The Maui News

WAILUKU–In an innovative effort to enhance pediatric mental health, The Queen’s Health Systems (Queen’s), the Hawai’i State Department of Health (DOH), and the Hawai’i Community Foundation’s (HCF) Promising Minds initiative announced the launch of the Mental Health Pediatric Access Line (MPAL), the state’s first dedicated warmline designed to significantly improve pediatric mental health services in Maui County by helping primary care providers quickly connect with mental health specialists to better assess, treat and refer patients with behavioral health needs. Launched in August 2024, the MPAL pilot program provides free, same-day support to all pediatric primary care providers from any health system on Maui, Lāna’i and Molokai.

Promoted by the Hawai’i Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, MPAL is designed to enable timely detection, assessment, treatment and referral of patients (ages 0-21) with behavioral health needs through a user-friendly telehealth platform. The warmline, a free and confidential phone service, connects pediatric primary care providers with child and adolescent psychiatrists and care coordinators within 30 minutes or less for consultative support. Spearheaded by HCF’s Promising Minds initiative, the MPAL pilot program is a milestone for the DOH Pediatric Mental Health Care Access Project.

“By partnering with HCF’s Promising Minds initiative and the Hawai’i State Department of Health, we aim to make a meaningful impact by increasing statewide access to pediatric mental health services,” said Sondra Leiggi-Brandon, vice president of patient care, behavioral health, and medicine, The Queen’s Health Systems. “Our goal is to strengthen early prevention and detection by fostering collaboration between primary care providers and behavioral health specialists. This approach paves the way for better infant and early childhood mental health practices, moving from a reactive to a proactive model of care.”

As the service provider, Queen’s will staff the MPAL consultation line with licensed professionals, including child and adolescent psychiatrists and social workers. These specialists will offer real-time support to pediatricians, family physicians, nurse practitioners and other primary care providers, assisting with brief intervention plans, mental health diagnosis and treatment. Their guidance will help ensure that families receive the appropriate level of care for their children in a timely way. It is an innovative solution that immediately adds capacity to child psychiatry, a specialty currently experiencing a workforce shortage.

“By providing a warmline that offers immediate access to behavioral health professionals, we are making significant strides toward increasing community capacity to identify and respond to the mental health needs of our children and youth,” said Keli Acquaro, administrator, DOH Child & Adolescent Mental Health Division. “This public-private partnership not only showcases the power of collaboration, but also builds on proven models from Massachusetts and Seattle, which have demonstrated impressive outcomes in enhancing accessibility to pediatric mental health care. MPAL aims to replicate this success, implementing national best practices and laying the foundation for a robust, statewide pediatric mental health support system.”

A key component of the MPAL pilot program is to build a strong network of support and guidance for pediatric primary care providers across Maui County. This approach aims to enhance their ability to identify and manage mental health concerns in children. The program will track data throughout the pilot phase to help refine and inform the statewide implementation of the Pediatric Mental Health Care Access Project by the end of 2024.

“Thanks to a dedicated team at Queen’s who are prioritizing the healthy development of our keiki, the MPAL pilot program is the first of its kind in the state to include consultation services to pediatric health providers that need advice on patients at birth,” said Justina Acevedo-Cross, senior director, HCF. “The program also makes pediatric mental health services more accessible, especially in our rural and underserved communities, creating a more effective and comprehensive mental health framework for children across the state.”