Current Issue January 2012 | Vol. 21, No. 1
Current Topic
January 2012
Evidence-Based School PsychiatryJeffrey Q. Bostic, MD, EdD, and Alexa L. Bagnell, MD, FRCPC, Guest Editors
Our patients engage with teachers, school counselors, and school administrators for approximately 15,000 hours during their childhood and adolescence. Partnering with these committed adults, instrumental in so many children's lives, only makes good sense. School success is a key factor in child and youth long-term outcomes and mental illness can significantly impact school functioning. While our patients sometimes have complicated constellations of symptoms that interfere with every aspect of their lives, schools afford a consistent and supportive setting for intervention unavailable anywhere else. While this process can be complicated, and some schools have more resource constraints than others, in most cases a teacher, coach, assistant principal, school nurse, or counselor within the building is positioned to help that child in a meaningful and effective way. School personnel are in an ideal position to recognize and intervene for children and youth with mental health difficulties and can be essential allies in changing the trajectory of the vulnerable population we serve.
