DENVER — Mental health professionals within Denver Public Schools say they’re seeing more students in crisis and at younger ages than ever before.
Because of this, Denver Health is expanding its school-based health centers within the district to meet the growing need.
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Denver7’s Sophia Villalba speaks with DPS Director of Mental Health & Student Well-Being Meredith Fatseas.
“Our school social workers and school psychologists are mental health providers in our schools. They are overwhelmed,” said Meredith Fatseas, DPS director of mental health & student well-being.
From anxiety and depression to behavioral outbursts and school avoidance, mental health needs among DPS students are rising.
“More recently, we have really seen an increase in the need across all of our student population, but also the severity and acuity, particularly for our younger kids,” said Fatseas.
DPS says the increase is not just the number of students seeking help, but in how serious their needs have become.
We universally screen all of our students for behavioral and social-emotional needs, and we’ve seen an increase not only in need, but also in severity or acuity of need,” said Fatseas.
In 19 schools across the district, Denver Health operates school-based health centers that provide both physical and behavioral healthcare to students.
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Denver7’s Sophia Villalba speaks with Denver Health Director of School Based Integrated Behavioral Health Services Danielle Vice.
“Currently, we’re serving students who are the most acute and have the most chronic mental health issues,” said Danielle Vice, Denver Health director of school-based integrated behavioral health services. “We’re really looking at shifting our model a little bit so that we’re going to have a tiered level of care.”
That new tiered model will expand services, meeting students before they experience a crisis, while still serving those who need it most.
“Our expansion will look like providing more care in our clinics to students with mild behavioral health issues, all the way up through students who may need more of that crisis care,” said Vice.
Denver Health says last year its Therapeutic Response and Urgent Stabilization Team saw more than 500 visits, with referrals for kids as young as 7, a dramatic increase.
“The reason is multi-factorial. It’s really hard to say exactly what the cause would be. We know social media plays a part in that. We know there are academic pressures as well,” said Vice.
DPS says offering care inside of schools removes barriers, and the numbers show.
“Almost 90% of students receiving treatment see an improvement in attendance, but we also see safety needs decrease and other behavioral health support changes that are positive for our young people,” said Fatseas.
Any DPS student can access the school-based health centers for free, even if it’s not at the school they currently attend.
Denver Public Schools and Denver Health say they are currently in the planning phase of adding another school-based health center, with the hopes of opening it for the 2027-2028 school year.
‘They are overwhelmed:’ Denver Health expands school-based centers as student mental health needs rise
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DENVER — There is a program reaching into Denver Public Schools to help students on the cusp of addiction. It’s going on it’s 11th year and the need keeps growing.
Denver7 sat down with Director of Mental Health for Denver Public Schools Meredith Fatseas.
She said the program is designed to both educate kids about early signs of addiction and how to prevent it from spiraling any further.
“We’re really looking at supporting prevention, first and foremost, of really supporting those life skills on making proactive and good decisions in in your life. And substance misuse is very connected to mental health,” Fateas said. “When students are stable and have strong coping skills, they’re more likely to make better choices. So we first start focus on prevention, but then also that early misuse and really getting kids connected to intervention early.”
Fatseas said kids have been receptive to the help and the district has seen the program help change a kid’s trajectory away from addiction.
“It might look like a kid being caught with a vape or, you know, in a counseling session, sharing that they use alcohol over the weekend,” Fatseas said. “As soon as we become aware that a kid is using substances, then we really want to connect them with early intervention and talk about the effects on their body and really how to make good choices.”
Now DPS is working on growing this program, while also navigating a changing financial landscape. The program relies on a variety sources of funding, including grants and city money.
Denver Public Schools program helps students on cusp of addiction
“Our substance prevention programming is multi- grant funded. Primarily grant funded. Some of it is through the recent settlement with the Juul funds out of the district attorney’s office. Some come through grants for behavioral health, focused on youth substance prevention,” Fatseas said.
Denver City Council also just gave approval to extend its contract through the middle of 2027. The contract amount is staying the same. This makes up a significant part of the budget.
“I would say the trends that we’ve kind of been monitoring over the past few years have really stayed consistent,” Fatseas said. “I would say we’re seeing decrease in early use. In middle school, with our last Healthy Kids, Colorado, we saw an increase in vaping, and so that’s been a pretty significant focus of our programming.”
Program leaders say the program works because of the multiple community partnerships
“We have a great partnership with Denver Health and their step therapists who can come into our schools and carry a case load. It may look like us going in and doing training, so that staff in the schools are more equipped with supporting the students where those connected relationships are already in place, those trusted adults. It can look like us providing some intervention or group work as well,”Fatseas said.
If you think this could be helpful to someone you know, you can reach out to your individual school and they will connect you with the program.
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DENVER — Denver Health is sharing the stories of patients and support specialists to ease the stigma surrounding fentanyl use and, in turn, reduce overdose deaths.
According to data from the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE), as of July 10, there have been 320 confirmed overdose deaths so far this year. Of those, 213 cases involved fentanyl.
During the same period last year (Jan. 1 through July 10, 2024), there were 275 confirmed overdose deaths in Denver.
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“Really, the age range is everything from 9 years old to 90. That is not an exaggeration, we have patients at either end of the spectrum,” Sarah Christensen, medical director of outpatient substance use disorders at Denver Health, said about the patients she sees who have been impacted by fentanyl. “They’re a variety of backgrounds. No one is immune; no one is protected. Coming from a good family or having money doesn’t stop you from experiencing this.”
Denver Health’s Center for Addiction Medicine helps people navigate recovery. Outside of the building are rows of small purple windmills, recognizing the lives lost to substance abuse.
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Christensen said the community, whether they’re impacted by substance use disorder or not, can help reduce overdose deaths through awareness and empathy. She recommends that people carry naloxone so they can intervene if they see someone experiencing an overdose.
“I recommend to everybody to have that with you,” said Christensen. “Actually, I have it with me in my purse.”
Naloxone, also known by the brand name NARCAN, is a medication that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose and can be given as a nasal spray or an injection. The medication is safe and easy to use, not only by trained professionals but also by bystanders.
Nasal spray naloxone is available at pharmacies or through various vending machines and resource centers across Denver.
“An overdose might mean that someone has taken so much that they are no longer conscious,” Chistensen said. “What we really worry about is when they stop breathing.”
Denver Health created a video demonstrating how to administer naloxone. You can watch it in the video player below
If your loved one is experiencing substance use disorder, Christensen said the best way to approach the situation is with compassion.
“Being able to say, ‘Whatever’s happening, I love you, I’m still going to love you, and I’m here when you’re ready and I would love for you to get help,’” she said.
In an effort to reduce the stigma surrounding fentanyl use, Denver Health is highlighting the stories of people impacted by opioids and overdoses through an exhibit titled “Stories in Black and White.”
According to Denver Health, “patients, peer support specialists, and advisory members for the Center for Addiction Medicine’s Community Advisory Meeting shared these stories in partnership with the CDC Foundation’s Overdose Response Strategy Program.”
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“We hope these stories encourage more dialogue and less stigma about how people from all walks of life can get the support they need when they are ready,” Denver Health wrote.
The exhibit will be at Civic Center Park near Broadway and 14th Avenue on Sept. 1 between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. It will then be showcased at the Denver Central Public Library on Sept. 4 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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Colorado hospitals collected an estimated $13.4 billion in facility fees over a recent six-year period, doubling the average cost of care for patients with certain types of insurance, according to a new state report released this week.
When patients receive care at a facility owned by a hospital system, whether on the hospital’s campus or elsewhere, their bills typically have at least two parts: professional fees, for the doctors and other providers performing the service, and facility fees, for overhead costs.
While they’ve existed since the early 2000s, the fees have become controversial in recent years as health systems have bought up outpatient providers, meaning that patients may have to pay new fees for the same care they’d received before.
The 200-page report, compiled by a committee and staff from the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, came up with its cost estimate by using data from 2017 to 2022 on Medicare and commercial insurance payments, which the authors obtained through Colorado’s All-Payer Claims Database.
The report estimated total spending on facility fees rose about 10% annually during that time, due to some combination of population growth, hospitals charging higher amounts and more locations charging the fees, among other factors.
Click here to read the full story from our partners at The Denver Post.
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A group supporting a ballot measure to assist Denver Health kicked off an election-season campaign on Tuesday to encourage city voters to support a sales tax to help solve a dire funding crisis.
The effort on behalf of the city’s public hospital, called Healing Denver, brought out the big guns — the current mayor and perhaps his best-known predecessor — as it launched the campaign.
Mayor Mike Johnston joined a crowd of a few dozen in a park across the street from the hospital’s main campus near Bannock Street and Speer Boulevard.
Johnston recalled his first day in office when two police officers were shot in the line of duty.
Mayor Mike Johnston shakes hands with former Mayor Wellington Webb as Denver Health’s leaders and supporters gather to push for “Yes on 2Q,” a ballot measure that would send more funding to the safety-net hospital, at Denver’s Sunken Gardens Park. Sept. 10, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Hospital staff “made sure those officers who literally risked their lives for the city and county of Denver were going to have world-class treatment right here in the city to make sure they thrived and survived, which they did,” the mayor said.
“In that moment, Denver Health is there,” continued Johnston, who called for voters to be there for the health system by voting on Ballot Issue 2Q.
City residents will vote Nov. 5 on a .34 percent sales tax, which works out to 3.4 cents on a $10 purchase. It would raise about $70 million annually, according to Denver Health CEO Donna Lynne. It would have to gather support from at least 50 percent of Denver voters to pass.
“We need Denver Health. If you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything,” said former Mayor Wellington Webb, who was instrumental in the creation of the modern Denver Health, “a state-chartered institution with a public mission.”
Former Mayor Wellington Webb speaks as Denver Health’s leaders and supporters gather to push for “Yes on 2Q,” their position on a ballot measure that would send more funding to the safety-net hospital, at Denver’s Sunken Gardens Park. Sept. 10, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
“Are you willing to stand up for Denver Health? Are you willing to fight for it and nurture it and protect it?” Webb said, calling out to the crowd, which included a large and diverse group standing behind him with Yes on 2Q signs.
So far, the campaign to pass the sales tax has reported raising about $800,000. Lynne is the top reported contributor to date, giving $60,000, according to the Denver campaign finance dashboard.
Denver Health, a ‘safety net’ hospital, faces some dire financial straits
Denver Health, once known as Denver General, was founded in 1860, before even the city or the state were incorporated. It serves nearly 300,000 people each year and is considered the “safety net” hospital.
Lynne, a former lieutenant governor of Colorado, laid out a stark financial reality.
“Health care costs are going up and they’re going up substantially year after year after year. We have seen a doubling of our patients just in the last two years,” Lynne told the crowd. “Since just 2019, we have seen two and a half times more uncompensated care at Denver Health, people who are uninsured, people who are underinsured, and who desperately need our care.”
Denver Health CEO Donna Lynne speaks during a press conference for “Yes on 2Q,” their position on a ballot measure that would send more funding to the safety-net hospital, at Denver’s Sunken Gardens Park. Sept. 10, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
She said if the measure fails, services will be cut.
“Primary care, emergency services, mental health services, pediatric care and substance use care are honestly at risk if we don’t pass this measure,” Lynne said.
The money raised will help the system, which has rapidly seen expenses outrun revenue, cope with annual costs for uncompensated care which rose to $140 million in 2023.
The arrival of tens of thousands of new immigrants contributed to those costs, with about $10.5 million of the sum going to treat an estimated 8,500 newly arrived people.
“It is less than 10 percent of the increased uncompensated care that we’ve seen over the last several years,” Lynne said, noting the system has a responsibility to care for everyone regardless of their ability to pay and also is looking out for the health of the entire community.
One City Councilmember worried it would be one of many new sales taxes
The ballot measure has no organized opposition, Lynne told CPR, noting that the system has been cutting costs as the situation has worsened.
When the city council weighed placing the measure on the fall ballot in June, only one person voted no, Councilmember Kevin Flynn. He expressed concerns about the city getting too reliant on sales taxes to fund city services.
“I do feel like someone needs to be the canary in the coal mine, and I guess that’s going to be me,” Flynn said.
He said he wanted governments outside of the city, whose residents also seek care in Denver, to help pay for hospital services.
Dr. Steven Federico speaks as Denver Health’s leaders and supporters gather to push for “Yes on 2Q,” their position on a ballot measure that would send more funding to the safety-net hospital, at Denver’s Sunken Gardens Park. Sept. 10, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Lynne said she and earlier CEOs have tried to make that appeal. One even sent letters with specific tallies of how much Denver Health had spent on care for residents of other cities. But, no dice.
“We didn’t get any answers back. Certainly we didn’t get checks,” she said.
Health care costs are going up even as city contributions to Denver Health remain the same
Lynne noted the state legislature and governor have given Denver Health about $11 million over the last two years to help pay, at least a bit, for the uncompensated care.
Other safety net hospitals around the country can count on much more public financial support, Lynne told the crowd.
“This measure is designed to address concerns about affordability, ensuring that the impact on families is pretty minimal,” she said. “I want to assure you that it will be directed to the core services that the voters care about.”
Denver Health CEO Donna Lynne speaks during a press conference for “Yes on 2Q,” their position on a ballot measure that would send more funding to the safety-net hospital, at Denver’s Sunken Gardens Park. Sept. 10, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Denver Health is funded from a variety of sources: private insurance, public programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and money from the city and state.
The cost of health care, especially for patients without insurance, has gone through the roof. However, the City of Denver’s contribution to Denver Health’s budget has remained essentially flat, Lynne said.
Other city leaders called Denver Health ‘a pillar in this community’
Other speakers at the event underscored Denver Health’s central role in the health of the city.
“It is a pillar in this community and they provide essential care to all Denver residents, especially those who are underserved, are underserved populations, are underinsured populations, and anybody who is in need,” said Councilmember Jamie Torres, who represents District 3 and co-sponsored the measure in the council. “This is not an institution that we want to fail.”
City Council member Jamie Torres speaks as Denver Health’s leaders and supporters gather to push for “Yes on 2Q,” their position on a ballot measure that would send more funding to the safety-net hospital, at Denver’s Sunken Gardens Park. Sept. 10, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez, an at-large city council member, also a co-sponsor, said Denver Health is where the community’s most vulnerable populations receive health care.
Webb, in a campaign-style rallying cry, urged supporters to fight to convince their neighbors to back the ballot measure.
“I ask all of you as you knock on doors, don’t take anything for granted. Knock on every door and ask every person,” he said.
