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Biomedical subjects

Mark D Weist

Publications and source records attributed to Mark D Weist.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2007

Mental health screening in schools.

BACKGROUND: This article discusses the importance of screening students in schools for emotional/behavioral problems. METHODS: Elements relevant to planning and implementing effective mental health screening in schools are considered. Screening in schools is linked to a broader national agenda to improve the mental health of children and adolescents. Strategies for systematic planning for mental health screening in schools are presented. RESULTS: Mental health screening in schools is a very important, yet sensitive, agenda that is in its very early stages. Careful planning and implementation of mental health screening in schools offers a number of benefits including enhancing outreach and help to youth in need, and mobilizing school and community efforts to promote student mental health while reducing barriers to their learning. CONCLUSIONS: When implemented with appropriate family, school, and community involvement, mental health screening in schools has the potential to be a cornerstone of a transformed mental health system. Screening, as part of a coordinated and comprehensive school mental health program, complements the mission of schools, identifies youth in need, links them to effective services, and contributes to positive educational outcomes valued by families, schools, and communities.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

The President's New Freedom Commission: capitalizing on opportunities to advance school-based mental health services.

The report from President George W. Bush's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (NFC), Achieving the Promise: Transforming Mental Health Care in America(2003), proposes goals and recommendations for improving mental health services. This report has significant implications for the delivery of mental health services through the schools. A focused discussion of the potential opportunities and challenges of implementing NFC recommendations related to school-based mental health is presented. Strategies for addressing five key areas at the intersection of school mental health and the Commission's recommendations include: stigma reduction, suicide prevention, expansion and improvement of school mental health, and screening and treatment of co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders.

Advisory Committees↗
PubMed2006

Enhancing No Child Left Behind-School mental health connections.

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 was signed into law by President George W. Bush in January 2002 and is regarded as the most significant federal education policy initiative in a generation. The primary focus of the No Child Left Behind Act is on promoting educational success for all children; however, the legislation also contains opportunities to advance school-based mental health. Unfortunately, the complexities of the provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act have made it difficult for educators, stakeholders, and mental health professionals to understand the legal and practical interface between No Child Left Behind and the school mental health movement. Therefore, the goals of this article are to (1) raise awareness about the challenges educators and school mental health professionals face as a result of the implementation of No Child Left Behind and (2) provide ideas and recommendations to advance the interface between No Child Left Behind and school mental health, which will support key provisions of the act and the growth of the field.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Fulfilling the promise of school-based mental health: moving toward a Public Mental Health Promotion approach.

School-based mental health (SBMH) programs and services are growing progressively in the United States for many reasons. However, the SBMH field is young and tenuously supported, and challenges are being confronted on many levels. There are major needs to continue to bring research-supported interventions into schools, and to better equip educators and mental health programs and staff in schools to function effectively. Articles in this special issue present the many challenges well and point to important directions for advancing SBMH. To truly advance the field a Public Mental Health Promotion approach is needed. Elements of this approach, in advancing training, quality assessment and improvement (including empirically supported practice), and advocacy and policy influence are discussed, as are strategic connections to the Community Science perspective and to the development of a growing Community of Practice in SBMH.

Health Promotion↗
PubMed2005

The experience of sexual assault: findings from a statewide victim needs assessment.

A statewide assessment was conducted of assaults, experiences, needs, and recommendations of 125 adult victims receiving care at 19 sexual assault centers (SACs) in the State of Maryland. More than one half of the victims (55.6%) waited years before disclosing, with delays in reporting especially likely if the assault was perpetrated by a family member (the most frequent perpetrators at 42.4% of respondents). About one half of the victims (51.3%) had been previously sexually assaulted, yet only 9% of these victims had sought treatment. The majority of respondents (69.4%) indicated they would not be filing charges against perpetrators, and of those who did, 46.2% reported dissatisfaction with the interview with police. Psychological symptoms such as depression and anxiety were the most common reasons for seeking care at the centers. Nearly all of respondents rated the care they received at the centers as very good or excellent. Respondents recommended more SACs, better advertising of their services, more mental health care within them (especially group therapy), and improved laws and law enforcement of perpetrators.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Implementing empirically supported treatments in the schools: what are we asking?

The research reported in this special issue addresses important areas for the continued development of empirically supported school-based treatments. Although advances in the development and evaluation of treatment services have occurred, there is little public demand for the widespread dissemination of these treatments. In this commentary, the authors draw data from historical examples, related research, and personal experience to demonstrate the need to create a societal mandate for change. They present specific implications for future areas of research and the type of public education and marketing campaign that will be needed to create a demand for empirically supported school-based treatments.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Fee-for-service revenue for school mental health through a partnership with an outpatient mental health center.

School mental health programs are increasingly prominent in the United States and in other countries, but funding remains tentative. This article describes a partnership between a school mental health program and an outpatient mental health center, and considers the larger goal of promoting sustainability and increasing revenue. Issues related to using fee-for-service revenue to support school mental health are explored, and strategies for promoting effective partnerships are discussed. Recommendations for programs facing the challenge of incorporating fee-for-service activities into their current model of service provision are provided.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Significance of self-reported drug or alcohol use among inner-city teenagers.

To explore problems associated with substance abuse, a sample of 101 inner-city teenagers (59 females and 42 males) completed measures of drug and alcohol involvement, resilience, negative peer relationships, and emotional and behavioral problems. Youths who reported any past use of drugs or alcohol (N=47) were significantly more likely than those who reported no past use of drugs or alcohol (N=54) to relate problems that resulted from their drug or alcohol involvement, more exposure to violence, more peer involvement with drugs and alcohol, less protective factors, and more emotional and behavioral problems. These findings underscore the interrelationship between self-reported drug or alcohol use and a variety of other problems among inner-city teenagers.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Expanded school mental health: exploring program details and developing the research base.

Expanded school mental health (ESMH) programs, the focus of this special issue, provide comprehensive mental health care to youth in general and special education through partnerships between schools and community mental health agencies and programs. As these programs progressively develop in the United States, there is a critical need to build the research and evidence base for them. This article presents background to the national movement toward ESMH and provides an overview of articles contained in this special issue, which provide in-depth details and early research findings on diverse aspects of mental health programs in schools. Advantages of greater involvement of behavioral professionals in ESMH are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Assessing the psychosocial and academic needs of Latino youth to inform the development of school-based programs.

A survey was made of the leaders in the Latino community from four East coast cities on the mental health, academic, and behavioral needs of Latino youth, services available to them, and recommendations to better address their needs. Of the 112 Latino leaders recruited, 46 responded to the survey, expressing their views that Latino youth experience significant stress in the United States, present behavioral and academic adjustment problems, and generally have difficulty accessing appropriate services and resources. Programs for these youth were presented as limited in number and lacking in cultural sensitivity. Community leaders endorsed the development of comprehensive and culturally sensitive programs for Latino youth in schools that address their psychosocial and academic needs.

Acculturation↗
PubMed2004

Understanding expanded school mental health services in Baltimore City.

This article explores the nature of expanded school mental health (ESMH) services in Baltimore City, which at the time of the study were incorporated into 40% of the city's public schools. A provider survey was distributed to ESMH clinicians to gather information on the characteristics of service providers and recipients, types of services being provided, and their proposed outcomes. Provider reports indicated an impressive service capacity, augmentation of traditional school-based services, and the continual need for increased mental health service hours in their buildings. In addition, the most frequently voiced benefits of the ESMH programs were increased mental health awareness and improved school climate. Implications of the findings for future programming development and research are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Associations between youth risk behavior and exposure to violence: implications for the provision of mental health services in urban schools.

This article assesses the relation between health risk behaviors and varying levels of exposure to violence in an effort to inform assessment and intervention efforts of a school-based mental health program serving inner-city youth. Health risk behaviors such as involvement in violence, risky sexual behavior, and substance use are clearly associated, both with each other and with violence exposure. However, differential relationships were observed depending on the nature of violence exposure. Knowledge of violence was associated with substance use and sexual behavior variables. Witnessing violence was associated with violence involvement, substance use, and exercise variables. Finally, violent victimization was associated with violence involvement and sexual behavior variables. A more complete understanding of the associations among health risk factors and violence exposure variables has the potential to improve implementation of school mental health services for urban youth.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Assessment, prevention, and intervention activities in a school-based program for children experiencing homelessness.

Children who experience homelessness are at increased risk for a range of health and mental health problems. In spite of this increased risk, they are often less likely to receive appropriate services. School-based programs offer considerable potential to reduce the gap between needs and appropriate services for these youth; however, there are few examples of such programs in the published literature. This article provides information from a mental and physical health prevention program and needs assessment for at-risk children, who were experiencing homelessness or were from very low-income families, which was piloted during a summer camp program in an urban school. Results of the needs assessment indicated that children residing in homeless shelters reported less consistent access to medical and dental care than children residing with their families. It is interesting that children experiencing homelessness were more likely to report that they had participated in counseling than did children from low-income families. Satisfaction ratings of prevention activities conducted in the program were positive for students and teachers.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

A drop-out prevention program for high-risk inner-city youth.

Inner-city youth are at high risk for dropping out of high school. Within this article, risk factors associated with dropout and strategies for effective prevention and intervention are reviewed. An example of a school-based drop-out prevention program is highlighted. The FUTURES Program is a school-based drop-out prevention program designed to address the needs of high-risk youth through smaller classes, character development, career preparation, case management/mentoring, positive incentives, and access to mental health services. Components of the program are described in detail and data evaluating the effectiveness of the program are presented. Directions for the future development of programs and conducting research to prevent dropout by inner-city youth are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

School-based mental health services in Baltimore: association with school climate and special education referrals.

This study investigated the association between school-based mental health services and two proposed but untested outcomes of these services: (a) school climate and (b) patterns of referrals to special education. Results from a climate survey found that teachers and staff in eight elementary schools with expanded school mental health (ESMH) services gave higher ratings on the survey's mental health climate subscale than respondents from schools in a matched comparison group. No differences were found for the General Climate subscale of the survey. Results also indicated that teachers in ESMH schools referred fewer students to the special education eligibility process because of emotional and behavioral issues and that fewer students in ESMH schools were found eligible for special education for emotional and behavioral disabilities. Results of this study provide beginning evidence for the positive impact of ESMH programs on these two schoolwide indicators of functioning.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Funding a full continuum of mental health promotion and intervention programs in the schools.

PURPOSE: To assess the availability of public and private financing sources to support comprehensive school mental health programs. The paper focuses on "expanded school mental health" (ESMH) programs, which provide a full array of mental health promotion and intervention services to youth in general and special education through school-community partnerships. METHODS: A range of strategies to fund ESMH services are reviewed, including fee-for-service funding, as well as grants, contracts, and other mechanisms from federal, state, local, and private sources. RESULTS: An objective national study of the characteristics and financing of ESMH programs has yet to be conducted. Existing evidence suggests that funding for these programs is patchy and tenuous. Many programs are being funded through fee-for-service programs, which generally only support the provision of more intensive services (e.g., assessment, therapy) and are associated with significant bureaucracy and other concerns (e.g., the need to diagnose students). As programs move to enhance funding for preventive and mental health-promoting activities and services, there is an increasing need for grants, contracts, and other sources of support. CONCLUSION: Progress in the national movement toward ESMH will be promoted through an interconnected agenda of quality improvement, evaluation of program effectiveness, and the advancement of advocacy. These developments will facilitate policy improvements and increased funding for the full continuum of mental health promotion and intervention in the schools.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Exploring violence exposure, stress, protective factors and behavioral problems among inner-city youth.

This study examined relationships between violence exposure, other stressors, family support, and self-concept on self-reported behavioral problems among 320 urban adolescents (aged 11-18) referred for mental health treatment. Overall, participants reported high levels of violence exposure, with a median of six past encounters with violence as a witness, victim, or through the experiences of associates. All forms of violence exposure (witnessing, being a victim, knowing of victims) were correlated with internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems for males and females. Total violence exposure predicted behavioral problems among participants, even after controlling for the effects of other risk, demographic and protective factors. Family support and self-concept moderated the influence of life stress and cumulative risk on problem behavior outcomes, but these protective variables did not significantly moderate violence exposure.

Adolescent↗