Does your child need help?

Specialized care is just a phone call away

D o children or adolescents in your home, classroom or children’s program struggle with their grades? Do they have trouble getting along with others, are overcome by sadness or persistently irritable? Are they easily distracted, difficult to control, hyperactive or losing the battle to control their anger? Do they behave badly at home and in public, have a poor self-image, or have trouble fitting in?

Any or all of the above circumstances could be due to a treatable mental disorder, and help is just a phone call away by calling 800-817-5292 seven days a week, evenings and holidays.

Making this call is the first step in connecting you to Children and Adolescent Outpatient Services through Imperial County Behavioral Health Services. ICBHS has a well-trained team of professionals in several locations throughout Imperial County so children can receive services in their own community.

“Children don’t know when they need help,” said Leticia Plancarte-Garcia, Deputy Director of the Children, Adolescent and Families Division of Imperial County Behavioral Health Services, so it’s up to the adults in their lives to step in. ICBHS staff can help parents, relatives, teachers and others working with children find the right kind of help, based on the child’s individual need.

Many of the professionals at Behavioral Health Services are from the Imperial Valley and are committed to provide the best care to our community.

“They understand our community and are well trained on how to help you so that you can better understand your child’s needs and how to support them,” said Jose Lepe, Behavioral Health Manager. “We are giving kids the help they need.”

For some people, there’s stigma associated with mental health that prevents them from seeking help. Taking that first step could mean the difference in whether a child succeeds as an adult or continues on a deteriorating path that could lead to more serious mental illness including substance use, involvement in the criminal justice system or relational problems.

“It’s not right not to get help, because children are the ones who suffer.” Plancarte-Garcia said. “It’s very easy to get an assessment to determine if your child needs help. Our services are provided by professional individuals who understand your culture, who speak your language, who are here to help you understand your child’s condition.”

An assessment will determine whether a child needs Behavioral Health Services and, if they do, what kinds of services may be needed.

“To become part of our program, they have to have a diagnosis that we treat,” Plancarte-Garcia

said. These include depression, anxiety, attention deficit hyperactive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, adjustment disorders, children who are oppositional and defiant or those with conduct disorder, or other common childhood disorders.

After the assessment is done and when medication treatment is recommended, a psychiatrist will assess whether medication support services are needed. If they are, the doctor will prescribe and continue to assess the effect of a medication, making adjustments as needed to ensure the child is on the appropriate treatment, Plancarte-Garcia said. Not every child requires medication.

ICBHS also has a group of trained rehabilitation technicians who help parents of a child being treated to navigate the spectrum of dealing with the diagnosis.

“Our programs are tailored to the individual needs of the child,” said Lepe. “Our services are child and family-centered and focus on incorporating their strengths in resolving the problem that brought them to our services.”

In its many therapy programs, Behavioral Health Services uses evidence-based models, which are programs proven to work based on clinical practices and through much research.