Greetings, Network faithful. Let’s start this Friday update issue off with a mashup of Smooth Operator and Secret by Milk’n Blues. Killer harmonica solos in this one. Sade and Madonna would be proud! Enjoy the mash and then get to readin’ Friday Update, cuz we got work to do!

Most Important Reads of the Week

Assistant Professor Position Available in Marriage and Family Therapy Program at the University of South Florida
Application deadline November 16, 2022! This is an excellent opportunity to join the USF College of Behavioral & Community Sciences academic family! Download the pdf flyer here.

Teens Confide in Certain Adults More Than Parents About Mental Health
New data suggests teens reach out to educators more than their parents about mental health concerns. At the same time, experts stress both adults can play complementary roles in supporting young people’s mental health.

How to Talk About Mental Health With Your Child and Their Pediatrician
Children, teens, and families are navigating difficult times. Sometimes it can be hard to tell whether day-to-day stress is getting the best of us or when something more serious may be happening. In either case, talking with your child’s pediatrician is a great start.

Mental Health School Supplies
If you are back in school and are overwhelmed by school and the pressure that comes with it, you’re not alone. Take care of your mental health. Get started here!

‘How Are You?’ Teachers and Principals Benefit From Check-Ins, Too
From mood meters to circle time, formalized ways for teachers to routinely check on their students and take the pulse of the class are established best practices in social-emotional learning. But what about the well-being of teachers and principals? Adults can reap many of the same benefits from check-ins as students: a sense of value, belonging, and connectedness.

CDC’s Milestone Tracker App
Milestones matter! From birth to age 5, your child should reach milestones in how he or she plays, learns, speaks, acts, and moves. Photos and videos in this app illustrate each milestone and make tracking them for your child easy and fun! Track your child’s milestones from age two months to 5 years with CDC’s easy-to-use illustrated checklists; get tips from CDC for encouraging your child’s development; and find out what to do if you are ever concerned about how your child is developing.

Wraparound Data: Opportunities for Researchers and Graduate Students
Working together with hundreds of partners across the country, the National Wraparound Initiative (NWI) has gathered an abundance of data on Wraparound practice and implementation. If you are a graduate student seeking a thesis or dissertation topic, or are a researcher with expertise in child and family service delivery, and wish to take advantage of NWI and NWIC’s wealth of data and partnerships, let them hear from you!

Talking About Mental Health Can Be Hard Within Latino Families. Here’s How to Start
It’s important to normalize mental health conversations at home, but the first step is becoming more comfortable talking about mental health yourself.

Asking About Guns in Houses Where Your Child Plays
Guns hurt and kill; it’s a simple fact. And while most gun injuries and deaths result from an assault or suicide, unintentional injuries happen all the time, including to children and between them. In the six years between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2020, there were at least 2,070 unintentional shootings by children under 18 years old, resulting in 765 deaths and 1,366 injuries, according to Everytown Research and Policy. If you’re a parent — or even if you’re not — you can help reduce the odds of an accidental shooting in several ways.

What Policymakers Can Do to Address Our Behavioral Health Crisis
The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act — signed into law by President Biden in June — was a critical first step in expanding access to behavioral health services. But amidst rising rates of suicide and drug overdoses, policymakers must build on these advances if they are to stem the nation’s behavioral health crisis. In a post on the Commonwealth Fund website, Nathaniel Counts and Rachel Nuzum outline critical areas for reform, including streamlining behavioral health services with primary care, creating a more robust and diverse provider workforce, using Medicare and Medicaid to pay for more services, and reducing behavioral health inequities.

Fellowship in Health Equity Leadership Is Accepting Applications
The application for the Pozen-Commonwealth Fund Fellowship in Health Equity Leadership at Yale University is now open. The 22-month degree-granting program covers the cost of the MBA for Executives program. It gives healthcare practitioners the leadership skills and deep understanding of teams, markets, and organizations necessary to tackle inequities in U.S. healthcare. The deadline for round 1 of the application is November 1, 2022.

Highlights From Connecticut’s Youth Mobile Crisis Services Annual Report
Connecticut’s Mobile Crisis Intervention Services (Mobile Crisis) provides a critical service for children, youth, and families when a child is experiencing an emotional or behavioral crisis. This past year, demand for the service rose with an increase in call volume and episodes of care, while providers simultaneously faced staffing shortages and challenges from the pandemic. While these challenges contributed to a slight decrease in response time and mobility rates, findings from the SFY 2022 Mobile Crisis Annual Report (prepared by CHDI’s Mobile Crisis Performance Improvement Center) showed that the service continued to meet the needs of children and families.

The Economic Burden of Mental Health Inequities in the United States Report
This study, led by Daniel E. Dawes, aims to close a significant gap in behavioral health and health equity research relative to mental health inequities. Building upon three landmark reports published 20-plus years ago, this study is intended to help us shed light on an issue that we have not before been able to wrap our arms around: understanding the economic impact of our failure, as a country, to invest in behavioral health interventions, services, treatments, supports, and programs.

HHS Invests Nearly $27 Million to Expand Support for Pediatric Mental Health Care
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), is announcing awards of nearly $27 million to improve and expand mental health care for children. This funding will offer timely mental health support to children and adolescents by training pediatricians and other children’s health care providers in treating mental health conditions and by providing teleconsultation to bring mental health expert support directly to pediatric primary care providers.