6th Annual Children’s Mental Health Summit in Boston

The Hackett Center for Mental Health, in collaboration with the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health (MAMH), convened on August 8-9 in Boston, MA to host the 6th annual Children’s Mental Health Summit.

After last year’s event in Austin, Texas, the Summit was back on the east coast for two days of discussions with a prestigious group of 40 mental health experts from Texas and Massachusetts. Attendees shared expertise and engaged in thought-provoking discussions to learn from one another and develop solutions for supporting youth and families in school and community.

Participants in this year’s Summit included leaders from The University of Texas Medical Branch, Boston Children’s Hospital, Ibn Sina Foundation, Boston University School of Medicine, Mass General Brigham, UMass Medical School, Health Law Advocates, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, UTHealth Austin and Houston, The University of Texas System, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation, and Baylor College of Medicine, along with Texas and Massachusetts state officials and national representatives.

6th Annual Children’s Mental Health Summit Boston

Dr. Danna Mauch and Dr. Quianta Moore co-hosted the event and kicked off the Summit by focusing on community oriented, collaborative solutions for supporting youth and families. Dr. Moore shared that the beauty of the Summit is that attendees come with ideas and possibilities and leave with the opportunity for impact in mental health in Texas, Massachusetts, and the nation.

John Snook, the Meadows Institute’s Chief Policy Officer, joined Shannon Ghangurde, the Meadows Institute’s Senior Fellow for State Policy, Jess Larochelle, MAMH’s Co-Director of Public Policy and Government Relations, and Massachusetts Deputy Commissioner Kelly English for a presentation on the national and local legislative landscape of children’s mental health, which included a policy perspective on the current state of mental health and a look at local legislative wins and efforts.

Other topics included school mental health, smart justice, and a two-part conversation on community-oriented mental health, which focused on building community capacity to deliver services and learning from the family experience. The Summit ended with a discussion on local practices with HHSC Deputy Executive Commissioner Sonja Gaines and Massachusetts Department Mental Health Commissioner Brooke Doyle.

Attendees discussed several opportunities to collaborate on increasing access to legal advocacy for system-involved youth, planning for statewide children’s mental health initiatives, improving connection between pediatric and maternal mental health care, and increasing children’s access to school-based mental health services. The exchange of these shared ideas, successes, and lessons was energizing for attendees, and have proven to produce real impact for each state’s innovative efforts in mental health.

The Hackett Center extends its appreciation to the Hackett Family for their support of the Summit and to Summit participants for their partnership and continued dedication to effecting meaningful change in the lives of children, youth, and families in school and community.