Healthcare Create School-based Clinics Create New Relationship in Academics

    The DOE School-Based Mental Health Program offers a variety of services targeting those students who have emotional and behavioral difficulties in general education. The program oversees collaborations and initiatives with mental health agencies, hospitals, and youth serving non-profits that treat, prevent and educate students families dealing with mental health issues that impede academic achievement. A School-Based Mental Health Program is like a mental health office inside a school. SBMH offer a wide range of full, comprehensive mental health services in the school and have been providing on-site mental health services to Department of education students for over 20 years. There are over 200 SBMH programs serving NYC schools in all five boroughs. All services are private and kept confidential from the school staff. Models of Service are On-Site Mental Health Programs, Mobile Response Team Program, Screening the At-Risk Student, At Risk for High & Middle School Teacher Training, Early Recognition and Screening Program, Presentations and NYC Teen Website.
Mental Health Programs in Schools are:

• Keeps issues from affecting emotional academic, or physical development.
• Provides relief from symptoms earlier rather than later
• Can prevent long-term problems
• Improves academic performance and personal relationships with family and friends.

School Mental Health Programs offer the child are:

• Identification
• Assessment
• Intervention
• Consultation
• Facilitation
• Training.

School Mental Health Programs Work are:

• Interventions are sensitive to students and family culture.
• Easy access for mental health services in communities where services are scarce
• Removes the stigma for mental health services
• Having programs on site allows teachers to spend more time teaching.
• Fewer discipline problems school-wide and distraction from class work.

As educators are play a key role in identifying youth with emotional and behavioral problems and linking to appropriate services. The training helps teachers and school personnel are identify students exhibiting signs of psychological distress, including anxiety, depression, and suicide, approach students to discuss their concern, and use motivational interviewing techniques to help connect students to mental health supports in the school.