COLORADO: Larimer County to study youth mental health services

The Coloradoan

Larimer County has allocated $52,000 to study the mental health services needed for children ages eight and younger. The goal of the seven-month study is to identify the best practices for locating children who need services, determine how best to help them, and strengthen the community resources that serve them. Providing services earlier to children may reduce the services needed later in life, according to Gary Darling, director of Larimer County Criminal Justice Services, which is working with community partners to conduct this study. The study will focus on issues such as social-emotional well-being, integrating behavioral health into primary care, and support for families and parents with the hope of preventing problems such as substance abuse and suicide attempts later. The county government and service providers will continue their efforts by developing a long-term plan for implementation of the recommendations that emanate from the study.

Spark Extra! For information on other current efforts to improve mental health services for youth, see the news story “Stanford Creates Center for Youth Mental Health.”