The Mental Health Services Program for Youth

This paper traces the development of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Mental Health Services Program for Youth, a private initiative designed to improve the organization, financing, and delivery of service to seriously mentally ill youth. The rationale and structure of this five-year initiative are discussed. In July 1989, 12 one-year development grants were awarded under the program's first phase. All of the grantees propose to utilize a number of strategies to restructure their mental health financing systems. Other common features include: the development of central intake units, early identification mechanisms, stronger utilization review protocols, and unified client tracking mechanisms.