Special Issue on School Mental Health and Pediatric Primary Care Collaboration
Guest Editors: Prerna G. Arora, Ph.D. & Jill H. Bohnenkamp, Ph.D.
About the Special Issue
Despite estimates that 14 to 20% of youth experience a mental, emotional, or behavioral disorder that interferes with daily functioning (National Academy of Sciences, 2009), approximately 70% of children and adolescents do not receive mental health services (Greenberg et al., 2003). In order to address the needs of underserved youth, several national reform efforts in education and mental health (e.g., Surgeon General’s Report, US DHSS, 1999; President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, 2003), as well as in primary care (e.g., Mental health Competencies in Pediatric Primary Care, American Academy of Pediatrics, 2009; Child and Adolescent Mental Health Resources, World Health Organization, 2005) have supported the expansion of mental health services for students in diverse settings. An interprofessional, inter-system approach has been proposed, involving service delivery across settings and including medical, mental health, and educational professions, to better address the mental, emotional, or behavioral health care needs of youth (Power & Bradley-Krug, 2013; Power, Blum, Guevara, Jones, & Leslie, 2013; Shaw, 2003; Wodrich & Landau, 1999).
Several models guiding the increased collaboration across systems, including schools and primary care settings, exist (AAP, 2002; Stroul & Friedman, 1986). Training efforts, moreover, have been underscored as an imperative mechanism to supporting these collaborative efforts (Bradley-Klug & Armstrong, 2014; Power, Shapiro, & DePaul, 2003). For example, school psychology training programs have been encouraged to include practica experiences that require interdisciplinary collaboration with pediatric primary care providers (PCPs) and supplemental coursework on medical and health related issues and collaborative methods in medical settings (Bradley-Krug et al., 2013). In a similar vein, resources exist to train PCPs to better understand school systems and policies and improve cross-system collaboration (Bohnenkamp, Curtis, Brandt, Lever & Stephan, 2014). However, research evaluating implementation and outcomes is limited.
The aim of this special issue is to feature research examining collaboration across school and pediatric primary care settings. Specifically, the purpose of this special issue is to bring original research and clinical examples to bear on collaborations across these two unique settings in attending to the mental health needs of youth. Submissions about the development of innovative programs that promote collaboration across schools and primary care; rigorous evaluation studies of such programs; training efforts to support the collaboration across such settings; contemporary discussion of education and healthcare policy implications; and new measurement and assessment approaches that consider the unique interdisciplinary context are encouraged. In embracing this topic, we also particularly encourage the submission of efforts resulting from interprofessional collaborations. Inclusion of implications for practice, research, and policy, as well as future directions stemming from the specific line of inquiry are recommended for all submissions.
Authors who plan to submit a manuscript for the special issue must submit a letter of intent by September 1, 2015, that includes: 1) a tentative title; 2) contact information and corresponding author; and 3) a brief description of the study (500 words or less). Letters of intent should be sent electronically as pdf documents to Prerna Arora (parora@pace.edu). Letters of intent will be reviewed for fit with the special issue and, within one month of submission, potential contributors will be contacted to submit full manuscripts by the final deadline of December 1, 2015. Manuscripts will be subjected to full peer review. Additional information about the journal, guidance for authors, and links to the electronic submissions webpage are available at http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/RASM#.VaLKcu1Viko.
Please direct all inquiries to Prerna G. Arora, Ph.D. at parora@pace.edu or Jill H. Bohnenkamp, Ph.D. at jbohnenk@psych.umaryland.edu.
About the Journal
Advances in School Mental Health Promotion (ASMHP) is edited by Dr. Sharon Hoover Stephan and is published by Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group. Advances in School Mental Health Promotion was launched in October 2007 as a collaboration between the Clifford Beers Foundation and the University of Maryland School of Medicine with Editors from both institutions supported by a distinguished international editorial board. Advances in School Mental Health Promotion is essential reading for those with a clinical, professional, academic or personal interest in promoting mental health in schools, and serves to emphasize the interconnected nature of research, policy, training and practice and the opportunities to make progress in all these areas through global dialogue, collaboration and action. This peer-reviewed international journal publishes research by, and of relevance to all, those working in this field including administrators, advocates, counselors, health care providers, policy makers, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, school principals, sociologists, teachers, youth and families.
For more information on Advances in School Mental Health Promotion or to subscribe to the Journal, please visit http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rasm20/current#.Ujs-ExYSORs. To submit a manuscript to the Journal please visit http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/rasm. For any additional questions or concerns, please email the Editorial Office at asmhp@psych.umaryland.edu. If you would like to propose a special topic section to be featured in Advances in School Mental Health Promotion, please e-mail Dr. Sharon Hoover Stephan (sstephan@psych.umaryland.edu).