Studies have demonstrated that school-based mental health services delivered by teachers and other school personnel helped reduce mental health issues to elementary-aged children. An expert on mental health once says that much remains to be learned about the effectiveness of school-based mental health programs, which in turn can meaningfully inform partnerships and referral practices among child psychiatrists and other mental health professionals. It is also known that a limited understanding of the effectiveness of school-based mental health services when implemented by school professionals could contribute to the limited application of evidence-based mental health practices in schools.
Using random-effects meta-analytic procedures, researchers examined the overall effectiveness of school-based mental health services delivered by teachers and other school personnel that specifically targeted mental health problems on elementary school-age children. They also examined the effectiveness of multiple school-based intervention models that varied by treatment target, format and intensity.
Across all outcomes, school-based services delivered by school personnel showed small-to-medium effect in decreasing mental health issues among children. Furthermore, school-based services that integrated mental health services into the curriculum, targeted externalizing issues, incorporated incident management and were implemented multiple times per week significantly improved its effectiveness.
The largest effects were observed for targeted intervention and selective prevention compared with universal prevention. Targeted intervention and selective prevention showed large and high-medium effects, though small, universal prevention showed significant effects as well. For externalizing problems, school-based services conducted daily or several times each week showed medium effect, but school-based services conducted weekly or less did not show a significant effect.
An expert also claims that Given the limited accessibility of traditional mental health services for children – particularly for children from minority and economically disadvantaged backgrounds – school-based mental health services are a tremendous vehicle for overcoming barriers to metal health care and meaningfully expanding the reach of supports and services for so many children in need. Treating children in school can powerfully overcome issues of cost, transportation, and stigma that typically restrict broad utilization of mental health services.
