JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – Mississippi is investing more than $13 million in the mental health of the state\u2019s youngest residents.<\/p>\n
Gov. Tate Reeves announced<\/a> the funding to expand access to mental health care, training and education statewide. The University of Mississippi Medical Center and its partners will receive funding.<\/p>\n One entity that will receive more than $3 million is UMMC\u2019s Child Access to Mental Health and Psychiatry Program, known as CHAMP.<\/p>\n Dr. Dustin Sarver, a professor of psychiatry and human behavior and the executive director of the Center for Advancement of Youth, said this can be transformative for the state.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is effectively a 1-800 call a psychiatrist, 1-800 call a psychologist or a counselor for any pediatric primary care provider to get on-demand support for screening, diagnosis, treatment recommendations and medication management,\u201d Sarver said.<\/p>\n Sarver said those funds will equip providers with the skills and resources needed to expand care in communities throughout the state.<\/p>\n Another area of that funding is going to the Mental Health Workforce Training Program, known as MAGNOLIA. Almost $3 million will go toward workforce development training with students across the state.<\/p>\n \u201cNot only being able to develop a pipeline of training experiences so that we can cultivate a really high-quality talent that is able to stay here in Mississippi and then serve Mississippians later on, but we\u2019re also able to then provide a unique training experience for those individuals as well,\u201d Sarver said.<\/p>\n Sarver said the need for mental health services in the state is critical, saying Mississippi has one of the highest rates of youth mental health conditions in the nation.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you think about the number of providers that are available in the community to meet that need, we actually are very much towards the bottom, so, in many ways, we have the highest burden but also the least amount of help to reach that,\u201d Sarver said.<\/p>\n The funding will allow dedicated time and training for UMMC employees to help provide better mental health outcomes in the state.<\/p>\n Want more WLBT news in your inbox? Click here<\/a> to subscribe to our newsletter.<\/p>\n