• Southern States Attack Obesity Epidemic
• Texas Health Information Technology Summit - Houston
• F as in Fat: Report Ranks Texas 13th Fattest
• 46 million uninsured; highest figure in 12 years
• Southern Obesity Summit 2010 Cook Book
• Houston Obesity Awareness Summit Draws 400
• Mental Health Policy Changes Outlined
• County Health Rankings / State Budget Cuts
• Health Information Technologies Equal Better Outcomes
Mental Health Policy Changes Outlined
Convened by Texans Care for Children and the Texas Health Institute and hosted most months at the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, the Forum brings together families, public agencies, and organizations with a stake in improving children's mental health. Its aim is to create broad-based leadership for children's mental health among diverse groups at both the state and local levels, while advancing a child mental health agenda for Texas.
Featuring presentations by mental health experts and key stakeholders and opportunities for dialogue and group discussion among Forum participants, the Forum seeks to:
• Identify issues impacting the mental health of children and youth in Texas;
• Facilitate cross-sharing of knowledge and perspectives from diverse groups;
• Collaboratively develop statewide policy recommendations; and
• Cultivate a broad range of voices to help advance a children and youth mental health agenda in Texas.
Meetings are typically held from 9 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. on the third Tuesday of each month at the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health in Austin (map ). Please visit the calendar page for more details.
Recently, participants in the Texas Children’ Mental Health Forum met to prioritize the recommendations that have emerged from the previous forum sessions and to define specific policy changes needed. These recommendations were grouped into four general categories, with specific recommendations under each category:
Prevention and early intervention
• Expand home visitation programs
• Promoting developmental screenings in primary care settings
School-based behavioral health
• Reducing school counselor/student ratios
• School staff training on recognizing potential behavioral health issues and how to make appropriate referrals
• Positive Behavioral Supports
• Improving oversight of educational disciplinary programs
• Promoting social worker staffing on school campuses
Workforce
• Training and consultation for front line workers (e.g., childcare, education, juvenile justice, child welfare)
• Social Emotional Wellness Center for Children and Families – training and technical assistance institute
Access to specialized mental health workforce and services
• Requirement for private insurers to cover Serious Emotional Disturbance (using functional definition)
• Maintaining/increasing reimbursement rates to Medicaid providers
• Promotion of family liaisons and partners to assist families in navigating the various systems
• Providing for financial incentives (e.g., training stipends, tuition assistance, and loan repayment) for mental health professionals
• Utilizing telehealth and telecommunications services to provide mental health services and supports to children and youth
While these recommendations and strategies do not preclude forum members from supporting other issues, these are the ones that have been deemed to be of top priority.
We invite input from all stakeholders on these recommendations and participation as we form workgroups to determine specific policy action steps to address these recommendations.
To view past presentations from Forum meetings, visit Texas Children's Mental Health Forum Meetings . For more information, please contact [ Josette Saxton ] at (512) 473-2274 or [ Susan Griffin ] at (512) 279-3919.