Texas emergency departments go frontline in youth mental health crisis

FORT WORTH (CBSNewsTexas.com) — For desperate parents with children suffering from a mental health crisis, it can be difficult to find help.

A severe shortage of child psychiatrists in Texas means that children do not receive the care they need well in advance of the situation escalating into a crisis.

Therefore, a record number of children across the country with mental health complaints end up in emergency departments. Parents often feel that this is the only option they have.

Teaching psychiatry to more residents is essential, but even psychiatrists say that alone is not enough to deal with the growing mental health crisis of young people. Additional preventive measures also need to be taken to reach children before it escalates into a crisis.

The CBS News Texas I-Team looked into the problem and one North Texas school that is working to be part of the solution.

PROBLEM: ER doctor: “We can’t treat them here”

On average, each month at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, 330 children come to the emergency room with mental health complaints. This is 36% more than just three years ago.

“You can see the suffering of these parents,” said Dr. Taylor Lowden, medical director of Cook’s Children’s Emergency Department. “Essentially, they feel like they are draining all the resources they have. Then they end up here and we try to do our best, but that’s not the answer they really want.”

Children who present with suicidal thoughts are often placed in one of the ward’s five “safe rooms”. In these rooms, the electrical outlets are covered, the furniture is too heavy to be thrown, and the bed has fixation points.

The average length of stay in these rooms is eight hours, but some spend days in the room waiting to see a child psychiatrist.

“No one should be in the emergency room for more than a few hours,” Louden said. “That means the system is broken, in my opinion.”

According to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, there are 47 child psychiatrists for every 100,000 children. In the United States, there are 14 specialists for every 100,000 children. Texas has even fewer, with only 10 child psychiatrists per 100,000 children.

PART OF THE SOLUTION: Oak Cliff School will become a laboratory to develop research-based mental health tools for children.

Prioritizing student mental health has been the focus of Momentous School in Oak Cliff for the past 30 years.

This approach has transformed this small Pre-K through 5th grade school into a nationally recognized laboratory school where research-based mental health practices are tested and implemented.

From the age of 3, students at the school learn parts of the brain, as well as strategies for controlling emotions and impulses.

“It teaches them that stress is part of life, but [also] “How do I deal with this,” said school principal Dr. Jessica Gomez, a licensed psychologist.

Mental health is not a separate subject at the Momentous School; it counts in everything they do.

The hallways of the school are covered in student brain projects, as well as a sensory wall that students are encouraged to touch. Research shows that sensory experiences can help students calm down by activating brain development.

“It’s really a deep implementation of the mental health techniques we’ve learned in psychology,” Gomez said. “It’s not a method you take off the shelf and say, ‘I’ll do this in 5 minutes.’ It’s in everything we do.”

Momentous School is a private school where tuition is free for students. Nearly all of the school’s funding comes from the Dallas Sales Club, the non-profit organization behind the AT&T Byron Nelson golf tournament. The golf tournament alone funds over 30% of the school budget.

Nearly 94% of students are Hispanic and almost all are eligible for free or reduced lunch. School students graduate from high school faster than their peers, and almost 90% go on to higher education. However, success at this small private school is measured by more than just academic performance. Here, students come away with tools to deal with stress and anxiety.

Many fifth grade students will go to public school next year, facing all the stresses that come with high school.

Emma Barrientos, 11, says she’s nervous about moving on to high school, but says she feels well-prepared for the stress and potential bullying.

“Here I learned to breathe and relax,” she explained. “I’ve also definitely learned to ask for help now that I’m in a calmer place.”

The school develops what is learned in the classroom into curricula and trainings that are exchanged internationally.

Teachers and administrators from all over the country come to the school almost every week. They often sit in observation rooms behind a two-way mirror.

Gomez said she believes schools like the Momentous School can play a significant role in addressing the mental health crisis.

“There is a shortage of mental health professionals. It is a fact. I don’t know if they ever will. If I could wave the wound, that would be important,” she said. “But the other solution I’m considering is how we can take what psychologists and mental health professionals know and put it in the hands of anyone. The more we make this knowledge available, the better our communities will be.” “

Momentous School is accepting applications for the 2023-24 academic year. On March 25, from 9:00 to 10:00, the school also holds an open day.