This story discusses mental health and data related to suicide. For resources and support, call 988 to reach the , or text HOME to 741741 to connect to the .
A new initiative from Children鈥檚 Health and Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute has in its first year expanded mental health services to more than 150,000 families in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
The pediatric mental health initiative launched in 2022 to train primary care doctors to assess anxiety, depression and stress in the kids they treat.
Sabrina Browne, an assistant professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern who also works in the behavioral health program at Children鈥檚 Health, headed up the initiative.
鈥淧ediatricians and others in pediatric primary care are in such a great position to have those conversations with families and de-stigmatize mental health,鈥� Browne said. 鈥淭his is something we want to address as part of your everyday healthcare.鈥�
The catalyst for this pediatric consultation model was in 2020, with the state鈥檚 . Browne answered questions from doctors all over Texas who were looking for help diagnosing, treating and referring patients to psychiatry and psychology services.
鈥淲e had an epidemic in children鈥檚 mental health before the pandemic, but once the pandemic hit, it just really opened up the floodgates,鈥� Browne said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 just not enough child psychiatrists out there.鈥�
Lack of mental health care services in Texas
The nonprofit Mental Health America ranks Texas among the 11 states in the country where youth have .
According to data from the federal Health Resources & Services Administration, more than are designated as mental health professional shortage areas. That means people in more than 50% of Texas counties may not be able to find a mental health care provider when they need it.
And Browne said mental health issues have been building for kids since 2020. According to reports from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, emergency department visits for kids ages 5-17 throughout the pandemic, in comparison to 2019.
Teen girls were especially impacted: They had emergency visits for suicide attempts .
Over the past year, Browne and her colleague, , have trained 75 health professionals in Dallas-Fort Worth through online modules and in-person case study discussions.
鈥淥ne of my passions and main goals with this initiative is bringing mental health back into the idea of overall health and wellbeing,鈥� Browne said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e done a disservice in trying to separate out physical from mental health, because the two are so intertwined.鈥�
Best said she knows how overwhelmed pediatricians can get, and how important it is to carve out a space for learning, growth and community-building.
鈥淲e鈥檙e really talking about children鈥檚 lives and their emotions,鈥� Best said. 鈥淲e also are going through things ourselves as providers. It鈥檚 really hard because we put our heart and soul into treating these kids and making sure their lives are better. When sometimes it doesn鈥檛 go as planned, how are we coping with that?鈥�
Best said integrating care helps providers, patients, and patient鈥檚 families, especially when treating issues of generational trauma and .
Both she and Browne are recruiting more health providers to participate in the initiative, which runs quarterly, and hope to expand the program beyond Dallas-Fort Worth in the coming years.
Got a tip? Email Elena Rivera at erivera@kera.org. You can follow Elena on Twitter .
四虎影院 is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider Thank you.
