Finding a Need and Not Filling It

Today I discovered a collaboration between two youth mental health agencies. Both agencies fulfill needs in the community however, their collaboration doesn’t fulfill one of the biggest community needs that their collaboration and combined expertise could provide.

Their collaboration refuses to work with youth with autism spectrum disorder or severe emotional disorders. They were provided almost half a million in local community foundation dollars to start a day treatment program that expressly blocks many families from very needed resources.

I remember when one of the agencies was about to open, many community leaders applauded the ability that they would solve so many issues with adolescent mental health. I’ve had many conversations with the director over the phone and emails.

Like I said in my last post, we need to make agencies do more than just awareness campaigns. We need agencies and non-profits to actually fulfill some needs in the community. New programs and initiatives should be carefully analyzed before they are provided extensive community foundation resources. With the client criteria this collaboration works to serve, many other less clinically trained agencies and staff already fulfill the same need. What the community needs is more clinical practice professionals willing to fulfill clinical practice needs.