The HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration awarded the New Jersey Department of Health a five-year, $2.3-million grant to improve telehealth programs for children and adolescents in need of behavioral and mental healthcare.
The grant will support the "New Jersey Family-Centered Mental Health Access Program" by adding telehealth services to the state's Pediatric Psychiatry Collaborative, a network of nine regional hospital-based centers that screen children up to age 10 for mental health concerns.
The grant will be used to provide telehealth training and technical assistance to 1,800 primary care providers. It will also be used to help recruit providers to the program and to create creation an online referral database.
"Creating new, innovative ways for New Jersey's children and teens to better access behavioral and mental healthcare is a vital step in ensuring they receive the best possible care," said the state's First Lady Tammy Murphy. "Expanding integrated treatment options with telehealth will alleviate some of the logistical challenges associated with receiving care and encourage those who are not receiving treatment to seek help."