System of Care Development in Children’s Mental Health: Lessons Learned from a Process Evaluation

Despite ongoing public calls for reform, the mental health needs of many children with psychological, emotional and behavioral disorders remain unmet. In response, providers continue to seek effective alternatives to institutional treatment by implementing comprehensive systems of care. The Children...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of child and family studies 2014, Vol.23 (1), p.157-168
Main Authors: Mendenhall, Amy N., Frauenholtz, Susan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alternative Approaches
Behavior Disorders
Behavioral Science and Psychology
Child & adolescent psychiatry
Child and School Psychology
Child Development
Child Welfare
Children
Collaboration
Community based programmes
Community health care
Community Relations
Cooperation
Departments
Emotional Disturbances
Family (Sociological Unit)
Formative Evaluation
Health care delivery
Health Needs
Health Services
Individualized programmes
Interdisciplinary Approach
Interest Groups
Juvenile Justice
Mental disorders
Mental Health
Mental Health Programs
Mental Health Services
Mental illness
Original Paper
Process evaluation
Psychology
Public Health
Quantitative analysis
Reform
Social Sciences
Sociology
Stakeholders
Sustainability
Sustainable Development
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Despite ongoing public calls for reform, the mental health needs of many children with psychological, emotional and behavioral disorders remain unmet. In response, providers continue to seek effective alternatives to institutional treatment by implementing comprehensive systems of care. The Children’s Enhancement Project (CEP) is a collaborative effort to provide holistic, community-based mental health services for children with an individualized, flexible, family-driven approach. We conducted a process evaluation of CEP’s early stage development and implementation utilizing both qualitative stakeholder interviews and quantitative survey components. The current article describes that evaluation and highlights the challenges and potential solutions encountered in developing a system of care. The lessons learned regarding system of care development, including the importance of a shared vision, establishing programmatic guidelines, achieving collaboration, and addressing sustainability concerns, are discussed.
ISSN:1062-1024
1573-2843
DOI:10.1007/s10826-012-9701-2