The silent surge: How an innovative program at Cleveland Clinic is reaching kids in mental health emergencies — before it's too late

Sonar Mental Health, the developer of the AI-powered “wellbeing companion” named Sonny, is offering its services to schools that struggle to meet students’ demand for mental health services. Sonny’s algorithm also has trained humans working behind the scenes to ensure students receive proper care. The hybrid bot is available in more than 4,500 public middle and high schools across the country, many of which are in rural and low-income areas.

The youth-led Foundation for Younger Generation gives young people a platform to talk about their mental health with peers and licensed therapists. The group hosts events in-person and online through platforms like WhatsApp and has since reached about 400 people.

In rural parts of Wyoming, many people have trouble accessing mental health care resources, but telemedicine is changing that. Employing graduate students as counselors, people can access a telehealth clinic in order to obtain support in the form of specialized trauma care.

In the early 2000s, Minnesota implemented a systematic approach to address inadequate mental health access for students by contracting with outside agencies to place licensed mental health providers directly in public schools. The state expanded funding from $4.7 million in 2008 to over $20 million today, growing from therapists in just five schools to now serving 82% of the state's public school districts.

New Jersey’s Mobile Response and Stabilization Services help support youth in crisis by connecting them with a mental health professional to avoid unnecessary emergency room visits or police calls. New Jersey’s system has been an inspiration to other states looking to implement similar services, and it served over 32,000 youth in 2023 alone.

As many struggle to access mental health care, AI-powered chatbots, called “psychobots,” are emerging as a response to limited access to traditional psychotherapy. While they may not be a replacement for human connection, these chatbots offer affordable, convenient and anonymous psychological support, using techniques such as cognitive-behavioral therapy and advanced conversational AI algorithms to communicate.

LifeWorks NW is a non-profit that provides mental health services and treatment programs, like the Adolescent Day Treatment program, focusing on teens and young adults who show early signs of psychosis. Mental health professionals have been working with youth and their families for 60 years and have programs in almost every county across the state.

To help alleviate the psychological toll of protesting against the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Lagos, two advocacy groups spearheaded a helpline that connected callers with counselors and listeners. The helpline uses task-sharing, so that calls are routed to either trained mental health counselors or psychotherapists and psychiatrists, depending on the severity of the concerns.

North Carolina's MORES (Mobile Outreach, Response, Engagement and Stabilization) program sends mental health crisis teams directly to families' homes when children experience behavioral health crises. Unlike traditional crisis services that respond once and leave, MORES teams, consisting of licensed clinicians and peer support specialists, follow up with families for up to eight weeks, providing de-escalation, therapy, skills training, and connections to ongoing services. Since launching in 2023 across 20 counties, the program has served 645 families.

Teen Line operates a peer-to-peer mental health hotline where trained teenage volunteers provide support to other teens struggling with stress, depression, relationships, and suicidal thoughts. High school volunteers have been completing rigorous 3-month training in active listening, crisis response, and emotional regulation as part of this program since 1980. Over 40+ years of operation, Teen Line has logged 10,000+ annual contacts with a 98% caller satisfaction rate.