Children’s Hospital of Orange County is closer to its goal of establishing health and wellness spaces at every school in Orange County following a $7 million donation that will allow it to expand its initiative into local elementary schools. In partnership with the Orange County Department of Education, CHOC has opened WellSpaces – rooms where students can unwind and connect with mental health and other resources – at 41 Orange County middle and high schools in the last few years. Through a recent donation from the Swenson Family Foundation, CHOC will now be able to reach younger students as well by rolling out WellSpaces – and dozens of smaller WellCorners – at 21 area elementary schools in the coming years.
The goal, said Dr. Michael Weiss, vice president of CHOC’s population health department, is to provide a safe place on campus where students can decompress, receive treatment, and learn how to cope with anxiety and stress. “We see the WellSpaces as the conduit to be able to provide families and kids with what they need,” he said.
“When you think about it, kids are not in my office, and they’re not in my hospital, but they’re in school. And so we need to go where the kids are to facilitate that access to care.” Weiss said the WellSpaces aim to combat “scary” mental health trends seen among today’s youth.
According to a recent CDC study, in 2021 42% of high school students reported feeling persistently sad or hopeless, and 29% said they’d ex.