Dr Emma Butler is a registered clinical psychologist and has 20 years’ experience working as a psychologist with young people and their families. Emma has worked in a range of clinical settings such as schools, mental health services, universities and specialist early intervention services. Her work has focused on the developmental ages from 2 through to 25 years.

Emma is a full member of the peak organization, the Australian Psychological Society (APS). She  completed the Masters of Educational and Developmental Psychology at Monash University in 1999 and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at Swinburne University.

Emma is the mother of two and currently runs a private child psychology practice in Eltham. Emma’s published research interests have been mindfulness based treatment programs for children, neuropsychological deficits in genetic disorders and the impact of electronic technology upon children. She currently has an interest in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in children, evidence based treatment approaches, particularly for girls and individuals with high IQ. She has presented her research at academic conferences and prepared workshops and talks for students, parents, teachers and other health professionals. Emma provides supervision to other psychologists who work with children and adolescents. Emma is passionate about delivering evidence based treatment that make a difference to the health and well-being of young people and their families.

In this talk Dr Butler will discuss the differing presentations and treatment approaches and diagnosis of ADHD for different populations such as females, people with high IQ and comorbid mental health disorders.

ADHD is more likely to be identified and treated in boys who exhibit excessive psychomotor activity and behavioural problems. Unfortunately, ADHD is often undetected in other distinct populations such as girls, those with high intelligence, or children with comorbid disorders such as Anxiety or Autism Spectrum Disorder. This keeps many such children from getting the help they need. ADHD can be better identified, understood and treated in these populations by an ‘executive dysfunction’ model which is the management system of the brain. Earlier identification of ADHD and innovative treatment approaches will be discussed with an emphasis on these distinct populations drawing from practical clinical experience.