Gift for child psychologist?

[CBG23]

Hi there! I have a friend who is a child psychologist, performing psych testing in her school. Her birthday is coming up and I am looking for a practical gift related to her job. I am in th med field and know little about child psych besides what i hear from her. Would any of the forum experts be willing to give a gift suggestion?

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[Therapist4Chnge]

I'm sure someone can think of a better gift....but I really enjoyed having an old school stop watch to use while testing. This is an expensive example, but I'm sure there are more reasonably priced ones. I really disliked the cheap digital ones that are included w. testing kits/given away at conferences.

 

[bcliff]

going with the same theme of time, a set of hourglasses could be nice. One of the clinicians at our office uses them instead of clocks, and it's pretty unique.

 

[MBellows]

going with the same theme of time, a set of hourglasses could be nice. One of the clinicians at our office uses them instead of clocks, and it's pretty unique.

I'd be interested to see exactly how reliable hourglasses are for standardized timing.

 

[CBG23]

Hmm, I like the idea of an old fashioned stopwatch; are there any brick and mortar stores that sell stopwatches like these? I'm sure they are easy enough to find online, but I'd like to see them in person and potentially get one engraved,

 

[MBellows]

Hmm, I like the idea of an old fashioned stopwatch; are there any brick and mortar stores that sell stopwatches like these? I'm sure they are easy enough to find online, but I'd like to see them in person and potentially get one engraved,

I believe that last time I was in a Jared's they had high dollar watches and maybe a stop watch or two.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

You can also order one online and then get it engraved locally. "Things Remebered" (a mall chain store) do that kind of work. Most mom and pop jewerly places can do it too.

ps. I *love* the weight of a well made stop watch. I used a couple of them during training, and it was far more satisfying than the cheap plastic digital ones that seem to break if you looked at them wrong.

 

[MBellows]

ps. I *love* the weight of a well made stop watch. I used a couple of them during training, and it was far more satisfying than the cheap plastic digital ones that seem to break if you looked at them wrong.

Makes me think of using a telegraph key for finger tapping tests.

 

[CBG23]

Maybe a silly question, but long of an interval would one need as a child psychologist? I see stopwatches with different intervals (15 or 30 minutes) as well as different resolutions (1/5 second, 1/10 second)

 

[voyeurofthemind]

Maybe a silly question, but long of an interval would one need as a child psychologist? I see stopwatches with different intervals (15 or 30 minutes) as well as different resolutions (1/5 second, 1/10 second)

A 15 with at least a second should be fine for testing. What a cool idea for the stop watch though. I thought about using a 1 hour - hour glass for therapy sessions. I had wondered if that would be tacky though but one of my professors always said time in session shouldn't be a mystery.

 

[CheetahGirl]

I'd be interested to see exactly how reliable hourglasses are for standardized timing.

You're kidding, right? I think the implication was to use the hourglass for the 45-minute session "hour."

To the OP, how thoughtful of you to ask!

A set of blocks in a plastic bin or bag (like Duplo blocks) would be good in you're thinking about something that would be beneficial for therapy sessions. For testing, the kits are standardized, so the materials are already provided. The stopwatch is an awesome idea.

I personally would love a dollhouse or additional male & females dolls (both children and adult dolls) that are proportionate to the dollhouse. I love how much younger children (both males & females) are drawn to creative play interactions around the dollhouse. And this type of play facilitates such extraordinary material that's so useful in therapy. However, a dollhouse is a big & intimate purchase (especially for a child therapist), so maybe a Toy 'r us gift certificate would be more suitable.

 

[MBellows]

You're kidding, right? I think the implication was to use the hourglass for the 45-minute session "hour."

Clearly I didn't put too much thought into what I was doing but for what it's worth, I was somewhat thrown off by the "set of hourglasses." For counseling sessions I like the idea of programmable electronic picture frames. That way with a glance you can know approximately how much time you have without having to worry about the client having something to constantly draw their attention away from the session.

As for the 45 minute "hour" sessions, I think John Grohol put it best here.

 

[CheetahGirl]

As for the 45 minute "hour" sessions, I think John Grohol put it best here.

Sure. I get it... It's important for professionals, like John Grohol, to educate clients about ethics. He can whine all he wants about the exact time frame of a session, but we're all trained in some forum or another. And I was trained with the 45-minute billable session that can be adjusted per the needs of the client. (Of course, more time is allotted for intakes, crisis-interventions and couples.)

Boundaries, Dr. Grohol, boundaries. Conducting therapy has very specific boundaries, and limit-setting is sometimes (usually) therapeutically informed.

BTW...that's a funny article. I can't imagine the therapists that make those egregious errors. I'd hope the alliance between client & therapist would be foremost. But, I agree with the fact that if your therapist is lame (and falls asleep on you consistently without some exploration into why), then dump his or her ass.

 

[MBellows]

Boundaries, Dr. Grohol, boundaries. Conducting therapy has very specific boundaries, and limit-setting is sometimes (usually) therapeutically informed.

I'm going to assume that he knows that. I think what his main points about time were that (a) the time shouldn't be a major feature of the session, pay attention to the client not the clock and (b) don't call it an hour if it's not an hour, semantics.

 

[CheetahGirl]

I'm going to assume that he knows that. I think what his main points about time were that (a) the time shouldn't be a major feature of the session, pay attention to the client not the clock and (b) don't call it an hour if it's not an hour, semantics.

Ok, thanks, MBellows. Also, I don't "counsel" patients. So that's another place where if we're going to get technical...let's go all the way.

And in pure and utter defense of myself, I never refer to it as a "45-min hour" to my clients. I just say "session" and discuss the semantics during intake...provided they want to see a therapist who will short-change them 15-minutes and charge their pocket or insurance for the full 60-minutes. Staff blocks out an hour...so we do have time to run over or take a potty break or jot down notes between our 25-45 patients per week.

I'm jumping off this thread because it's supposed to be about child therapy gifts suggestions...which was such a thoughtful idea by the OP.