Partnering for Student Wellness

The mental health needs of children and youth are well‐documented as an under‐addressed and significant public health need in the United States. A number of barriers prevent children, youth, and families from accessing behavioral health services in standard clinic settings, including lack of sufficient transportation, cost, and stigma related to receiving services. School behavioral health (SBH) programs‐in which community mental health providers join school teams to better address the social, emotional/behavioral, and academic needs of students‐are growing in the United States because of their ability to reach youth who need, but may not otherwise receive, services. However, these efforts are limited by a lack of patient and stakeholder engagement. This has commonly resulted in SBH programs not being implemented, implemented inconsistently, or underutilized. The study will compare an evidence‐based Patient‐Centered Enhancements (PCE) intervention added to an evidence‐based framework termed Clinical Services Supports (CSS) in a three‐year intervention for students in middle schools. Investigators predict the addition of the PCE intervention will improve school climate and enhance SBH services, resulting in significantly improved social, emotional/behavioral, and academic outcomes in students. The study has three aims: 1. Investigators will evaluate the extent to which PCE increases the number of students and families receiving school behavioral health services and expressing satisfaction with services received. 2. Investigators will evaluate the impact of PCE on students' social, emotional/behavioral, and academic outcomes throughout the course of the intervention period (sixth through eighth grade). 3. Investigators will evaluate the follow‐up effects of PCE on social, emotional/behavioral, and academic outcomes and risk behaviors in a sample of students followed into high school.