TY - JOUR T1 - Fifteen-minute consultation for a child not attending school: a structured approach to school refusal JF - Archives of disease in childhood - Education & practice edition JO - Arch Dis Child Educ Pract Ed SP - 21 LP - 25 DO - 10.1136/archdischild-2013-304055 VL - 101 IS - 1 AU - Felicity Katz AU - Elizabeth Leith AU - Eleni Paliokosta Y1 - 2016/02/01 UR - http://ep.bmj.com/content/101/1/21.abstract N2 - Paediatric consultations in school refusal cases need to explore the presenting medical symptoms and discuss with families any psychological function of the problems that have led to non-attendance. Understanding possible reinforcements of the child's avoidant behaviour, liaising with school and reassurance of the parents are often enough to manage the situation. However, more chronic and persistent refusal often require support from an extended team around the child, often requiring input from mental health professionals. Behavioural strategies are the recommended approach to improve school attendance and to tackle the underlying anxiety or depression, or both, that may be the root cause of their non-attendance. ER -