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This Web site is a component of the SAMHSA Health Information Network. |
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Center for Mental Health Services
Division of Service and Systems Improvement
Child, Adolescent, and Family Branch
Caring for Every Child's Mental Health Campaign
The Caring for Every Child's Mental Health communications campaign is a national public information and education campaign to:
- Increase public awareness about the importance of protecting and nurturing the mental health of young people.
- Foster recognition that many children have mental health problems that are real, painful, and sometimes severe.
- Encourage caregivers to seek early, appropriate treatment and services.
The campaign helps families, educators, health care providers, and young people recognize mental health problems and to seek or recommend appropriate services. It also strives to reduce the stigma associated with mental health problems.
The campaign is a technical assistance program for the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services Program for Children and Their Families. Its fundamental messages are:
- Every child's mental health is important.
- Many children have mental health problems.
- These problems are real, painful, and can be severe.
- Mental health problems can be recognized and successfully treated.
- By working together, caring families and communities can help.
- Information is available from SAMHSA's National Mental Health Information Center by calling 1-800-789-2647.
Since the campaign's inception in 1994, it has evolved into a full-scale social marketing effort. Highlights of campaign activities include:
- Communications Coalition: A Communications coalition of organizations throughout the country was created to increase awareness of the importance of child and adolescent mental health, improve the identification of young people with mental health needs, and increase the number of children and families who receive appropriate services. The coalition is comprised of representatives from a cross-section of organizations who use a variety of vehicles, including member distribution channels, to communicate with various audiences.
- Materials Development: Communications products from the Children's Campaign can be found in the NMHIC Store. This includes brochures, fact sheets, posters, and other materials. They are available in quantities to grantees and others who advocate for children's mental health at the local level. Spanish-language campaign products include a poster and brochure about children's mental health and a guide for families written in both Spanish and English. Also, visit SAMHSA's National Mental Health Information Center, which features many products on Children's Mental Health. The toll-free number is 1-800-789-2647.
- Communications Training: Customized communications training sessions are held for grantees to help them develop communications strategies tailored to their own communities. Sessions focus on areas such as audience research, spokesperson training, special events planning, materials and product development, and strategic communications planning. These training events give grantees an opportunity to share successes, problems, and creative solutions for communications efforts at the local level.
- On-site Media Support: Grantees receive assistance with planning local media events to promote awareness of children and their mental health needs. Help is provided with developing media kits, engaging local media, building rapport with reporters, staffing press rooms, shaping messages based on local data, developing talking points, preparing speakers, doing media follow-up, and leveraging local media activity to coincide with national activity.
- Media Outreach: On an ongoing basis, efforts are made to nurture relationships with news reporters who cover children's mental health issues. In addition, a weekly summary report of print media coverage related to children's mental health is prepared and distributed, via electronic mail, to inform professionals in the children's mental health field about breaking news.
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