Clinical Perspectives 7
7.3 FLEXIBLE ADAPTATION OF SCHOOL PSYCHIATRY CONSULTATION TO MEET THE NEEDS OF SCHOOLS DURING COVID-19

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Objectives

Child and adolescent psychiatrists who provide school consultation services must be flexible in responding to the needs of schools during times of crisis. The University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry provides a half-day per week of consultation services to the Washoe County School District (WCSD). Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, this service consisted mainly of on-site school-based evaluations by a child and adolescent psychiatrist faculty member together

Methods

The 15-year history of the school consultation relationship between the UNR Department of Psychiatry and the WCSD will be described, with an emphasis on adaptations that occurred as a result of the pandemic. The benefits and challenges of delivering school consultation services virtually will be discussed.

Results

The WCSD, located in Reno, Nevada, has an enrollment of 64,359 students across 120 schools. Like all school districts across the country, WCSD switched to all-distance learning in the Spring of 2020. During this time, the UNR School Consultation Service shifted to all-virtual consultation, which included informal school team meetings and student evaluations that occurred over Zoom. By invitation of the district leadership, the UNR School Consultation Service participated in the district's

Conclusions

Child and adolescent psychiatrists can play an important role in supporting schools during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Lessons learned from the UNR School Consultation Service’s experience with the COVID-19 pandemic can help to inform the evolution of school-based psychiatry consultation.

CON, EDUC, SC

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