School-based mental health services: The foundation of systems of care forchildren's mental health

Systems of care for children's mental health have gained increasing attenti on and significance over the last decade. The ultimate goal of these system s of care is to fully integrate children and families served into the fabri c of their community and culture. In this paper, we will outline the factor s which have influenced the development of this approach to children's ment al health and how school-based mental health services provide the foundatio n for the actualization of these interagency systems. (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.