It sounds like a perfect solution to the mental health crisis among youth – we just need to get them into therapy, and since we all know how hard it is to navigate transportation and family schedules, why not just do it in school?
Of course, those who work in counseling, and in schools, realize that it’s not that simple. Telehealth sessions are very different from in-person counseling, and not all kids would benefit from them. Not all schools would be able to provide a space for it – finding a reasonably comfortable, private room with the necessary equipment might be really hard. And then there’s the issue of finding someone to do the therapy – it’s not like there’s an abundance of providers just sitting around twiddling their thumbs.
There are programs working to try to develop a comprehensive system to do this – whether they will be able to overcome the barriers, and how long that will take, is impossible to predict. And there are companies offering services to districts that hire them. But what about everyone else?
SNLP has always taken a “start small and grow” approach, in part because we don’t have the staff or budget to start big, but mostly because we’d rather adapt to what the schools want, need, and can manage rather than designing something and then blaming the schools if it doesn’t work for them. And while I’ve been avoiding this topic for years (mostly because I have found the “magic bullet” attitude really annoying), I think it’s time for SNLP to see what we can grow.
Start with schools that can manage to provide a room (but can’t wade into referrals, insurance, scheduling, etc.). Start with providers who are already providing telehealth services, but might be struggling to see kids in the limited after-school appointment slots. SNLP will figure out how to help providers access what space the school can offer while navigating the students’ academic schedules. And then see where we can go from there.
So, if you are a school that wants to join in on the pilot of this, or a provider who can tell me which schools would be good to invite, let me know. And if you have any questions or concerns, want to point out the potential problems, PLEASE let me know. The whole point is to identify and sort out the glitches as early as possible.
Watch the SNLP calendar – I plan to have an information and discussion Zoom meeting about this in the next few weeks, and really want your input!
The Zoom info session about this will happen Monday, 10/28, at 6 pm. Feel free to spread the word! The link to join is: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89169947934