Developing a Behavioral Health Intervention Team for Moore County Schools

Abstract

Student mental health has been a concern for school districts across the state of North Carolina as well as the nation. The purpose of this study was to improve the mental health, safety and welfare of students in Moore County Schools, located in south central North Carolina. This improvement study was guided by the following research questions: (1) How much will a Behavioral Health Intervention Team improve the mental health issues of students in the district? (2) How many students will be positively impacted through Behavioral Health Intervention Team prevention and intervention programs in the district? and (3) How much will a Behavioral Health Intervention Team cost? The researcher analyzed state and national mental health data, crisis management and intervention models, limited therapeutic supports in schools, and identified crisis procedures already in place in Moore County Schools in order to assist the district toward developing an effective Behavioral Health Intervention Team. This separate crisis response team was made up of two licensed professional counselors, a licensed clinical social worker, and an instructional specialist for behavior support, which were hired for the sole purpose of deterrence of and intervention in crisis. The data analyzed included local mental health statistics from the 2017-2019 school years, survey responses from principals and specialized instructional support personnel, and data collected from the Behavioral Health Intervention Team after employing the Model of Improvement. This study supported the rationale for a Behavioral Health Intervention Team and succeeded in reducing the number students having suicidal thoughts in the district.