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Advancing mental health screening in schools: Innovative, field‐tested practices and observed trends during a 15‐month learning collaborative
Author(s) -
Connors Elizabeth H.,
Moffa Kathryn,
Carter Taneisha,
Crocker John,
Bohnenkamp Jill H.,
Lever Nancy A.,
Hoover Sharon A.
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
psychology in the schools
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.738
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 1520-6807
pISSN - 0033-3085
DOI - 10.1002/pits.22670
Subject(s) - mental health , psychology , medical education , intervention (counseling) , identification (biology) , best practice , qualitative property , test (biology) , plan (archaeology) , nursing , applied psychology , medicine , psychiatry , computer science , political science , paleontology , botany , machine learning , law , biology , history , archaeology
Schools are well positioned to facilitate early identification and intervention for youth with emerging mental health needs through universal mental health screening. Early identification of mental health concerns via screening can improve long‐term student development and success, but schools face logistical challenges and lack of pragmatic guidance to develop local screening policies and practices. This study summarizes mental health screening practices tested by six school districts participating in a 15‐month learning collaborative. Qualitative analysis of 42 Plan‐Do‐Study‐Act cycles revealed that districts tested quality improvement changes across seven screening practice areas, with all teams conducting at least one test to (1) build a foundation and (2) identify resources, logistics, and administration processes. Quantitative data indicated that the average percentage of total students screened increased from 0% to 22% (range = 270–4850 students screened at follow‐up). Together, these results demonstrate how school districts not currently engaged in mental health screening can apply small, specific tests of change to develop a locally‐tailored, practical, and scalable process to screen for student mental health concerns. Lessons learned are provided to inform future directions for school‐based teams.