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Free mental health resources available to students, families in Boise, Kuna and West Ada school districts [1]

['Kyle Pfannenstiel', 'More From Author', '- December']

Date: 2023-12

As students in the Boise area prepare for winter break, free mental health resources are available to students and families.

Free counseling sessions are available for families in the Boise, Kuna and West Ada school districts through a partnership between the school districts, Central District Health and BPA Health, according to a news release this week from Central District Health.

The partnership, called the Student and Family Assistance Program, lets families access free counseling sessions throughout the year. Even if students don’t participate, family members eligible for the counseling can still access the program, the news release said.

The program offers a 24/7 crisis hotline at 833-935-3816. The Student and Family Assistance Program offers five sessions per behavioral issue, and it is a short-term program geared toward helping with issues from academic pressures, issues related to drug and alcohol use, issues in relationships or behaviors, anger and other mental health issues.

Anyone in a mental health crisis in the U.S. can call or text 988 for help. That’s the national Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, linked to more than 200 local crisis centers.

“Recently, there has been an increase in youth suicides in southern Idaho, and junior high and high school students in the Treasure Valley have been identified as a population of increased risk,” Central District Health Education Specialist Sierra Kistler said in the news release. “It’s important students and families know about resources available to them and their loved ones.”

Central District Health holds free suicide prevention trainings and shares medication lock boxes and gun locks to residents in the four county region it serves in southwestern Idaho in Ada, Boise, Elmore and Valley counties. Contact the health district at [email protected].

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