KENOSHA, Wis. — A critical gap in care for kids experiencing a mental health crisis narrowed significantly on Friday.
Children’s Wisconsin opened the state’s second walk-in mental health clinic at its Kenosha location near I-94 and Highway 50.
“Families said to us, we need somewhere else to go when we’re having an urgent need,” said Amy Herbst, Vice President of Mental and Behavorial Health at Children’s Wisconsin. “And so we listened to them.”
The Kenosha clinic was built off the success of the Craig Yabuki Mental Health Walk-In Clinic in Milwaukee. It was funded by a $3 million donation from Kohl’s.
Both clinics are staffed by licensed therapists, social workers and clinic assistants. Children and teens ages 5-18 can access care immediately, with no appointment or referral required.
“We tried something new and different that we’ve never done before and we’ve been widely successful,” Herbst said.
The Kenosha clinic opened 1 p.m. Friday. Hours are 1 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday with expanded hours expected in the future.
According to the annual report by the Wisconsin Office of Children’s Mental Health, 1 in 10 Wisconsin teenagers say they attempted suicide and half of all kids have been diagnosed with depression, anxiety or behavioral problems.
At the same time, half of Wisconsin youth report difficulty obtaining mental health services.
“We’ve seen a lot of students and families struggling with mental health,” said Stacy Guckenberger, Kenosha Unified School District Director of Special Education and Student Support.
“And just having that access is going to be so important. Also, it kind of promotes some acceptance with mental health because that’s an issue as well.”
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