Kaitlin Gallo, Ph.D.
Chief Clinical Officer
The beginning of a new academic year for college students is an exciting yet stressful time. Returning to the routine of managing classes, projects, and studying can become overwhelming.
Mental health struggles among college students are continuing to rise. College students are susceptible to experiencing mental health struggles because they are entering an unfamiliar environment with new responsibilities and stressors. On top of that, they may no longer be near the support network they have had throughout childhood and high school. According to a survey published by Gallup and the Lumina Foundation, 41% of currently enrolled college students said it was challenging to remain in their program. The survey also reveals that college students in 2022 were more likely to stop their coursework before completion than they were in 2020 or 2021.
Though the statistics are alarming, colleges and universities can take action to ensure their students get the help they need. One way to do this is to provide easily accessible mental health resources that fit into college students' busy lives. Moreover, it’s important to have the mental health and wellness tools in place to meet students where they are in their journey so they can get the right support at the right time.
Here are some mental health resources that might be beneficial for your students:
Offer a 24/7 Clinical Support Line
A mental health crisis can arise at any time of day or night, so having services available at all hours is a necessity. Of course, it is not feasible for counseling centers to operate at all hours of the day. Providing a 24/7 Clinical Support Line for students enhances the counseling center's services, whether the student needs to talk to someone while pulling an all-nighter or whether they are having an immediate safety concern about themselves or a friend.
Mental Health Counseling Options
It can also be difficult for campus counseling centers to provide enough therapists to meet the diversity and availability requests of college students. Having additional in-person and teletherapy options complements what counseling centers already offer through their on-campus clinicians.
Virtual Prescribing Clinics
It's often challenging for college students to find psychiatric services in their local community or through their insurance network. Virtual Psychiatric Clinics allow students to receive the services they need from anywhere they are located, whether on or off campus.
In addition to a 24/7 Clinical Support Line, Mental Health Counseling, and Virtual Prescribing Clinics, Christie Campus Health also offers Navigators to assist with referrals and specialty care; science-backed meditation and mindfulness tools through the Headspace app; and SilverCloud, a self-directed and clinically validated Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT). Contact Christie to learn more.