The Supporting Improved Mental Health in Schools Program is an innovative model, recognised as internationally unique, involving collaboration devised by Hospital School SA between CAMHS, Paediatrics, young people, families and enrolled schools. This communication-based through-care approach provides comprehensive mental health care for young people being admitted for mental health or presenting for emergency mental health services. The SIMHS structure has been instrumental in providing care to over 4000 young people in 2022 alone. This has included a targeted response through 625 state-wide school visits last year.
By working together, this model ensures that the young person's mental health needs are addressed holistically and that there is a coordinated approach to their care. This approach has shown to be highly effective in achieving positive outcomes and was the recipient of the Non-Clinical Excellence Award by the Women’s and Children’s Health Network, presented at an International Conference in Europe and is being implemented by several paediatric hospitals internationally as best practice.
Our outreach program is designed to ensure that Hospital School SA appropriately facilitates the process of gathering and sharing information that was previously inaccessible to enrolled schools. As a result, we provide school-based collateral information to the treating team, as well as transition information to enrolled schools that is suitable for the reviewing or formulating of school-based support plans. Our program is highly effective in ensuring that all stakeholders are able to collaborate to provide the best possible outcomes for young people. Education and health are inherently different systems with often, opposing dynamics. SIMHS bridges the gap between clinical treatment, intervention and school-based supports and shows mental health support is possible when, in partnership, we take a team-around-the-child approach. The SIMHS approach to collaborative care between systems is adaptable across departments supporting the transposition of clinical response to helpful school-based strategies.