Building Strong Relationships between Mental Health Counselors & School Counselors Elise Chupp, Jessica Johnson, & Ashley Foster CPSY 605

School or Mental Health Counseling? School Counseling Everything school counselors do must pertain to school somehow minutes Varies ASCA National Model Temper tantrums Preparing for college Anger management Mental Health Counseling Mental health counselors have a wider variety of what they can do 50 minutes Typically 1 time a week Temper tantrums Eating disorders Anger management

School or Mental Health Counseling? School Counseling Career counseling Organizational skills Grief counseling Relationships Set and achieve goals Academics Study skills Communication skills Mental Health Counseling Career counseling Organizational skills Grief counseling Relationships Set and achieve goals Communication skills

School or Mental Health Counseling? School Counseling Express and identify feelings Time management Self esteem Social skills Stress management Motivation Mental Health Counseling Express and identify feelings Time management Self esteem Drug addiction Social skills Depression Stress management Motivation

Focus on Prevention Difference between mental health counseling and school counseling. Mental health counselors deal more with helping children and adolescents cope with existing problems. School counselors seek to prevent problems before they happen. Their services should reach every student in the school (Sink & Edwards, 2008).

Focus on Prevention Issues that a school counselor addresses in the school: Bullying prevention (including multicultural issues) Violence prevention (dating violence, conflict resolution skills) Substance abuse prevention Drop-out prevention

Counselor Advocacy Why does this concern you? All counselors are supposed to advocate for their clients if necessary. If you work with children and adolescents, it would be good for you to know what the school is doing in terms of prevention. It may be very helpful for you to know what kind of programs are in place in the school that may help your client.

Importance of Collaboration A systemic approach that involves multiple helping professionals is often needed “Collaborative effort is intended to lessen the burden and liabilities of the educational system while improving the fragmented and incomplete delivery of services to school-aged children and youth” (Brown, Dahlbeck, Sparkman-Barnes, 2006)

Why should I care about school counseling and what school counselors do?

Need for MHP’s Some schools are contracting with mental health agencies School counselors need to address needs of the whole as well as individuals Although many school counselors may feel adequately trained to deal with the personal, social, and psychological needs, they may not be, or face limitations within their role Important to have definitions of roles Needs of students is increasing to outside of limitations within school counseling Research has indicated that less than one-third of youth who are candidates for mental health services receive the care they need ( U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1999)

The Surgeon General’s Report on Mental Health Approximately 1 in 5 children/adolescents experiences signs and symptoms of a DSM-IV disorder during the course of a year only about 5 percent of all children experience what professionals term “extreme functional impairment.” Primary care and the schools are major settings for the potential recognition of mental disorders in children and adolescents Receiving services, with both a diagnosis and impaired functioning: 70 % received services from the schools 40 % received services in the specialty mental health sector 16 % received services from the child welfare sector 11 % received services from the health sector 4 % received services from the juvenile justice sector (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1999)

Understanding the School System Outside mental health professionals need to thoroughly understand how schools operate and the restrictions schools have Understand limitations within the school When in the schools, be sure to know each person’s role Open and thorough communication to ensure effective collaboration

How to Advertise Make schools aware of the services you have to offer Work with administrators, school counselors, and sometimes the school board or teacher’s union to explain benefits of services

References Brown, C., Dahlbeck, D. T., & Sparkman-Barnes, L. (2006). Collaborative relationships: School counselors and non-school mental health professionals working together to improve the mental health needs of students. Professional School Counseling, 9, Gingerich, W., & Wabeke, T. (2001). A solution-focused approach to mental health intervention in school settings. Children & Schools, 23(1), 33. Sink, C., & Edwards, C. (2008). Supportive learning communities and the transformative role of professional school counselors. Professional School Counseling, 12(2), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1999). Mental health: A report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: Author.