Date/Time
Date(s) - 05/01/2015 - 05/31/2015
All Day
May is Children’s Mental Health Awareness Month and Thursday, May 7 marks the 10th anniversary of National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day. We have made a lot of progress over the last decade to increase awareness of the issues facing children and youth with mental health challenges and their families- but we still have a long way to go. Michigan families continue to face significant barriers in accessing the level of supports and services their children need to be successful in their home school and community including: difficulty accessing mental health services, limited service providers, lack of coverage for mental health services, limited home and community based service options or inappropriate placements including juvenile detention, lack of adequate educational services to meet mental health needs in school, limited supports for transition aged youth and many other challenges.
The Facts:
- One in five children suffer from a mental health challenge. Yet less than 20% of those affected get the supports and services they need.
- 1 in 10 youth have a mental health problem that is severe enough to significantly impair how they function at home, in school and the community.
- One-third of adolescents show symptoms of depression and 21% of youth aged 13-18 live with mental illness severe enough to cause significant impairment in their day-to-day lives.
- Over 50% of students aged 14 or older with severe mental health challenges drop out of high school. The highest dropout rate of any disability group.
- The average delay between the onset of mental health symptoms and intervention is 8-10 years.
- 70% of youth in state and local juvenile justice systems have mental illness, with at least 20% experiencing severe symptoms. At the same time, juvenile facilities often fail to adequately address the mental health needs of youth.
- Half of all lifetime cases of mental illness begin by age 14 and three quarters by age 24. Early identification & intervention works by improving outcomes, before conditions become far more serious, more costly and difficult to treat.
- Most low to middle income countries have 1 child psychiatrist to 1-4 million people.
- Suicide is the second leading cause of death for 12-18 and 10-24 year olds.
- Given the early onset of emotional & behavioral disorders, the Institute of Medicine estimates that their subsequent indirect and direct costs total over $247 billion annually.
The facts make it clear ~ We need to take action now! Awareness Day provides us with a venue to educate and inform others that Children’s Mental Health Matters! Please take a moment today to consider how YOU can help inform others about children’s mental health on Awareness Day and throughout the year. Together we can increase awareness, and create positive change. Contact ACMH today or visit the ACMH website www.acmh-mi.org to learn how you can help make a difference.
*Facts adapted from information from the Centers for Disease Control, Department of Education, the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Mental Health & Juvenile Justice, National Institutes for Mental Health, SAMHSA, World Health Organization & Fact Sheets from, NAMI & the Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health.
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