WHEREAS youth mental health services need to be conveniently located for vulnerable youth and their families; AND WHEREAS the number of youth who are supported by youth agreements increased by more than 152 between 2007 and 2010, demonstrating the increasing numbers of youth for whom school may be the most consistent point of accessible community contact: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Province support integrated services and work with school districts and local governments to provide and evaluate youth mental health services in a school setting.
Ministry of Education The Province is committed to promoting and protecting the health and well-being of children and youth, which is a shared interest and responsibility with partners, including parents, community and schools. Several ministries are involved in this important work and strive to work together in an integrated and collaborative fashion in order to meet common objectives. In 2010, the Province released Healthy Minds, Healthy People: A Ten-Year Plan to Address Mental Health and Substance Use in British Columbia. The Plan takes a whole systems approach to mental health promotion, prevention of mental illness and problematic substance use, harm reduction and care, treatment and supported recovery. A specific action within this priority is to promote mental health within schools and post secondary institutions through comprehensive school and campus health activities that improve health and education outcomes and encourage the development of lifelong skills, attitudes, and healthy behaviours. The plan is led by the Ministry of Health MoH and the Ministry of Children and Family Development MCFD, in partnership with other ministries, including the Ministry of Education MEd, crown agencies, health authorities, key non-governmental organizations and the research community. MCFD is leading the development and implementation of the child and youth portion of Healthy Minds, Healthy People in collaboration with partner ministries and community stakeholders. MCFD is committed to improving mental health outcomes for children, youth and their families and strengthening child and youth mental health services as part of the MCFD Operational and Strategic Directional Plan 201213-201415. FRIENDS, a school-based anxiety prevention and resiliency skill-building program, is funded by MCFD and delivered in cooperation with school districts, independent schools, First Nations Schools Association and MEd. MCFD supports strong linkages between schools and community Child and Youth Mental Health CYMH teams. CYMH clinicians routinely collaborate with schools to meet the needs of individual children, youth and their families. School-based mental health services depend on the school, the district and the region. Examples include: - In the Vancouver Coastal Region, every school is linked with a local Ministry CMYH worker, who provides services based on the needs identified within their student population. - In the North, Ministry mental health consultants are involved in consultations and case planning with school staff for individual students. - In the Interior, MCFD and some school districts are cost-sharing to support school-based CYMH positions. - On Vancouver Island, a CYMH clinician has been seconded to provide mental health services within a School District. The Province has developed inter-ministerial protocols relating to support services for school-aged children and youth, which outline responsibilities for the provision of mental health care within schools and the linkage to community-based mental health and substance use care across the partner Ministries of Education, Health, Children and Family Development, and Justice. The Province has also developed ERASE Expect Respect and a Safe Education, a comprehensive strategy to address bullying and harmful behaviours and to promote positive mental health in the school setting. Led by the Ministry of Education, key elements include: training that will be delivered to community partners, including mental health workers and child-welfare workers; development of formal community protocols and designation of a Safe Schools Coordinator to guide and coordinate their work with community partners; and creation of a provincial advisory committee with representatives from schools, social agencies, police and other community partners. MEd, MCFD, and MoH are also members of the British Columbia School-Based Mental Health Coalition, a cross-sector group of practitioners, policymakers, researchers, and advocates that aims to promote positive mental health in BC schools and strengthen inter-ministerial coordination and cross-sector collaboration for school-based policies and programs throughout the province.