As increasing numbers of adolescents and teens grapple with anxiety and depression, a new texting service has been implemented to offer local middle and high school students mental health support any time of day.
River Forest District 90, Oak Park District 97 and Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 have launched Support4U, a 24/7 service that allows students to text a licensed mental health clinician regarding topics like depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, eating disorders or bullying.
The service launched May 1, and it will be promoted more heavily leading up to the beginning of the 2018-19 school year, according to district officials.
A suicide prevention task force — made up of local school districts, police departments, the Metro Suburban chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Thrive, Riveredge Hospital and both community mental health boards — was formed almost a year ago, shortly after the suicide of an Oak Park and River Forest High School student.
“That’s where this was born out of,” said Lisa DeNunzio DeVivo, executive director of Oak Park Township’s Community Mental Health Board.
One in five teens may experience depression, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, which this year endorsed adolescent depression screenings for those 12 and older.
Eboney Lofton, senior director of special services for District 97, said they’re seeing an increasing number of middle school students with social and emotional needs, and the community collaboration to address the issue is heartening.
“A bunch of different folks came together to put this together,” Lofton said. “We are seeing students come in with a higher level of need.”
When a student texts “HOPE” to 844-670-5838, a licensed mental health clinician will respond within one to three minutes.
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Clinicians first assess the situation for crisis, said Kimberly Knake, executive director of NAMI Metro-Suburban. If it’s an urgent matter, they can contact local authorities.
Otherwise, clinicians will look to resolve the issue via text conversation, providing students with coping skills and local resources; a clinician may contact a social worker to further address the issue.
It’s a valuable resource for students who may be uncomfortable approaching an adult, Lofton said, or for times when school isn’t in session. Anonymity is key, she added.
“It’s a medium through which kids are used to engaging with each other and the world,” Lofton said.
“I would say that it’s just another layer of support for students,” said Larry Garstki, principal of Roosevelt Middle School in River Forest.
Knake said they considered many different texting services, but it was important to find a service that employed clinicians trained specifically on youth needs. LEAD, the not-for-profit that started the service in 2012 in the northern suburbs, provides quarterly analytics, allowing officials to see the topics students reach out about.
“Then we can use that data to support the schools,” Knake said.
DeNunzio DeVivo said it’s always beneficial to remove barriers for residents in need of help. Meeting kids where they are by providing a service that’s their preferred mode of communication, “that’s going to increase access,” she said.
“This is something the mental health board plans on sustaining,” DeNunzio DeVivo said.
Funding for the service, which costs about $15,000 per year for the OPRF area, was provided by both community mental health boards, the Oak Park-River Forest Rotary Club, the Oak Park-River Forest Community Foundation and Women Leaders in Philanthropy, Knake said.
“It’s just been great that the whole community has come together to support this initiative,” Knake said.
Knake noted parents also can reach out via the text service if they have concerns about their children.
DeNunzio DeVivo said there’s more to come in terms of support services for the community, including a 211 service to provide the phone call component and an app for community use.
“We’ve been working on this for a few years,” she said. “It’s just a better delivery system of health care.”