Matthew Davis, MD, FAAP, on current, key pediatric health care themes

At the 2024 American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference & Exhibition, Matthew M. Davis, MD, MAPP, executive vice-president, enterprise physician-in-chief, and chief scientific officer of Nemours Children's Health, shared key themes in children's health that are at the forefront of current discussions. These include mental and behavioral health, the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in pediatrics, and addressing social needs for children and families.

"The first of these is a familiar one, which is, how are kids doing with regard to their mental and behavioral health?" Davis remarked, emphasizing that mental health remains a significant concern in the wake of the pandemic. He highlighted the ongoing challenge of insufficient behavioral health care professionals to meet the growing demand.

"While behavioral health care has expanded, there are still too few behavioral health care professionals to take care of all the need that we have in our communities," he explained. Davis noted that pediatricians are often on the front line of managing children's mental health and stressed the need for continuous improvement in care approaches. "We need to continually refresh our approaches, because it can be really challenging to support families in this way."

Davis also addressed the growing interest and concerns surrounding AI in pediatric care. "It's on everybody's mind. It's in virtually every commercial, it seems like right now," he said, pointing out that many parents are wary of AI's role in their children's health care. Davis reassured that AI would complement rather than replace pediatricians.

"Parents want to be sure that at the end of the day, a pediatrician is going to make the decision about what needs to happen for their child, not a computer algorithm." He envisions a future where AI and human intelligence work in tandem, creating "that elegant combination of that familiarity and support that a pediatrician has with AI."

The third major theme Davis discussed is the importance of addressing social determinants of health. "The nation has become much more aware of how social factors like poverty and food insecurity and housing insecurity are very real concerns for millions of kids," he said. "We need to connect pediatricians to those social programs in order to make sure that there's a fabric of support around families and their kids."

These key issues—mental health, AI, and social determinants—highlight the evolving landscape of pediatric care and the need for integrated, innovative solutions to ensure children's well-being.