Planning a Community-Based Children’s Mental Health System of Care
In Connecticut over 200,000 children have diagnosable mental health problems, but only about 50,000 get treatment. National studies estimate that about 70 percent of kids, who do seek mental health services, do so at school. In light of the significant role schools play in preventing, detecting and treating children at risk of mental health problems, the Hamden Public Schools received a $20,000 planning grant from CT Health to develop a community-based, multi-disciplinary system of mental health care that spans beyond the Church Street School to both community and home environments. Participants of Hamden Public Schools’ Education and Care Collaborative, which includes Hamden/North Haven Youth Collaborative, Southern Connecticut State University, Clifford Beers Guidance Clinic, Quinnipiack Valley Health District, the Children’s Center of Hamden, and Hamden Youth Services, hopes to improve the mental health and academic achievement of all district students by providing easily accessible, coordinated mental health services for children and their families.