#2 Mental Health
An area related to health and wellbeing of young people.
Throughout my degree, I have completed many assignments on subjects involving the health and wellbeing of young people. One topic in which I think is a priority that needs to be addressed is childhood mental health. Childhood mental health has been defined by KidsMatter, as a young child's ability to experience, regulate and express emotions; form close and secure interpersonal relationships; and explore the environment in which they are surrounded with. Infant mental health is interchangeable with the healthy development of both social and emotional needs. I believe this to be a priority that needs to be addressed in schools, due to the large impact that a unhappy and unhealthy child struggles with, and how this can stunt their growth and development. Below is an article on understanding mental health in early childhood.
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Examples and reasons to support.
There are many articles in literature about health and wellbeing of young children, and many focus on mental health and the role that it plays in the growth and development of children. The two in which I have selected to highlight include:
Schools do not tend to address mental health and psychosocial concerns, unless it is having a direct impact on the learning of students, due to the limited number of resources which are available to them. There are many students in schools which require mental health services, but there is only a small portion of these students who actually receive these interventions, and generally the focus is narrow and only provides a short term effect. Adelman and Taylor (1999) investigated mental health in schools and focused on the emerging trends which are pushing for restructuring of school owned services to provide more resources for schools and students in need. There are currently a few programs and services available in most schools which are highly relevant to mental health research and practice. These can include counselling, crisis intervention, problem prevention, and promotion of health and social and emotional development. Mental health needs to be addressed as it has been recognised that it is connected to social, emotional, and physical health problems, and can be a major barrier to learning if not treated. Adelman and Taylor (1999) listed a number of areas of focus in enhancing healthy psychosocial development in their paper. These include responsibility and integrity; self esteem; social and working relationships; self evaluation and self direction; temperament; personal safety and safe behaviour; health maintenance; effective physical functioning; careers and life roles; and talents and creativity. I believe that focusing on all these areas will promote the healthy growth and development of young children, and it will provide them with many life lessons in which they will maintain throughout their lives.
There is a strong role in which school based health centres play in facilitating access to care among low income adolescents. During adolescence, income plays a significant role in addressing health problems (Juszczak, Melinkovich, Kaplan, 2003). Cost is not always the most obvious barrier to seeking medical help however. Other barriers may include:
From these two articles, I believe that mental health is a strong priority that needs to be highlighted and addressed, and from this I have formed a number of recommendations to aid in increasing awareness of mental health and the detrimental effects that it can have on children.
Recommendations and ideas.
Click Here: References
Throughout my degree, I have completed many assignments on subjects involving the health and wellbeing of young people. One topic in which I think is a priority that needs to be addressed is childhood mental health. Childhood mental health has been defined by KidsMatter, as a young child's ability to experience, regulate and express emotions; form close and secure interpersonal relationships; and explore the environment in which they are surrounded with. Infant mental health is interchangeable with the healthy development of both social and emotional needs. I believe this to be a priority that needs to be addressed in schools, due to the large impact that a unhappy and unhealthy child struggles with, and how this can stunt their growth and development. Below is an article on understanding mental health in early childhood.
/uploads/2/4/0/6/24068027/understanding_mental_health_in_early_childhood.pdf
Examples and reasons to support.
There are many articles in literature about health and wellbeing of young children, and many focus on mental health and the role that it plays in the growth and development of children. The two in which I have selected to highlight include:
- Mental health in schools and system restructuring.
- Use of health and mental health services by adolescents across multiple delivery sites.
Schools do not tend to address mental health and psychosocial concerns, unless it is having a direct impact on the learning of students, due to the limited number of resources which are available to them. There are many students in schools which require mental health services, but there is only a small portion of these students who actually receive these interventions, and generally the focus is narrow and only provides a short term effect. Adelman and Taylor (1999) investigated mental health in schools and focused on the emerging trends which are pushing for restructuring of school owned services to provide more resources for schools and students in need. There are currently a few programs and services available in most schools which are highly relevant to mental health research and practice. These can include counselling, crisis intervention, problem prevention, and promotion of health and social and emotional development. Mental health needs to be addressed as it has been recognised that it is connected to social, emotional, and physical health problems, and can be a major barrier to learning if not treated. Adelman and Taylor (1999) listed a number of areas of focus in enhancing healthy psychosocial development in their paper. These include responsibility and integrity; self esteem; social and working relationships; self evaluation and self direction; temperament; personal safety and safe behaviour; health maintenance; effective physical functioning; careers and life roles; and talents and creativity. I believe that focusing on all these areas will promote the healthy growth and development of young children, and it will provide them with many life lessons in which they will maintain throughout their lives.
There is a strong role in which school based health centres play in facilitating access to care among low income adolescents. During adolescence, income plays a significant role in addressing health problems (Juszczak, Melinkovich, Kaplan, 2003). Cost is not always the most obvious barrier to seeking medical help however. Other barriers may include:
- Lack of confidentiality
- Systems designed for younger children and adults that are not responsive to their needs
- Legal restrictions on access
- Transportation problems
- Lack of culturally appropriate services
- Lack of knowledge
From these two articles, I believe that mental health is a strong priority that needs to be highlighted and addressed, and from this I have formed a number of recommendations to aid in increasing awareness of mental health and the detrimental effects that it can have on children.
Recommendations and ideas.
- All schools should have crisis intervention and emergency assistance (eg: suicide prevention)
- There should be constant assessments of individuals, classrooms, and home life, followed by face to face contact with students and families
- All schools should accommodate for differences and disabilities between its students
- Students who are new or transferring, should be provided with follow up and transition meetings, just to check in
- Organise regular mental health support service lectures for the school community (including parents)
- Make improvements on health care access for low income adolescents
- Implement more student friendly workshops on topics including mental health
- All schools should have school based health centres
- More collaboration between outside services and schools
Click Here: References