CoPPCAP Partners with ECHO to Address Colorado’s Youth Mental Health Crisis
Mar 4, 2025
Colorado is currently experiencing a significant youth mental health crisis. Suicide is the leading cause of death for young people in the state, and Children’s Hospital Colorado has reported that rates of anxiety and depression among Colorado kids doubled during the pandemic, with 44 percent of teens feeling persistently sad or hopeless. Pediatric primary care is most often the first stop for assessment and treatment of pediatric behavioral concerns, yet the education and training to assess and treat mild to moderate behavioral health conditions may be lacking for many providers.
To help address this crisis, in March 2020, the Colorado Pediatric Psychiatry Consultation & Access Program (CoPPCAP) partnered with ECHO Colorado to offer Pediatric Psychiatry in Primary Care: Core Essentials, a seven-week ECHO series designed to equip participants with the knowledge to diagnose and treat mild to moderate pediatric behavioral health conditions. The program has evolved to meet provider needs and CoPPCAP has developed two additional series (Beyond Core Essentials and Above and Beyond Core Essentials) as part of the program. In all, CoPPCAP has offered 29 ECHO cohorts on pediatric psychiatry, serving 423 providers.
Learning based on ECHO’s “all teach all learn” model has been shown to lead providers to positively change their screening and treatment practices. ECHO sessions include input from parent panelists, pediatric psychiatric pharmacists, pediatricians and child psychologists, and case-based discussions. The series align with the recommended Mental Health Competencies as defined by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
“With earlier treatment in childhood, it is hoped that some of the comorbidities seen in the teen years will be lessened,” said Sandra Fritsch, M.D., MSEd, DFAACAP, Medical Director, Pediatric Mental Health Institute, Children’s Hospital Colorado. “We also are acutely aware of the many professional challenges facing our pediatric primary care providers and blend self-care principles into the series.”
Cohort 16 of Pediatric Psychiatry in Primary Care: Core Essentials runs March 20 to May 1. Topics include assessment and screening, “What is Therapy,” assessing and treating anxiety, ADHD and depression, trauma and assessing suicidality. Each session includes a didactic presentation by an expert followed by case discussion and Q&A with the experts. Click here for more information and to register.
To help address this crisis, in March 2020, the Colorado Pediatric Psychiatry Consultation & Access Program (CoPPCAP) partnered with ECHO Colorado to offer Pediatric Psychiatry in Primary Care: Core Essentials, a seven-week ECHO series designed to equip participants with the knowledge to diagnose and treat mild to moderate pediatric behavioral health conditions. The program has evolved to meet provider needs and CoPPCAP has developed two additional series (Beyond Core Essentials and Above and Beyond Core Essentials) as part of the program. In all, CoPPCAP has offered 29 ECHO cohorts on pediatric psychiatry, serving 423 providers.
Learning based on ECHO’s “all teach all learn” model has been shown to lead providers to positively change their screening and treatment practices. ECHO sessions include input from parent panelists, pediatric psychiatric pharmacists, pediatricians and child psychologists, and case-based discussions. The series align with the recommended Mental Health Competencies as defined by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
“With earlier treatment in childhood, it is hoped that some of the comorbidities seen in the teen years will be lessened,” said Sandra Fritsch, M.D., MSEd, DFAACAP, Medical Director, Pediatric Mental Health Institute, Children’s Hospital Colorado. “We also are acutely aware of the many professional challenges facing our pediatric primary care providers and blend self-care principles into the series.”
Cohort 16 of Pediatric Psychiatry in Primary Care: Core Essentials runs March 20 to May 1. Topics include assessment and screening, “What is Therapy,” assessing and treating anxiety, ADHD and depression, trauma and assessing suicidality. Each session includes a didactic presentation by an expert followed by case discussion and Q&A with the experts. Click here for more information and to register.