TurningPointCT.org was developed by young people in Connecticut who are in recovery from mental health and substance use issues.
Central Connecticut Resource List for Students & Families
Great Resource for Families: Helping Our Children -- Supporting Their Mental Health
Bristol Central High School is proud to partner with both Wheeler Clinic and Community Health Center to expand access to mental health services for our students. Please read below for more information about these services that are offered to our students. If you are interested in either service or have additional questions, please reach out to your student’s school counselor.
Wheeler Clinic
Wheeler and the Bristol Public Schools have partnered to expand access to mental health services for students attending schools within the Bristol Public School System. School‐based behavioral health clinics located at these schools will employ a national cognitive-behavioral intervention model to help students address trauma‐related issues, including post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and behavioral health issues, and provide other evidence‐based interventions to address an array of problems, including anxiety, depression, substance use, academic and peer challenges, and more. Linkage to other services in the Bristol
community, including connections with primary and dental care, afterschool programming and a broad continuum of outpatient and community‐based levels of care also are provided. A Wheeler clinician supports each school location “on‐site” on various days per week.
School-based services include:
- Integrated behavioral health assessment
- Individual therapy
- Family therapy
- Targeted group therapy
- Coordination of care with the school
- Facilitate linkages to primary and dental care
As part of Wheeler’s network of care, children and families are able to seek additional support from any of our outpatient locations based on the convenience of the family. This partnership will enable continuity of care to best meet your child’s needs. If a parent or legal guardian of students would like to enroll their child in services; they may contact their child’s school counselor to assist with scheduling an initial appointment. Upon receipt of the referral, a school-based Wheeler clinician will schedule an assessment with the parent/legal guardian and their child to determine the best approach for care. Treatment services begin with an initial evaluation
which takes place at the school with both the child and parent. Following the assessment, a comprehensive plan for care is established.
Community Health Center
Bristol Central High School is proud to partner with Community Health Center (CHC) this school year. As educators, we recognize that these uncertain times are extremely challenging for our students. We also recognize that in order for students to learn, their mental health and emotional needs must first be met, which is why we are thrilled to establish this working relationship with CHC.
CHC has incorporated School-Based Behavioral Health Services at our school and now has a full-time behavioral health clinician, Erika Szarzynski, working on-site. Students will have the opportunity to take part in weekly individual therapy sessions. Sessions will run approximately 30-60 minutes. Enrolling your student in school-based behavioral health services is easy and can be completed through the online enrollment form. The form is offered in both English and Spanish and can be found at www.sbhc1.com. The link will take you directly to the school-based health services page where you can select your language preference and follow three easy steps which include selecting your city, your child’s school, and completing the actual enrollment form. Once completed, you will sign the form electronically and Erika will reach out to you within a couple of days to schedule an intake session. Insurance will be billed for the services, but there is no co-pay. Also, a student will never be turned away for not having insurance so every student is welcome to this service regardless. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Erika at (860) 584-7735 ext. 611181 or email her at [email protected].