Expert Available to Discuss Back-to-School and Mental Health: Helping students handle stress of a new school year

WHO: Cindy Jones, director, Psychiatric Intake Response Center (PIRC) at Children’s of Alabama, is available for interviews about coping with the stress and anxiety that a new school year can cause for students and parents.

WHY: Returning to school can lead to stress and anxiety for students and their families. Now that school is back in session, here are some areas of concern that Jones can address in interviews:

• Coping with difficult situations
• Social media
• Bullying and cyber-bullying
• Warning signs, such as mood changes, intense feelings, behavior changes, difficulty concentrating, unexplained weight loss/gain, isolation, physical symptoms, physical harm and substance abuse

Children’s of Alabama and the Anne B. LaRussa Foundation of Hope established PIRC in 2018 to help patients, families and providers better navigate the mental health care system. The PIRC serves as a confidential phone response center linking adult callers to mental health resources for children and teens. Licensed mental health professionals match patients and their families with mental health services as well as assess risk factors, answer questions about mental health concerns and provide community resource information and safety planning for future crises. More information about the PIRC is available online at childrensal.org/PIRC.

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