Whole Child Health
Youth Mental Health:
A 9-1-1 Moment
Discover how we’re addressing the need for additional children’s mental health infrastructure in America.
The Problem
According to the U.S. Surgeon General, before the pandemic, as many as 1 in 5 children ages 3-17 had a mental, emotional, developmental or behavioral disorder. In 2022, Nemours Children’s recorded an 80% increase in patients seen for suicidal ideation or intentional self-harm when compared to 2020.
In December 2021, the surgeon general issued the first-ever public health advisory on the youth mental health crisis, an advisory usually reserved for urgent issues that need immediate attention. This landscape made clear the need for additional children’s mental health infrastructure in America.
The Solution
We’re committed to improving the mental health of our nation’s youth by working to deliver high-quality, accessible pediatric mental health care in the communities where we have a physical presence and engaging in both local projects and national advocacy to expand and improve behavioral health services for children everywhere.
Through increased federal funding, grants and philanthropic gifts, we are testing new models of care that go further upstream to try and prevent or mitigate adverse mental health impacts as well as extend services into homes and classrooms to increase access to those who desperately need services.
Five Ways We’re Addressing The Youth Mental Health Crisis
In April 2022, Nemours held a Behavioral Health symposium in Florida, bringing together members of the medical community, educators and families to discuss challenges and opportunities to better serve our youth’s mental health. In August of that same year, we hosted U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra (pictured above) at the Nemours Estate in Wilmington, Delaware for a forum on improving children’s mental and behavioral health. Participants of the forum included Nemours Children’s leadership and families, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Delaware Lieutenant Governor Bethany Hall-Long, former Delaware Secretary of Health and Social Services Molly Magarik, community leaders, business leaders, and local and state officials. Attendees engaged in meaningful dialogue to determine how to best combat this crisis through all available avenues.
The forum consisted of a roundtable split into four panels to discuss four topics:
- Mental and behavioral health challenges youth face
- Pediatric health care workforce shortages and infrastructure needs
- School wellness
- Innovative policy solutions
A pilot program funded by TD Bank in 2021, led to the creation of the Nemours Children’s Health Integrated Behavioral Health Initiative in Central Florida, already in effect at Nemours Children’s Health in the Delaware Valley. This initiative enables dedicated pediatric psychologists, licensed professional counselors, and licensed clinical social workers to be embedded within a patient’s medical home — the pediatric setting in which children receive their comprehensive care — to increase access to holistic mental health services while reducing the stigma of treatment.
In addition, our Central Florida Behavioral Health Hub, launched in 2023 with a five-year $1.425 million state contract, began enrolling at least 45 clients per quarter from three pediatric practices in Orange and Osceola counties. The Hub is designed to improve pediatric provider capacity to better diagnose, manage and treat patients’ mental, emotional, and behavioral health conditions and create care coordination among pediatricians and behavioral health organizations including Nemours Children’s Health.
Typically, diagnoses fall into three categories: crisis, behavior, and complex/severe. Our integrated behavioral health specialists triage and connect families with the appropriate level of care, with behavior typically treated via solutions-based family interventions at the primary care office.
The Jim Moran Foundation and the Gerondelis Foundation have committed $500,000 to support the launch of the Nemours Children’s On-Demand Tele-Mental Health Care pilot project at Nemours Children’s Health, Jacksonville to provide assessment and brief, targeted interventions for children in need of mental health services.
This pilot will increase the number of patients seen by a Nemours Children’s mental health specialist and reduce wait time. We have trained mental health professionals to provide telehealth services for children suffering from various psychological concerns, most importantly, depression and suicidal ideation. In addition, the project aims to provide parents with resources to help their children before problems become acute. Through this project, we can address the gaps in service, providing on-demand services within 24-48 hours to assess the problem and degree of severity and provide appropriate interventions.
In May 2023, Nemours Children’s hosted “Well Beyond Medicine: Implementing School-Based Behavioral Health Programs” virtual conference. The behavioral health convening, focused on developing actionable recommendations for the federal agencies implementing these provisions, marks an additional step we are taking to improve access to mental health services for children across the country. In addition to providing mental health services at school-based health centers, we allow families and patients to access critical behavioral health care via telehealth through the Nemours App.
We have released a summary of key findings from the event, including policy recommendations:
Nemours Florida Prevention Initiative (FPI) offers mental, emotional, and behavioral health programs to support pediatricians, caregivers, children, and adolescents. With support from an AAP CATCH grant, FPI and Dr. Lisa Spector completed the first of four, 8-week Parent Management Trainings to support parents’ understanding and management of children experiencing ADHD.
In addition, an evidence-based suicide prevention program, Sources of Strength, launched in November 2022 in two Orange County high schools. Funded by an almost $50,000 grant from the William J & Dorothy K O’Neill Foundation, the program trained 10 adult advisors and 54 adolescent peer leaders to promote hope, help and strength through norming and culture change campaigns using strength-based messages to impact multiple issues including suicide.
Well Beyond Medicine Podcast
Listen. Engage. Subscribe.
The U.S. Surgeon General warns of social media’s danger to our youth.
On Episode 15, we explore the impacts of social media on the youth mental health crisis. Listen in as Monica Barreto, PhD, Clinical Director of Behavioral Health, Nemours Children’s Health, Florida, breaks down the advisory and the effects of social media on kids.
Secretary Xavier Becerra
“I had a great discussion at Nemours Children’s Health to learn how Nemours Children’s and Delaware’s Congressional delegation are working to address the mental and behavioral health needs of children across the state. As part of the HHS National Tour to Strengthen Mental Health, I’ve had the chance to travel across the country and hear stories from people from all walks of life, and they all say the same thing: ‘we need help’.”
— Xavier Becerra, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary
