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AMERICANNewsline

16 APRIL 26, 2024

MAYOR ADAMS, NYC HEALTH + HOSPITALS

TO OPEN 16 MENTAL HEALTH CLINICS IN NEW

YORK CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Clinics Part of Adams Administration’s $5 Million Mental Health Continuum Partnership to

Support Over 20,000 Students in South Bronx and Central Brooklyn

OUR BUREAU
NEW YORK, NY
ew York City Mayor Eric Adams and NYC
Health + Hospitals have announced the
Nopening of 16 school-based mental health
clinics in New York City Department of Educa-
tion (DOE) schools over the next six months to
serve over 6,000 students across the Bronx and
Central Brooklyn. Clinics will offer students ac-
cess to individual, family, and group therapy, with
connections to outpatient clinics and telehealth
services as needed. Additionally, teachers and
school staff will have access to mental health clin-
ic staff for consultation, trainings, and workshops
to ensure students are appropriately supported
and referred to care.
Schools will also receive support so they can
respond to mental health crises without contacting
911 unnecessarily and avoid needless emergency
room visits and hospitalizations. The 16 new satel-
lite clinics build on the five existing mental health
clinics that NYC Health + Hospitals already utiliz-
cess to rapid referrals for evaluation and treatment
es in the city’s public schools. schools — we are building upstream solutions directly into NYC Health + Hospitals outpatient
that will help us build a healthier city.”
The new school-based mental health clinics
“Family and youth mental health are key com-
are funded with $3.6 million from the Mental ponents of our overall plan to support mental mental health clinics. In total, this program will
serve over 20,000 students across 50 schools in the
Health Continuum, a $5 million partnership be- health for all New Yorkers,” said Deputy May- South Bronx and Central Brooklyn.
tween NYC Health + Hospitals, DOE, New York or for Health and Human Services Anne Wil- The 16 schools that will host mental health
City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene liams-Isom. “We are creating a layered approach clinics were identified through an ongoing collab-
(DOHMH), and Advocates for Children an- to supporting young people adding these clinics in orative and data-driven effort to identify schools
nounced as part of the Adams administration’s the Bronx and Brooklyn to a combination of oth- with the highest needs across the city, particularly
mental health agenda, “Care, Community, Ac- er touch points including our TeenSpace initiative schools without on-site mental health services or
tion: A Mental Health Plan for New York City.”
offering free tele-mental health services to young community partnerships with mental health clin-
people. Thank you to all our partners making this ics. This model aims to meet the needs of students
The clinics also received a total of $700,000 work happen.” with significant mental health challenges in the
schools and neighborhoods with the highest rates
“Youth mental health is at a critical point and
in grants from the New York state Office of these new clinical services are needed now more of New York City Police Department school inter-
Mental Health through the Mental Health than ever, especially in our schools,” said NYC ventions, suspensions, and chronic absenteeism.
Outpatient Treatment and Rehabilitative Health + Hospitals Deputy Chief Medical Offi- In addition to the city’s work supporting New
cer and System Chief of Behavioral Health Omar York City youth in crisis through DOHMH and
Service Program. Fattal, MD, MPH. “These satellite clinics will pro- NYC Health + Hospitals programming, DOE
vide a critical access point for students to get time- has devoted significant resources to combatting
“The stress, isolation, and anxiety of the ly access to mental health services both inside of students’ addiction to social media and the many
COVID-19 pandemic pushed mental health to schools and at outpatient clinics. We are grateful resulting harms, including by responding to cy-
the forefront of the conversation for so many of to our partners and the New York state Office of berbullying occurring outside of class, providing
us,” said Mayor Adams. “By investing in student Mental Health for making this happen.” counseling for anxiety and depression, and devel-
mental health and delivering services right where In addition to the 16 new school-based satel- oping curricula about the effects of social media
young people need them most — in our public lite clinics, an additional 34 schools will have ac- and how to stay safe online.

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