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Health & Wellness

Do you know what’s on his mind?

His well-being may depend on it.

Eighty Percent of Young People Aren’t Getting Help
About two million teenagers are affected by depression. Most of these teens go undiagnosed and untreated, according to the United States Preventive Services Task Force, an independent panel of medical experts in prevention and primary care. The U.S. Surgeon General reports that 11 percent of the nation’s youth suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder that causes impairment in their daily lives. Yet only 20 percent of those teens are identified and receive mental health services.

Doctors Can Make A Difference
Doctors in the EmblemHealth, GHI, GHI HMO and HIP networks are working with Columbia University’s TeenScreen National Center for Mental Health Checkups, a pioneering force in the early identification of mental illness in teens. When conducted thoughtfully and with parental permission, a mental health checkup can help point out and address teen depression and other emotional health problems early on. Mental health screening for teens is recommended by various professional organizations.*

Free Mental Health Screening Questionnaires
If you are a parent, the next time your teen sees the doctor for a checkup or well visit, ask about free mental health screening questionnaires from Columbia University. The questions ask about common issues in their lives. This is how it works:

• Teens can fill out the questionnaires in the waiting or examining room. The questions should only take five minutes to complete.
• The doctor will review the answers and talk about any areas that seem to concern your teen.
• If needed, your doctor can give you and your family resources and referrals through EmblemHealth’s mental health partners.

For Doctors—How to Get Started
You can e-mail MentalHealthCheckups@childpsych.columbia.edu or call 1-212-265-4426 to request the Quick Start Guide for Mental Health Checkups. The guide provides all the information you and your staff needs to participate in the program, including key phone numbers for referrals.

Doctors will get reimbursed for administering a mental health checkup during a well-child exam or routine office visit. Click here for a chart on applicable reimbursement codes.

About Columbia University’s TeenScreen National Center for Mental Health Checkups
Since 1992, Columbia University has led research efforts to identify risk factors related to youth mental illness. TeenScreen is the largest of its kind in the U.S and is recognized as a national model for teen mental health screening by more than 30 professional health, family and advocacy organizations and is listed in the National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices. For additional information, go to www.teenscreen.org.

*The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, the Institute of Medicine, the National Research Council, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Society of Adolescent Medicine recommend that doctors perform routine screenings for depression for their adolescent patients.