Topeka agency will take a leading role in trauma treatment for children.
Family Service & Guidance Center (FSGC) is one of just 27 mental health centers in the country to be selected to participate in a nationwide training partnership being convened by the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare. At the end of the year-long project, FSGC will be a regional leader in treating child and adolescent trauma.
FSGC Chief Executive Officer Brenda Mills said that the children and families the agency serves will see tremendous benefits from the partnership.
“Over one third of our children are dealing with trauma or anxiety,” she said. “This partnership will give us the newest, most innovative strategies to help them live happier, healthier lives.”
The National Council’s Trauma-Informed Behavioral Healthcare Learning Community will provide FSGC staff with access to individual and group training by leading trauma experts, webinars, opportunities to meet with other partner agencies and access to exclusive tools and resources.
Traumatic stress is a reality among millions of children. Bullying at school, violence at home and in local neighborhoods and substance abuse take a toll on children and teens. Some studies have even indicated that trauma alters the way young children’s brains develop and can leave them in a heightened state of alarm their entire lives. This can undermine their physical and mental health, impede their ability to develop relationships and block success in school.
The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare is a professional organization made up of 2,200 mental health centers and other agencies. The National Council is based in Rockville, MD.Family Service & Guidance Center is a nonprofit community mental health center that serves over 12,000 children, adolescents and families each year with a full range of mental health care services. FSGC is celebrating its 110th anniversary of serving northeast Kansas children and families this year.
For more information on FSGC’s selection to the training partnership, or about any of FSGC’s programs or services, contact Pam Evans, Director of Marketing and Development, at 785.232.7902 or pevans@fsgctopeka.com.