Our Projects
From the Gulf Coast to West Texas and from the Rio Grande Valley to the Panhandle, The Meadows Institute is helping communities and organizations improve services and systems of care that make mental health and substance use treatment better in a myriad of ways. Each of these projects represents a step forward in making Texas a national leader in mental health care.
Projects list
The Need for a Pediatric Treatment Resistant Depression Center of Excellence
SUMMARY – Treatment resistant depression is a growing problem for children in Texas and the United States. Twenty percent of children experience an episode of major depression before adulthood and rates of reported depression symptoms among children and youth grew to over 40% during the pandemic (receding in the years since to approximately 30%). Unfortunately, only about one third of these children receive needed care, and as many as 40% receive no treatment at all. Research demonstrates that untreated depression is the largest driver of suicide, which is the second and third leading cause of death in youth ages 10–14 and 15–24 in the United States, respectively. However, current models of care are inadequate to provide effective treatment, especially for children aged 12 and under. In this report, made possible by generous support from the Bette Rathjen Foundation for Emotional Health, the Meadows Institute lays out the programmatic elements necessary to implement a pediatric treatment resistant depression Center of Excellence, including indepth examination of services, staffing, and related expenses.
A Texas Solution to a National Challenge: How Telehealth Can Bolster Youth Mental Health in the Near-Term
SUMMARY – The nation’s young people are facing a growing mental health challenge, one that has been amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic and mental health workforce shortages. This extends to Texas children and youth who face serious mental health issues despite the Texas Legislature’s unprecedented investments in behavioral health over the last decade. Ninety-nine percent of Texas counties still have partial mental health shortage designations, and rural areas face particular challenges to providing youth access to high-quality mental health care given the insufficient workforce. While a multi-pronged approach is needed to meet the mental health needs of Texas’ young people, one important near-term strategy centers on expanding access to and use of telehealth services. Importantly, there are opportunities for both the public and private sectors to act today to advance solutions for increasing access to quality mental health services for youth.
Increasing Measurement-Based Assessment and Care for People with Serious Mental Illness
SUMMARY – Measurement-based care (MBC) is an important strategy to facilitate early screening, early intervention, mitigation of medication adverse effects and improved overall mental health outcomes for people with TD. In the case of TD, MBC provides an effective mechanism to detect early symptoms and develop and monitor a treatment plan, but it is only practiced by a fraction of mental health clinicians. This policy brief identifies barriers and facilitators and offers relevant policy recommendations to increase the adoption of MBC.
Collaborative Care Model Technical Assistance Tools
SUMMARY – This set of technical assistance tools was developed by the Meadows Institute, in collaboration with select partners, to meaningfully support primary care teams seeking to implement high-fidelity Collaborative Care (CoCM).