The St. Mary’s County Health Department (SMCHD) has been awarded $1.435 million in grant funding through the Maryland Consortium on Coordinated Community Supports, which is responsible for developing a statewide framework to expand access for behavioral health services for Maryland students.
Funding was made available by the Maryland General Assembly under the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future.
SMCHD’s Maryland Consortium on Coordinated Community Supports award will support the addition of behavioral health services for St. Mary’s County youth at the two School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) located at Margaret Brent and Spring Ridge Middle Schools.
New services made available through this award are expected to begin in the Summer of 2024 and will include onsite evaluation and treatment for behavioral health concerns, individual and family counseling, care coordination and youth mentoring.
The SBHCs are open to all SBHC-enrolled SMCPS students and employees, regardless of host school, during and after school hours. The SBHCs are also available after school hours for general community members who enroll in the SBHC program. SMCHD provides routine and urgent medical care, rapid testing and management for colds and chronic illnesses, sports physicals, treatment of minor injuries, and primary care services at the SBHCs. Regardless of health insurance, all persons can be seen, and a sliding fee scale is available for those without insurance.
“This grant provides the resources we need to expand behavioral health services for St. Mary’s County youth and grow our youth development programs,” said Dr. Meena Brewster, St. Mary’s County Health Officer. “The investments that the state and our County Commissioners made previously in our School-Based Health Centers are helping us bring additional grants and services to our county. I am grateful for their support, this new funding from the Maryland Consortium on Coordinated Community Supports, as well as the phenomenal work of our SMCHD Clinical Services Division Director Lisa Nelson and other health department team members leading this grant effort.”
