Guest column: Our mental health providers need Oklahoma to invest in rural youths
Western Plains Youth & Family Services (WPYFS) is a nonprofit, certified youth mental health agency serving seven counties in northwest Oklahoma, including the Panhandle. Western Plains serves this area through main offices in Woodward, satellite offices in Guymon and Laverne and the Northwest Oklahoma Juvenile Detention Center. The nonprofit accepts children statewide in the emergency youth shelter and detention center. A mobile crisis unit is available to respond to emergencies at any time. No one is charged for services.
Increasing numbers of infants, young children and their families who need mental health support is a pressing issue across rural Oklahoma. Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Programs (IECMH) are difficult programs to deliver, especially as infants are not always able to tell caregivers or their parents what is wrong. We face a huge responsibility in meeting this need.
What specifically has Western Plains done to serve this growing issue? In 2020, a new wing was added to our main offices to become the Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Center. The center is fully equipped to deliver infant and early childhood services and has facilities available for training caregivers working with young children. Western Plains sees the programs as a prevention. Mental health specialists are placed with parents, teachers and other adults who give care to infants and young children, with Western Plains having the capability to work directly with the children as the need arises. Our goal is to equip caregivers with the knowledge and resources needed so that the caregiver can facilitate the children’s normal development.
Western Plains received financial support from the Arnall Family Foundation, and others, including the Potts Family Foundation, have shared experience, knowledge and supported the program. The financial support was used to create “The WPYFS Expanded and Enhanced Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Services (IECMH Delivery Model).” which can now offer support and training for teachers, early childhood development professionals, child welfare workers, parents and foster parents. And this is a delivery model that can be replicated in other areas of the state.
Operation of the juvenile detention center gives Western Plains a comprehensive look at successes and failures of mental health programs. Our detention program focuses on real rehabilitation designed to return the youths back to a normal productive life. We tell them “We are investing in you to never come back.” It is working. However, it is evident that we wouldn’t have as many kids in detention if our state focused more on early and less costly prevention services and programs.
These challenges must be met. We are investing in people now so that they will be ready to live a full life. We cannot afford for these children who need help now to grow up later with having the benefit of being helped at an early age.
Kevin Evans is the executive director of Western Plains Youth & Family Services in Woodward, Oklahoma.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Our mental health providers need Oklahoma to invest in rural youth
