Background: Given the emerging information about the COVID-19 pandemic's detrimental impacts on youth well-being, it is paramount to consider interventions that may mitigate these consequences, especially those available in socially distanced, outdoor settings. Further, adolescents in rural settings are at a significant disadvantage for accessing…

Rural communities face significant mental health disparities. Two universities developed a training model for rural school-based counseling students, which began with a rural life orientation. This case study's findings demonstrate the value of place-attentive pedagogy and experiential learning. The study offers implications for how programs can…

In a state ravaged by suicide and a mental health crisis, this study sought to mitigate impacts of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and depressive and anxiety symptomology in high school students in a rural Montana community. Through a seven-week, twice weekly intervention of trauma-informed yoga, participants experienced statistically…

The Center for Collegiate Mental Health found that between 2009 and 2015, colleges saw an increase in counseling center use by up to 40 percent, despite only a 5 percent increase in enrollment. The most common concerns among college students are anxiety and depression. Experts point out that this increase could be attributed to students being more…

In 2017, the National Association of School Psychologists described tele-assessment as the least researched area of telehealth. This became problematic in 2020 when COVID-19 curtailed the administration of face-to-face assessments. Publishers began to offer computer-adapted tele-assessment methods for tests that had only previously been…

Patient-centered care is extending the sphere of health care beyond the patient, focusing attention upon the family caregiver(s). In this context, patient-family relationships are at the center of consistent, well-developed interprofessional interventions that encompass caregiver education, training, and wellness. Cohort models of intervention…

Child- and family-serving programs in community-based settings wield tremendous power for improving the lives of infants and toddlers. In this article, three authors, from Ohio, Montana, and Sierra Leone, describe the principles of adaptive leadership and will share their real-world applications. Their stories explore critical questions for…

There is a growing emphasis in U.S. schools to focus on the social-emotional issues of rural students. Specifically, the effect of mental health issues on school success underscores the importance of collaboration between, and among, educators and specialized support personnel (SSP; e.g., school counselors). In rural areas, school counselors and…

Tribal colleges and universities are working in their communities to identify factors that negatively impact health and are training the next generation of healthcare workers to deal with them. And they are making a difference--not just in the lives of their students, but in the lives of future patients.

Examined perceptions of Montana residents regarding health, health needs, and health care services. Respondents defined health in relation to ability to function and work; pain appeared less important in determining the rural person's notion of health. Self-reliance and self-help were used to cope with illness; family and friends were relied upon…

Surveys of 30 mental health service providers and 74 American Indian consumers of such services in Butte, Montana, examined mental health services offered for adults and children, service use by American Indians, referral practices, providers' and consumers' perceptions of the mental health needs of American Indians, and consumers' interest in…

To address the local health care needs of both patients and primary care providers in Montana, an integrated primary care and behavioral health family practice clinic was developed. In this paper we describe our experience with integrating mental health and substance abuse services into a primary care setting (a community health center) while…