TEAM UP is proud to announce that Boston Medical Center is launching the Transforming and Expanding Access to Mental Health Care in Urban Pediatrics (TEAM UP) Scaling and Sustainability Center to combat the rising mental health crisis among children. BMC’s TEAM UP, which began in 2015 and is now the standard of behavioral healthcare in seven pediatric clinics, will expand to reach 126,000 children in 29 clinics across the Commonwealth.
The TEAM UP expansion comes after multiple studies showing that the model’s approach to early identification, intervention and treatment works. BMC’s TEAM UP supports pediatric primary care practices with clinical training, implementation support, and technical assistance. Patients are connected with behavioral health services within their pediatric medical home often on the same day a concern is identified. Over a 12-month period, children receiving mental health services in TEAM UP health centers experienced significant improvement in mental health symptoms, health-related quality of life, and school-related functioning, including fewer missed school days. To date, 40,000 patients have been served through the initiative.
The expansion is made possible through anchor funding from the Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation and The Klarman Family Foundation.