Child Mental Health Efforts Part Of Bowen Report
By Leah Sander
InkFreeNews
WARSAW — Bowen Center is focused on “more patients, different patients, and collaborating even more with our community services to make sure that the people here of Kosciusko County get the best that they deserve.”
Bowen Center President and CEO Dr. Rob Ryan stated that at the Kosciusko County Commissioners’ meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 11, as part of a report to the governing body. Other Bowen leaders also spoke as part of the presentation.
Bowen’s focus includes helping with children’s mental health, said Ryan.
“Something that (Bowen CFO) Jay (Baumgartner), (Bowen COO) Shannon (Hannon) and I are committing to is finding new ways to work closely with our schools, social services and local government,” said Ryan. “While we provide in-school services and prepaid services to every student here in Kosciusko County, we met with Warsaw School leadership this summer to find new ways to get in front of parents and students.”
One of Bowen’s directors, Mike Murphy, explained more about how Bowen is helping kids.
“Every public school in Kosciusko County has a relationship with us where … they can get services through our organization,” he said. “That’s one of the best things that we’ve been able to accomplish because we’ve got a number of students who struggle with many different things. You think about the bullying and the different things that happen in schools. So that’s just one of the many ways that we’re there.”
“Another one of our great relationships that we have is with the Department of Child Services,” said Murphy. “Just when we’re evaluating different programs, the new Family Preservation Program that we have that’s geared towards keeping families together has been phenomenal. It’s been such a huge success. Just in the Syracuse area alone, we’ve had seven of those families that we’ve gotten that we’ve been able to keep together. So that’s about a 95% hit rate on that program with those families that we’ve been given. It’s just an awesome program that we’ve been able to develop.”
DCS also will contact Bowen regarding child cases “when there’s abuse or neglect that’s suspected,” said Murphy.
“The Department of Child Services will call me and say, ‘Hey, I’ve got a kiddo that needs to come and get looked over (to) make sure that everything’s OK or everything’s not OK,’ which has just been a phenomenal resource because we get to be the first people to lay eyes on those kids, who then may go to our outpatient offices and get connected,” he said.
Another of Bowen’s directors, Johanna Hendrikse, shared about some of the need the Center is seeing for its services among youth.
“Just in Warsaw Community Schools alone, the number of students utilizing those student-assistance program sessions increased by over 200% this last school year from the previous year,” she said. “So there’s no denying the need is there. When I think about where the need of our community is growing the most, sadly, I do think it’s among our children and our students. So again, we feel privileged that we partner with the schools.”
“I do think the need is definitely growing, but I think that data and the increase in what we’re seeing come through our office also speaks to the relationships that we’re intentionally building with the folks in the schools,” said Hendrikse.
Hannon mentioned that Bowen is looking into offering expanded services for youth as well as all ages.
“We heard clearly from school personnel and superintendents that there’s a need for some expanded services beyond mental health and primary care,” she said. “Some of the behavioral issues they’re seeing from students might be because they can’t see the board clearly, and it’s going to take months to get in to see an optometrist or perhaps the student lost the one pair of glasses their family could afford to get for them. Looking at optometry and dental services are two additional things that we view as part of our responsibility to be able to respond to in Kosciusko County.”
Other highlights of the report include Hendrikse noting how Bowen is providing mental health services as part of the Kosciusko County Jail Chemical Addiction Program and Ryan mentioning how Bowen has worked with both Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory’s mental health services initiative C.A.R.E.S. and Fellowship Missions to address mental health and social needs.
In other business, commissioners:
- Heard from Kosciusko County Veteran Service Officer Darryl McDowell that the October Veteran of the Month presentation has been moved to 1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13, at Java Jacks in Mentone. That is to accommodate this month’s veteran, Rex Allen Yarian, who served in the U.S. Army. He has cancer and was recently in a car accident as well.
- Approved a memorandum of understanding with Warsaw Community Schools as the county is using some of the corporation’s property at Claypool Elementary School for one of its new public safety communications towers. That also allows the corporation to have some of its communication system linked to that particular tower.
- Appointed local attorney Austin Rovenstine to the county’s Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council. The council, required by state law, examines alternative sentencing programs in the county like work release and JCAP. Other members of the council include: attorney Tony Garza, Prosecutor Dan Hampton, Judges Mike Reed and Karin McGrath, Chief Probation Officer Tammy Johnston, Hendrikse from the Bowen Center and County Council member Kathy Groninger.
Commissioners’ next meeting is 9 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 25, at the Kosciusko County Courthouse’s Old Courtroom.