Community Systems of Care for Children's Mental Health

Abstract

Although the future of the systems of care model continues to evolve, the core values of child psychiatry are well supported and well served in this emerging arena of public children's mental health service delivery. A substantial body of evidence supports the concepts and practices of family-driven care congruent with wraparound principles and practices. Individual and system outcomes data show efficacy for programs that integrate traditional professional services with consumer-centric wraparound approaches, such as mentoring, team decision making, and community-based services and supports. Integrative interagency practice, fostering cross-agency collaboration to address the needs of at-risk populations, has been shown to be central in providing supports for families and youth.