County partnership offers free mental health services
KidsPeace will continue to provide free mental health assessments to the community under a new partnership with Lehigh County.
The new partnership will allow KidsPeace to expand its assessment program, which is offered at its clinics at 801 E. Green St. in Allentown and 1620 Broadway in Bethlehem. The clinics can be contacted at 610-7998910 and 610-799-8600, respectively.
The program provides children and adults, free of charge and without an appointment, with assessments by a clinical professional, safety screenings, risk assessments, safety plans and recommendations on further care.
Lehigh County will reimburse KidsPeace for the costs associated with providing free assessments.
“The walk-in assessment program costs upwards of $40,000 a year for the two clinics — a cost KidsPeace has borne from its own reserves since we started the assessments 10 years ago,” KidsPeace Executive Director of PA Community Programs Chris Ferry said in a news release. “This agreement ensures we will be able to continue to provide individuals in our community the care they need, at the moment they need it the most.”
The county will also fund telehealth services for residents waiting for follow-up care along with a new case manager position for helping families get recommended services.
“One of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic has been an increase in the number of cases of depression, anxiety and other mental health issues among our children,” Joshua Bridges, Lehigh County administrator for Mental Health, Intellectual Disabilities, Early Intervention Services, and Drug & Alcohol, said in the release. “We receive calls from parents who are frustrated as they try to navigate the system on their own to get help for their children. We are committed to eliminating barriers to care for our residents where we can, and that’s why we’re pleased to work with a partner like KidsPeace to address this need.”
Research from the Lehigh Valley Justice Institute on middle and high school students in the Lehigh Valley suggests the same regarding emerging mental health struggles in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a report from February 2021, the National Alliance on Mental Illness said that over 1.8 million Pennsylvania adults have a mental health condition, and that 98,000 Pennsylvanians aged 12 to 17 have depression.