Breakthrough: Mental Health Solutions for Teens in the Juvenile Justice System

Did you know that around 70 percent of all youth in contact with the juvenile justice system have a diagnosable mental health disorder? 
A new white paper by the Collaborative for Change—a training, technical assistance and education center and a member of the Models for Change Resource Center Partnership—discusses the scope of this problem, scientific breakthroughs that can help, and how communities can adopt better solutions for youth with mental health needs in the juvenile justice system.
In the white paper, Better Solutions for Youth with Mental Health Needs in the Juvenile Justice System, the substantive focus of the Collaborative for Change includes: 

1. Mental health screening within juvenile justice settings
2. Diversion strategies and models for youth with mental
health needs
3. Adolescent mental health training for juvenile justice
staff and police
4. Guidance around the implementation of evidence-based
practices
5. Training and resources to support family involvement in
the juvenile justice system
6. Juvenile competency

Access the full white paper on http://cfc.ncmhjj.com/

Susan Richardson is national executive director for Reclaiming Futures. Formerly, she was a senior program officer in the health care division of the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust in North Carolina, where she led a three-year effort involving the state's juvenile justice and treatment leaders to adopt the Reclaiming Futures model by juvenile courts in six North Carolina counties. She received her B.S. in Public Health, Health Policy and Administration, from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.