The authors examined heterogeneity in symptom trajectories among youths following psychiatric crises as well as the psychosocial correlates and placement outcomes associated with identified trajectories. Using semiparametric mixture modeling with 156 youths approved for psychiatric hospitalization, the authors identified 5 trajectories based on…

An article by Ellie Ashford condensed from School Board News (Jun 28, 2005) is presented in this article. Proponents of mental health screening point to stories to illustrate the benefits of screening seemingly healthy teenagers. Yet, opposition to mental health screening is growing, with one school health expert calling it "as controversial…

This article explores the nature of expanded school mental health (ESMH) services in Baltimore City, which at the time of the study were incorporated into 40% of the citys public schools. A provider survey was distributed to ESMH clinicians to gather information on the characteristics of service providers and recipients, types of services being…

Inner-city youth are at high risk for dropping out of high school. Within this article, risk factors associated with dropout and strategies for effective prevention and intervention are reviewed. An example of a school-based drop-out prevention program is highlighted. The FUTURES Program is a school-based drop-out prevention program designed to…

This study investigated the association between school-based mental health services and two proposed but untested outcomes of these services: (a) school climate and (b) patterns of referrals to special education. Results from a climate survey found that teachers and staff in eight elementary schools with expanded school mental health (ESMH)…

The process of describing existing services for American Indian and Alaska Native children with serious emotional disturbance by the Circles of Care strategic planning initiative is overviewed. We explain why service system description is important and how it helped define the role of evaluation within the initiative. Primary goals and…

In order to determine whether expenditures for mental health could be reduced and quality improved, Congress mandated that the Department of Defense conduct a demonstration project utilizing a wraparound mental health service system for child and adolescent military dependents. A longitudinal quasiexperimental design was used to evaluate the…

Objective: Treatment outcome for preschool-age children exposed to marital violence was assessed, comparing the efficacy of Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) with case management plus treatment as usual in the community. Method: Seventy-five multiethnic preschool mother dyads from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds were randomly assigned to (1) CPP…

The development of a model for treating acutely depressed patients on a frequent basis in an independent practice setting is described. Strategies to collaborate with managed care organizations, employee assistance programs, and local provider networks to recruit these patients are outlined. The patients treated in the intensive outpatient program…

A number of circumstances challenge the very notion of the provision of mental health services that are effective, accessible, and sustainable in the most impoverished urban settings. These circumstances pose significant challenges to conducting research on alternative mental health practices of sufficient quality and rigor necessary to pass…

There are critical challenges for the design of effective school-based mental health delivery systems. Atkins et al. (2003) provide illustrative examples of how these challenges can be addressed in ways that can significantly increase children's access to empirically supported interventions, integrate programming into existing school leadership…

Ringeisen, Henderson, and Hoagwood have provided an important discussion of the significance of school context to children's mental health, particularly in relation to empirically supported interventions. They have outlined the influence of context on treatment integrity, and have emphasized appropriately the significant gap between…

University-community partnerships are widely recognized as critical to the success of community research and advocacy work but difficult to form and sustain. This article will describe a unique facet of that partnership, namely the collaboration between mental health clinicians and community consultants, a partnership that our data suggest was a…

Approximately 900,000 people with active symptoms of serious mental illness are booked annually into U.S. jails. Of these, about three quarters have a co-occurring substance use disorder. When these people return to the community they have multiple, complex and interrelated treatment needs, which are often exacerbated by release into the…

Families In Recovery Staying Together (FIRST) is a team from Children's Hospital and Research Center at Oakland that has joined in collaboration with two local perinatal residential drug treatment programs to create early childhood mental health services at those sites. The authors highlight the collaboration strategies and challenges the partners…