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Educationally Related Mental Health Services
ERMHS (Educationally Related Mental Health Services) is designed to address social emotional barriers to learning. Evidence shows that exposure to trauma, significant deficits in social emotional skills, and many disorders can benefit from therapy.
All services are determined by the IEP team and are tailored to specific student needs. Goals are monitored weekly and data is presented according to the IEP.
ERMHS is intended to be an exhaustion of services model in order to insure that your student receives the least restrictive and intrusive level of service to meet the presenting needs. If the student responds well to services then efforts are made through the IEP team to facilitate an easy transition to a lower level of support. If the student struggles with the level of service provided then the IEP team may meet to discuss increased, or more intensive, service options including home-based models.
Assessment begins after the IEP referral is received by the Behavioral Health Coordinator. It includes observation, meetings with the child, family, and school staff as well as records review and testing. Within forty-five days assessments are completed and summaries, along with proposed IEP goals, are brought to the IEP for discussion and decisions about services.
ERMHS assessments are designed to address specifically those symptoms which present barriers to education. When an IEP team makes a referral for services the assessment is designed to answer the question ‘what is the nature of the presenting barrier and how might mental health and social emotional services address it?’
To that end providers will arrange a convenient time to interview the student, teacher and family. The therapists will also observe the student multiple times in the situation where the problems are occurring. Often a school psychologist will have already administered testing but if more is needed then providers may offer testing related to autism, peer interactions, intelligence, social skills, depression and anxiety, ADHD, or other appropriate measures. (Please keep in mind that these are clinical tests and do not address students’ special education qualifying conditions).
After assessments are completed the therapist is in a position to offer proposals to the IEP team. Please see our services section for more information on specific types of treatment.
Kern County Consortium SELPA has a mental health program through the Kern County Superintendent of Schools and Clinica Sierra Vista for specified geographic zones. All ERMHS therapists are registered with the Board of Behavioral Science and have a Master’s level, or above, educations in psychology.
For a list of providers by geographic zone click here
For the KC SELPA’s ERMHS Referral website click here
ERMHS service providers can offer many types of interventions to students, their families, and school personnel.
Individual Therapy – Evidence-based interventions delivered one on one with the student on-site Family Therapy – Options for family therapy or with parents alone.
Group Therapy – Many social emotional and therapeutic interventions can be delivered in small group format.
Social Work Services – are designed to assist in connecting families to resources available in their communities and includes collaboration with other service providers.
For a description of CASEMIS codes associated with services click here