The percentage of visits for anxiety or depression in youth can be impacted both positively and negativley in many ways. Conditions that increase the percent of visits include transportation barriers, lack of insurance coverage, cost of care, access and availability, a lack of understanding or education about care, and peer or family views on accessing care. Some of the conditions that decrease the percent of visits for anxiety and depression are improved access to treatment, eliminating access barriers, traaining staff to identify and refer, and increased number of visits. 

Contributing Factors:

• Improving access
• Eliminating barriers to access
• Training staff to identify & refer
• Education (language) to reduce stigma and increase awareness
• Stigma "role-play" education
• Increase visits

Restricting Factors:

• Transportation
• Insurance/cost
• Access and availability
• Lack of understanding/education (process, what care looks like, connotation)
• Peer/family views

Root Cause: Unawareness of mental health issues and lack of education of process to get care.

Identify potential partners who may have a role to play in improving progress. The identification of root causes impacting progress will often point the way to the types of partners who should be engaged.

When considering partnerships, the action team kept things as broad as possible. Not all potential partners end up being a vetted resource and partner for the CHIP process, but it still is worthwhile to consider a wide-range of options. Below is a list of potential partners that may have a link to youth, mental health, or youth mental health. 

Potential Partners List

1. Advocate Aurora Health 
2. Ascension Wisconsin 
3. Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin 
4. ProHealth Care 
5. Waukesha Fee Clinic 
6. Rogers Memorial Hospital 
7. Health care providers 
8. La Casa de Esperanza 
9. Lake Area Free Clinic 
10. Simply Helping People 
11. Hope Instilled 
12. NAMI Waukesha 
13. Hispanic Community Center 
14. Oconomowoc Food Pantry 
15. Hartland Area Food Pantry 
16. Ixonia Food Pantry 
17. Food Pantry of Waukesha County 
18. Friends with Food 
19. Hebron House of Hospitality 
20. Salvation Army 
21. LSS Clubhouse 
22. The Women’s Center 
23. Community Action Coalition 
24. YMCA of Greater Waukesha County 
25. YMCA Children’s Academy 
26. West Suburban YMCA School Groups 
27. County Programs 
28. ADRC 
29. Public Health 
30. CAFSAC 
31. Public safety 
32. Municipalities 
33. City of Waukesha Chamber of Commerce 
34. Pewaukee Chamber of Commerce 
35. Greater Brookfield Chamber of Commerce 
36. Delafield Chamber of Commerce 
37. Waukesha County Business Alliance 
38. Oconomowoc Area Chamber of Commerce 
39. Local Colleges’ Behavioral Health Department 
40. Oak Hill Terrace Senior Living 
41. New Perspective Senior Living
42. Avalon Square 
43. Brookfield Senior Community 
44. Summit Woods
45. Waukesha County Senior Services
46. CLE Clarion Manor 
47. The P.a.D.D.S. at Moreland Grove 
48. Mission Creek 
49. Hickory Grove Senior Center 
50. Community Retirement Living 
51. Eras Senior Network 
52.  First Congregational Church 
53. Trinity Lutheran Church 
54. First Baptist Church 
55. Waukesha City Church 
56. Evangelical & Reformed United Church of Christ 
57. St. Marks Evangelical Lutheran Church 
58. St. Luke’s Lutheran Church 
59. First United Methodist Church 
60. St. Matthias Episcopal Church 
61. Crosswalk Church 
62. Trinity Presbyterian Church 
63. Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church 
64. St. Joseph’s Catholic Church 
65. Waukesha Church of Christ  
66. James Place 
67. Hebron House 
68. Family Promise of Western Waukesha County 
69. Hope Center 
70. Juno House 
71. Siena House Shelter 
72. Salvation Army 
73. The Women’s Center 
74. Law Enforcement & Criminal Justice 
75. Local Donors 

What works is a brainstorming process where the action team identifies strategies to impact mental health access and knowledge for adolescents between the ages of 12-18 in Waukesha County. Specifically, they examined the limited financial viability of mental health services and explored strategies to reduce the percentage of students self-reporting depression.

While the action team cannot undertake every identified strategy, community partners may find this list helpful as a collaborative resource to address mental health for adolescents in Waukesha County.

Evidence-Based Strategies:

• Community Campaign - Change the End: Implement a community-wide campaign modeled after Change the End to raise awareness and promote mental health services.
• Trainings: QPR, Youth MH First Aid: Conduct evidence-based trainings such as QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) and Youth Mental Health First Aid to equip individuals with the skills to identify and support those experiencing mental health challenges.
• School-Based Social and Emotional Instruction: Integrate school-based social and emotional instruction, drawing inspiration from successful models.
• Outdoor Experiential Education & Wilderness Therapy: Explore the benefits of outdoor experiential education and wilderness therapy as evidence-based strategies.
• Extracurricular Activities for Social Engagement: Encourage participation in extracurricular activities as evidence-based strategies to foster social engagement among adolescents.

Innovative & Creative Strategies:

• Community Mental Health Workers: Introduce Community Mental Health Workers for navigation, education, and resource development, offering innovative solutions to address mental health needs.

Low-Cost & No-Cost Strategies:

• Hotline/Warmlines: Promote existing resources like 2-1-1, county crisis lines and the 988 hotline as low-cost strategies for immediate support.
• Media Campaigns: Utilize media campaigns as a cost-effective method to disseminate mental health information and reduce stigma.

Data Development & Research Agenda:

• Community-Based Research: Engage in community-based research by collaborating with organizations, healthcare providers, schools, and local government to gain insights into specific mental health challenges faced in the community.
• Education and Training Programs Assessment: Assess the effectiveness of mental health education and training programs in schools, workplaces, and community settings. Identify best practices and areas for improvement within these programs.

Mental Health End Result 1: All adolescents between the ages of 12-18 in Waukesha County will have improved access to mental health services and increased knowledge of mental health resources

Selecting an effective strategy involves a meticulous evaluation based on four key criteria:

• Leverage, which assesses the potential impact on progress
• Feasibility, ensuring practicality and achievability
• Specificity, detailing budget and timeline considerations
• Values, ensuring alignment with the values of both the community and the organization

This comprehensive approach ensures that the chosen strategies have a meaningful impact, are feasible to implement, align with established values, and are supported by a clear budget and timeline.

Mental Health Team Selected Strategies:

Source: Children's Hospital (Inpatient & Outpatient visits, primary diagnosis being anxiety and depression)