February 02, 2023
L.A. County to Pilot School-Based Telehealth for K-12 Students
M Mental health is a critical issue for students in K–12 schools. The childhood and teenage years can be a time of emotional and mental health development, but they can also be a time of stress, anxiety, and other mental health challenges. To fight mental health issues in Los Angeles counties, the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) is poised to provide mental health services to the county's 1.3 million K–12 public school students through a historic collaboration with the L.A. Care Health Plan, Health Net, and the L.A. County Department of Mental Health (LACDMH).
According to a reliable source, the L.A. Care Health Plan and Health Net have set aside up to $24 million over the next two years to cover services for all of the county's LEAs.
…we continue to see the devastating impact the pandemic has had on our children's mental well-being… this crisis has called us to collective action…
The Los Angeles County Office of Education and its partners will work with Hazel Health (a school-based telehealth company that uses virtual care to provide the best mental health support to all students).
To make mental healthcare more accessible, L.A. County has also advised all of the county's Local Education Agencies (LEAs) to participate in the Hazel Health virtual mental health programme. This service is in use at LEAs such as Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and Compton Unified School District (CUSD) (CUSD).
In a statement, Los Angeles County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Debra Duardo said, “We continue to see the devastating impact the pandemic has had on our children's mental well-being. This crisis has called us to collective action. As a mental health professional, I am keenly aware that partnerships and collaboration across sectors are necessary to meet our children's needs. We must remove barriers to access and continue our efforts to destigmatize help-seeking around mental health. We must also recognize that physical and mental health is crucial to teaching and learning. I look forward to continuing this critical work with our partners as we strive to improve educational and life outcomes for all children." This historic partnership will bring much-needed mental health support to our students across the county.
According to the 2022 California Health Care Almanac, one out of fourteen children have an emotional disturbance that interferes with functioning in family, school, or community activities. And as per the California Master Plan for Children's Public Health, over 284,000 children and adolescents suffer from depression, with 66% not receiving treatment.
Between 2019 and 2020, the suicide rate among children aged 10 to 18 increased by 20%. As the above statistics show, the project was a desperate need of the hour in LA county.
Posted in News and tagged News, Mental Health, K-12, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE), California Health Care Almanac
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