A Mental Health Program Targeting Adolescents is Critical

A Mental Health Program Targeting Adolescents is Critical
Introduction
This is a mental health program that seeks to help adolescents fight various mental health issues. The program will entail several steps that will help in the actualization of set objectives. Further, the program will be evaluated against set indicators to help assess its effectiveness in attaining the set objectives.
Pre-Planning
Mental health issues among adolescents happen to be a growing issue that continues to impact their wellbeing. Poor mental health happens to impact students’ grades and social lives, and could ultimately lead to death. According to WHO (2021), globally, there is a 13% burden of mental health disorders among adolescents. Further, WHO indicates that the leading mental health disorders for this group are anxiety, depression, and behavioral disorders. In the U.S., these numbers are steeper, with 1 in 3 high school students have struggled or experienced a mental health issue (CDC, 2021). With minimal coping strategies, adolescents often make bad decisions or expose themselves to other risky behaviors that further expose them to greater danger. For example, some indulge in drug abuse, others in risky sexual encounters and behaviors, and yet others become violent. There is another category that seeks to end their lives, and today, suicide is reported to be a leading cause of death for adolescents aged 15 to 19 (WHO, 2021). These sentiments are echoed by the CDC (2021), which reports that 1 in 6 high school students in the U.S. reported conjuring suicide plans in 2019. What the above helps to show is the glaring danger that adolescents face as a result of mental health issues. Therefore, this program will seek to provide adolescents with information regarding mental health, offer training on coping strategies, and introduce the advantages of social groups, including family and friends.
For this program, the stakeholders will entail community partners, hospital organizations, schools, and families. These are considered key stakeholders because of their proximity to the target population. For community partners, the idea is to find ways to introduce mental health interventions in some community programs. Hospital organizations will contribute by providing trainers and psychological counselors who will help offer guidance on coping strategies and educate adolescents regarding mental health. Schools are crucial stakeholders because of the need to initiate mental health education at the school level. Students spend a lot of time with their teachers, and the symptoms of mental health issues happen to, at times, occur in class. Finally, the families are a key part of this program because of the importance of having a healthy social support group around students with mental health issues. As Radez et al. (2021) indicate, families play a crucial role in the lives of adolescents, and therefore, healthcare professionals should ensure their involvement.
Situational Assessment
Mental health issues among adolescents happen to greatly influence their experiences in different settings. Adolescents are experiencing difficulties coping at home, in school, and even assimilating into their communities because of mental health issues. As indic...