Channel: Lee Health

Category: Education

Tags: build skillsget the services neededgolisano children's hospitalmental healthwork with entire familytherapistsadvocateautismbuild strategiesadhdmental health diagnosispsychiatristsfamily firstchildrenempower familiesdoctorsmental health navigatorbipolarfamily first mental health servicesfood stampseducatework with familieskidsbuild techniques to manage mental health

Description: "If I can do it, you can do it too. And that's why we're here," said Brittany Brown, a mental health navigator at Golisano Children's Hospital. Using training and personal experience, mental health navigators at Golisano Children's Hospital work with children living with a mental health diagnosis. "You're living with this every day until you leave this earth, so you have to be able to build strategies and skills and techniques and talk to people that are in the profession that can help you be successful in your way of living with a mental health diagnosis," said Brown. From Autism to Bipolar, to ADHD, mental health conditions can look differently for each child--which is why navigators like Brittany Brown work closely with the family to get children the care they need. "We get to know the family, we get to know what's going on, what barriers are taking place if they are getting services, are they seeing doctors, psychiatrists, therapists, or are things in place," she said. And because a child's health can affect the entire family, navigators work to get the family the care and support needed. "So we might get a referral that focuses on one child but then we have the parent or the mom that might need that assistance as well, like a job or food stamps, setting that up for them. We walk with the family and we kind of guide them and help them advocate for themselves," she said. Educating, connecting, and empowering families so they can overcome the barriers related to mental health. View More Health Matters video segments at LeeHealth.org/Healthmatters Lee Health in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of health care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For more than 100 years, we’ve been providing our community with personalized preventative health services and primary care to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries. Lee Health - Caring People. Inspiring Care. Visit LeeHealth.org