THE BRIGHT SIDE
The voices of the people have been heard and changes have been made.
Parents have been asking and seeking a place to go for immediate mental health care for their children. Children are being directed to emergency rooms for immediate care, but the personnel who normally staff emergency rooms aren’t necessarily trained in those situations, except very marginally. Mental health is a struggle for many, from young kids to older adults. Finding, getting, and receiving the proper care and help is not always readily available.
The organization called Children’s Wisconsin has committed $150 million toward mental health programs that address the mental and behavioral health crisis facing Wisconsin’s youth. The hospital is opening the Craig Yabuki Mental Health Walk-in Clinic (Thanks to a $20,000,000 donation from the Yabuki Family) that will be located within the Clinic’s building at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. The clinic will be available to children from ages 5 to 18, with after-school hours between 3 p.m. and 11 p.m., seven days a week. This means children won’t have to miss school nor will parents have to leave work for their children to get the proper care. The clinic will be staffed with dedicated mental health care professionals who will provide evaluations and determine any immediate safety concerns. They will also be able to communicate with a child’s existing doctor and/or therapist to ensure the children are continuing the right path.
When needed, there will be access to a psychiatrist for immediate safety and behavioral concerns. The purpose of the clinic is to provide immediate temporary support and is not a replacement for ongoing therapy or care by a mental health provider. Therapists and psychiatrists aren’t always available when an immediate need or emergency situation comes up, so now children will have resources available to them when life can get to be overwhelming.
Children’s mental health is a crisis that has only gotten worse during the pandemic. One in five children are living with mental illness and Wisconsin’s suicide rate is much higher than most other states. Since the pandemic, Children’s Hospital has seen a 40% increase in visits stemming from mental health issues. The new clinic’s opening date will occur when sufficient staff has been hired and trained to run the facility for the first half of 2022. The operation is currently in search of licensed therapists, social workers, and clinical assistants who are familiar with community resources, have experience, or want to help in any way to support children’s urgent needs. This type of clinic and resource is desperately needed for local communities and will help make 2022 a much better year.
