Mental Health and Cross-System Collaboration

Children, youth, and families involved with child welfare and struggling with mental health issues may also struggle with co-occurring issues such as substance abuse or juvenile justice involvement. Resources on this page provide strategies and tools for increasing quality partnerships among these interrelated systems and their professionals in order to improve outcomes and family well-being.

Cross-Site Evaluation of Project LAUNCH: Interim Findings
Goodson, Gwaltney, & Klein Walker (2014)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation
Reviews interim findings from an evaluation of Project LAUNCH (Linking Actions for Unmet Needs in Children's Health), a Federal grant program administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to increase access to screening, assessment, and referral to appropriate services for young children and their families; expand use of culturally relevant, evidence-based prevention and wellness promotion practices; increase integration of behavioral health into primary care settings; improve coordination and collaboration across agencies serving young children and their families; and increase workforce knowledge of children's social and emotional development.

Episode 13: Collaborating Between Child Welfare and Mental Health [Podcast]
Child Welfare Information Gateway (2017)
Discusses how cross-agency collaboration can support the integration of trauma-informed mental health services for children and youth in care.

Finding a Program or Service
Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse
Rates several services and treatments designed to address mental health and substance use disorders in terms of their efficacy and evidence base according to title IV-E requirements.

Improving Child Well-Being: Strengthening Collaboration Between the Child Welfare and Health Care Systems
Zlotnik, Scribano, Wood, & Noonan (2014)
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's PolicyLab & Safe Place
Explores collaborations between child welfare and medical providers and serves as a resource for States seeking to strengthen these collaborations across the continuum of child welfare services, from child protective services reporting and investigation to in-home protective services, foster care, and postreunification services. Part I describes the national policy context related to the promotion of child health and well-being, Part II examines promising and proven collaborative models related to the reporting and investigation of child maltreatment and the ongoing provision of child welfare services, and Part III concludes with a discussion about future directions for partnerships between child welfare and health-care systems.

Increasing Access to Behavioral Health Services and Supports Through Systems of Care (PDF - 749 KB)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2016)
Discusses how a systems of care approach increases children and youth’s access to behavioral health services.

Motivational Interviewing: A Primer for Child Welfare Professionals

Series Title	Factsheets
Author(s)	Child Welfare Information Gateway
Availability	View Download (PDF - 280KB) Order (Free)
Year Published	2017

Provides child welfare professionals with an overview of motivational interviewing, describes circumstances when it could be applied, and highlights the basics of the method. It also provides links to additional resources.

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy: A Primer for Child Welfare Professionals

Series Title	Factsheets
Author(s)	Child Welfare Information Gateway
Availability	View Download (PDF - 284KB) Order (Free)
Year Published	2019

Helps child welfare professionals gain a better understanding of parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT), including which clients should be referred for this approach, how it is implemented, and resources for additional information. PCIT is a family-centered treatment approach for children ages 2–7 with disruptive behavior and has also been used with abused and at-risk children ages 2–12. It is an appropriate therapy for all caregivers—birth parents, adoptive parents, or foster or kin caregivers—and includes the treatment of both the parent and child together along with live coaching. One of PCIT's benefits is that it can help reduce the risk for child maltreatment.

Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Primer for Child Welfare Professionals

Series Title	Factsheets
Author(s)	Child Welfare Information Gateway
Availability	View Download (PDF - 224KB) Order (Free)
Year Published	2018

Helps child welfare professionals build a better understanding of trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), including which clients should be referred for this approach, how it is implemented, and resources for additional information. TF-CBT helps children, adolescents, and their parents (or other caregivers) overcome trauma-related difficulties, including child maltreatment. It helps children address distorted or upsetting beliefs and attributions and learn skills to help them cope with ordinary life stressors. TF-CBT also helps parents who were not abusive to cope effectively with their own emotional distress and develop skills that support their children.

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