As families gather school supplies, backpacks and clothes, Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital recommends an addition to your back-to-school checklist: A mental health toolkit.

“It’s normal for children to feel anxious about back-to-school changes, and it’s important for families to talk with their children about their feelings, what to expect, and set routines to help them transition to the school year,” said Amanda Choudhary, senior director of pediatric behavioral health at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital.

“We also want to help parents recognize the signs of when their child needs help, and what resources are available to them,” Choudhary added. “The number of kids needing mental health support typically starts to rise as students head back to school, and we don’t need to wait until a crisis strikes. Help is available – and more help is on the way.”

One in five 3-to-17-year-old children nationally face a mental, emotional, developmental, or behavioral disorder. Additionally, suicide remains a leading cause of death for Utah youth. Last year, 43 percent of Utah youth who felt sad, hopeless, or suicidal reported that they did not talk to anyone about it.

Intermountain Primary Children’s experts say there are ways to set your child up for success with their mental health as school starts.

Here’s a mental health toolkit they recommend all Utah parents add to their back-to-school checklist to prepare for the upcoming school year:

Mental Health Toolkit Contents and Checklist:

1.     Preparation – Set Your Child Up for Mental Health Success:

·      Create routines with sleep schedules, mealtimes, active and focus times, and what amount of time should be spent on mobile devices and social media.

·      Model enthusiasm about school. Talk to your child about what is exciting about the school year, be it new shoes or a new teacher, or plan to hide a fun note in their backpack each day.

·      Help your child anticipate what to expect, such as walking to the bus stop, visiting the school in advance, and when and where you’ll see them after school.

·      Talk about the day, acknowledging and validating their feelings, and discussing what helps them feel calm in challenging moments.

2.     Be Aware – Know These Signs of Distress:

·      Changes in behavior or mood. This includes isolation or withdrawal from friends or activities, and eating habits

·      Inability to cope or recover. If your child comes home tearful one day, it’s a good sign that they can talk to you or show you how they cope and recover from something that was hard. But if your child struggles for a long time or is inconsolable, and unable to recover from a difficult day, that’s more concerning.

·      Consistently struggling. Rough days can happen. But if rough days happen every morning, or several times a week, or your child is avoiding school, reach out for support.

3.     Available Resources – Know Where to Get Help:

·      Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital “Talk to Tweens” Resources.

These resources, from the experts at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital, can help parents and teachers start conversations with children and help them identify, express, and manage their feelings in a healthy way. The free “Talk to Tweens” tools, which can be downloaded in both English and Spanish at TalkToTweens.org and hableconsusjovenes.org, include conversation starters, a downloadable Feelings Wheel, and additional tips for families.

·      Free Assessment, Referral, Consultation Service (ARCS): 801-313-7711.

This statewide service can help families learn about and connect to services that are available for children close to their communities.

·      Free In-Home Stabilization and Mobile Response: 1-833-SAFE-FAM.

This service dispatches a team to homes in moments of need to help stabilize children in crisis.  

·      National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: 988.

This resource offers free support if you or someone you love, adult or child, is in crisis.

·      SafeUT app.

This is a free app that offers a crisis chat line for real-time crisis intervention for students, parents or guardians, and educators, through live chat and a confidential tip line.

·      Pediatric Crisis Assessments Available 24/7.

This resource is available through the emergency departments at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital campuses in Salt Lake City and Lehi.

·      Partial-Hospitalization Programs at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital.

These programs are available at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital locations, including the Miller Family Campus in Lehi, the Salt Lake Campus, the Wasatch Canyons Campus in Taylorsville, and soon at Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital.

·      Call 911 or Take Your Child to the Nearest Hospital Emergency Department.

Use this resource in the event of self-harm, a suicide attempt, or any other life-threatening emergency.

Additionally, Intermountain Children’s Health is expanding critically needed mental health services for children and teens in crisis in a new Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital Behavioral Health Center that will open in Taylorsville in 2025.

The 90,000-square-foot facility will include:

·      A nearly 50-percent increase in inpatient beds

·      A walk-in crisis center

·      The state’s first dedicated behavioral health inpatient unit to provide mental health crisis care tailored for youth with autism and neuro-diverse needs

·      Family-centered behavioral healthcare, including the ability for parents to stay overnight

·      Outpatient spaces designed for more intensive outpatient treatment, day treatment, and group therapy programs.

Behavioral health is one of the key areas under Primary Promise, Intermountain’s historic campaign to build the nation’s model health system for children. Philanthropic support is still needed to help complete the new facility, help more children grow up stronger, and even save lives.

To learn more or to make a gift, visit intermountainhealthcare.org/foundation/primary-promise. For other information, visit primarychildrens.org.

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