Campaign initiatives
Upstate Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Fellowship Click here to learn more…
Elmcrest Children’s Center Click here to learn more…
Suicide Prevention Click here to learn more…
Upstate Opioid Bridge Clinic Click here to learn more…
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Click here to learn more…
Eating Disorders Click here to learn more…
Biobehavioral Health Inpatient Unit Click here to learn more…
Background
The availability of mental health services, especially for children and adolescents, has never equaled the demand. In the years leading up to the Covid-19 pandemic, workforce shortages left many families with few options for mental health care. Stigma reduced accessibility further, and limited insurance coverage contributed to a declining capacity to deliver services to those in need, leaving children in jeopardy and families in states of desperation. The Covid-19 pandemic only worsened the situation, highlighting the glaring limitations of the current system while simultaneously increasing the mental health needs of an already underserved population.
Alarming rates of depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation have been reported in pediatric patients, and staff at Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital are responding to calls for mental health consults in record numbers, from 1,952 calls in 2019 to 2,685 in 2021. Young people facing a mental health crisis are flooding hospitals, causing a reduction in the number of beds and staffing for patients with physical illnesses and injuries. Limited referral options hinder the continuation of care, and as a result, some high-risk patients are housed at the Children’s Hospital for extended periods of time because needed programs do not exist in the Central New York community or have reached capacity.
Children and families in crisis
The mental health of our children and adolescents has become so concerning that the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the Children’s Hospital Association recently declared a national emergency. The US Surgeon General has called for growth of community-level mental health teams for children. Children and families are in crisis in our community, and mental health service providers simply cannot keep up withthe need. The demand is simply too great.
How you can help
Your donation will impact this urgent crisis.
Give online: click here
Give by mail: Upstate Foundation, 750 East Adams Street, Syracuse, NY 13210
Make check payable to: Upstate Foundation and reference the Child Mental Health in the memo
Give by phone: 315-464-4416
Named Giving Opportunities
For more information about Named Giving Opportunities, please call the Upstate Foundation office: 315-464-4416.