NR 606 Week 5 Case Study: Oppositional Defiant Disorder in a Military Family | 2025 Update with
complete solutions.
Create a case study presentation for a client between the ages of 8 and 17 years of
age based on your assigned diagnosis. Describe the symptoms that meet the
criteria for the diagnosis, and include pertinent medical, educational, and family
history.
1. Ava is the 8-year-old daughter of two parents Kate & Evan that serve in the
US Army. Neither parent has ever been diagnosed with any psychiatric
disorder, but Kate’s mother suffered from mild depression. Ava has no
adverse medical history; she is an overall healthy little girl who is in 98
percentiles for height at her age. She had a childhood full of moving due to
her parents being in the army, she was born in Germany, her early years
were spent in Oklahoma. They are currently living in El Paso, Texas and her
mother decided to bring her into the office due to adverse behavior at home
& at school. Ava is in school at E.J Blott and has been there since the move to
Texas and once was an excellent student who had straight A's and
phenomenal behavior. Mrs. Jackson reported that Ava has been getting upset
extremely easily and is often losing her temper at school. She has been
engaging in screaming, breaking and throwing items, and being aggressive
towards classmates (kicking, pulling hair, hitting, and yelling). The behaviors
seem to have begun around 8 months ago when her dad was deployed to
Jordan. Lately these behaviors have been occurring at least twice a day for 3
months. She has been hitting classmates and her mother with toys whenever
they do not comply with her instructions or demands. In public she is
throwing herself on the ground in a full temper tantrum if her mother does
not listen to her or buy her the things she wants. Ava is at risk for being
suspended or expelled from school because of the negative behavior and
Mrs. Jackson is concerned her safety as well as Ava’s if she keeps breaking or
throwing things.
Based on the case, identify pharmacologic and/or nonpharmacologic treatments you
would recommend. Provide support from a scholarly source to support your
decision.
2. The 1st line of treatment for Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) in children is
psychosocial interventions like therapy and training (Tee-Melegrito, 2023).
Therapy is a nonpharmacological treatment where the child discovers the
root of the anger issue and learn techniques to heal themselves. Cognitive
behavioral therapy (CBT) can help the child identify maladaptive behaviors
through patterns that cause the inappropriate behavior and Dialectical
behavior therapy (DBT) helps teach children healthier ways to manage their
intense emotions (Tee-Melegrito, 2023). Pharmacological treatment options
are typically reserved for ODD symptoms such as aggression and emotional
dysregulation that did not respond to the conservative treatments (Tee-
Melegrito, 2023). The FDA does not have a drug yet approved for ODD, but
the common drugs that are prescribed are antipsychotics such as risperidone
or a mood stabilizer like lithium may be added if in conjunction with the
antipsychotic if needed.
complete solutions.
Create a case study presentation for a client between the ages of 8 and 17 years of
age based on your assigned diagnosis. Describe the symptoms that meet the
criteria for the diagnosis, and include pertinent medical, educational, and family
history.
1. Ava is the 8-year-old daughter of two parents Kate & Evan that serve in the
US Army. Neither parent has ever been diagnosed with any psychiatric
disorder, but Kate’s mother suffered from mild depression. Ava has no
adverse medical history; she is an overall healthy little girl who is in 98
percentiles for height at her age. She had a childhood full of moving due to
her parents being in the army, she was born in Germany, her early years
were spent in Oklahoma. They are currently living in El Paso, Texas and her
mother decided to bring her into the office due to adverse behavior at home
& at school. Ava is in school at E.J Blott and has been there since the move to
Texas and once was an excellent student who had straight A's and
phenomenal behavior. Mrs. Jackson reported that Ava has been getting upset
extremely easily and is often losing her temper at school. She has been
engaging in screaming, breaking and throwing items, and being aggressive
towards classmates (kicking, pulling hair, hitting, and yelling). The behaviors
seem to have begun around 8 months ago when her dad was deployed to
Jordan. Lately these behaviors have been occurring at least twice a day for 3
months. She has been hitting classmates and her mother with toys whenever
they do not comply with her instructions or demands. In public she is
throwing herself on the ground in a full temper tantrum if her mother does
not listen to her or buy her the things she wants. Ava is at risk for being
suspended or expelled from school because of the negative behavior and
Mrs. Jackson is concerned her safety as well as Ava’s if she keeps breaking or
throwing things.
Based on the case, identify pharmacologic and/or nonpharmacologic treatments you
would recommend. Provide support from a scholarly source to support your
decision.
2. The 1st line of treatment for Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) in children is
psychosocial interventions like therapy and training (Tee-Melegrito, 2023).
Therapy is a nonpharmacological treatment where the child discovers the
root of the anger issue and learn techniques to heal themselves. Cognitive
behavioral therapy (CBT) can help the child identify maladaptive behaviors
through patterns that cause the inappropriate behavior and Dialectical
behavior therapy (DBT) helps teach children healthier ways to manage their
intense emotions (Tee-Melegrito, 2023). Pharmacological treatment options
are typically reserved for ODD symptoms such as aggression and emotional
dysregulation that did not respond to the conservative treatments (Tee-
Melegrito, 2023). The FDA does not have a drug yet approved for ODD, but
the common drugs that are prescribed are antipsychotics such as risperidone
or a mood stabilizer like lithium may be added if in conjunction with the
antipsychotic if needed.
