Kona, Phil, and Koa Cromer. PHOTO BY JOSHUA KODIS

The Mental Health Association in Indian River County held its annual birthday Par-Tee at Big Shots Golf in Vero Beach to celebrate 66 years of serving the mental health needs of county residents. Supporters teed up for some friendly competition while indulging in endless appetizers and birthday cake.

Amidst the birthday celebration, the MHA was reveling in the recent opening of its newest initiative, the Parent and Child Center, which is dedicated to providing mental health services to families in the county.

“Through the Parent and Child Center, we aim to promote mental wellness and build strong support systems for families in Indian River County,” said Phil Cromer, MHA CEO and licensed psychologist.

“By utilizing empirically supported prevention and intervention models, we are committed to reducing risks associated with unaddressed mental health concerns and strengthening protective factors for our youth.”

The new center will offer a range of services including assessment/triage, referrals to appropriate services such as case management, mental health therapy, child and adolescent psychiatry, and psycho-educational services.

According to information MHA provided, there has been a critical need for accessible and affordable mental health services for children and families, and that in the 2023 State of Mental Health in America report, Florida ranks 38th in access to mental health care for youth.

Locally, the latest community health needs assessment indicated that just 38 percent of respondents to the survey have access to affordable youth mental health services, and that only 25 percent rate their children’s mental health services as satisfactory.

“We wanted to create a safe place for kids to come so we partnered with Tykes and Teens and Suncoast Mental Health,” Cromer explained.

“Tykes and Teens will be doing infant mental health and targeted case management, and Suncoast will be doing family support services. We want to make this a one-stop shop for the entire family. At our walk-in clinic we often handle crisis situations. We want to get to the root of the problem, because if we can get to the kids early and often, we can prevent all kinds of psychological problems later in life,” he added.

“We have a therapist who does individual counseling and another therapist who does skill building. Not every kid needs therapy. Sometimes they are just lacking social or academic skills. A lot of the younger kids were stuck at home during COVID and weren’t able to develop those skills and others are so wrapped up in social media and the use of their cellphones that they lack the ability to sit and work through a problem. They need to learn the art of stick-to-it-ness,” said Cromer.

He said the Parent and Child Center will also serve as a training facility for healthcare workers, “providing practicum and internship placements for college students pursuing careers in human services or mental health counseling professions.”

For more information about the Mental Health Association or the Parent and Child Center, visit MHAIRC.org.

Photos by Joshua Kodis