of the ADHD guidelines, publish an article on the topic in its newsmagazine, and propose a session on gifted children at its national conference.

James T. Webb, who also co-authored the book Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults and is highly published in the gifted field, believes that while ADHD can and does occur in gifted children, many traits and behaviors characteristic of giftedness are frequently misinterpreted as ADHD, particularly in the very young.

“Some of these traits include being strong-willed, impulsive, impatient with the relative slowness of others, and having the tendency towards heightened sensitivity, perfectionism, and intense focus on personal interests and experiences,” Webb says.

“As pediatric healthcare providers become better informed on giftedness issues, they better understand the value of correctly identifying giftedness in their patient population, and are better able to make recommendations to meet their needs via strength-based planning and educational strategies prior to traditional behavioral and medical interventions,” he adds.

SENG leaders finally propose that future editions of diagnostic manuals (DSM and ICD) provide specific codes for giftedness in the medical record, and recommend that pediatric clinicians routinely consider giftedness in all developmental assessments, particularly when diagnosing ADHD and relevant behavioral and mental conditions.

About SENG

Founded in 1981, SENG is an organization that empowers families and communities to guide gifted and talented individuals to reach their goals: intellectually, physically, emotionally, socially, and spiritually. With more than 12,000 subscribers to its newsletter, and a board of globally respected authorities on gifted education, SENG offers online resources, shares research, and provides webinars for parents, educators, and healthcare professionals. Its 2012 national conference will be held July 13-14, 2012 in Milwaukee, Wis. For more information, see www.SENGifted.org. 

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The Misdiagnosis of Gifted Children

“One cannot go into a pediatrician’s office, go through a quick checklist, and determine that yes, you in fact have ADHD and, yes, you in fact need a prescription.” ~ F. Richard Olenchak, Ph.D.

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According to Rosina Gallagher, SENG president, “Jim Maloney comes to SENG with a wealth of experience and the skill set well suited to guide its Board of Directors through an exciting stage of growth and development. The SENG community looks forward to his vision, vigor, and commitment.”

Some of Maloney’s experience and accomplishments include nearly thirty years of consulting experience in both the public and private sectors, five years of service as the Executive Director/CEO of the Fanning Institute’s Community Leadership Association (University of Georgia), and receiving the Association Executive of the Year award from the Kansas City Society of Association Executives.

Maloney will serve as SENG’s second executive director. SENG programs include its flagship SENG Model Parent Groups, designed to provide parents with knowledge and strategies to guide their gifted children, monthly webinars by experts in the field, a yearly national conference, APA-approved continuing education courses for professionals, and an extensive free database of articles and resources about the social and emotional aspects of giftedness, all of which further SENG’s mission to empower families and communities to guide gifted and talented individuals to reach their goals: intellectually, physically, emotionally, socially, and spiritually.

“The entire search committee was gratified by the impressive response to SENG’s need,” reports Mary Lovell, who led the search committee. “The high quality of candidates made the selection very challenging. Jim’s qualifications in not-for-profit executive leadership made him a natural choice to make our strategic plan a reality.”