With the youth mental health crisis at an all-time high, it’s more important than ever for children, teens, and young adults to have access to quality mental healthcare.
Among adolescents ages 10-19, depression, anxiety, and behavioral disorders are some of the leading causes of illness and disability. And when those mental health conditions are not addressed in adolescence, the consequences can impact teens’ abilities to lead fulfilling lives as adults.
At Backpack Healthcare, we’re on a mission to provide inclusive, accessible, and comprehensive care to young people who need it. And we’re committed to reaching as many people as possible, providing high-quality care that overcomes demographic barriers like race, socioeconomic status, and language.
To make that mission more concrete, we’ve set an ambitious goal for ourselves: To complete one million mental health assessments by World Mental Health Day of 2026.
Raising Awareness: The First Step to Healing
If we want to address the mental health crisis, we need to begin by tackling the stigma and other barriers that hold people back from accessing mental healthcare.
We believe mental health assessments are a powerful tool for raising awareness, opening people’s eyes to the realities of mental illness, and then pointing them toward valuable resources like therapy.
Mental health assessments are especially powerful for children and teens, as prevention and early detection are a vital part of effectively treating mental illness in adolescence.
Destigmatizing Mental Health in Your Community
This World Mental Health Day, we want to encourage you to take action in the fight against mental health stigma and make sure people know about the resources available to them.
To help destigmatize mental health in your community, here are some actions you can take:
- Seek out therapy and other mental health treatments when you need help, and encourage people around you to do the same
- Talk openly about mental health with the children and teens in your life, as well as with your peers
- Educate yourself about the signs and symptoms of mental illness
- Join a support group through NAMI or another organization in your community
- Learn about the resources available to young people who are struggling in your city or school district
The mental health epidemic is too large for any one person or organization to solve on their own, but together, we can make a difference!
Partner with Backpack Healthcare to Make Mental Health Accessible to All
If you’re an educator, therapist, employer, healthcare provider or insurance provider who shares our mission of making mental healthcare accessible, we would be honored to partner with you!
Contact us to learn more about how we can work together to transform the mental health landscape for kids, teens, and young adults who may not otherwise have access to care.