Too often, stigma keeps families from seeking mental health support for their children until a crisis forces action. At the same time, insurers and policymakers have sometimes viewed mental health as a “black hole” for resources — questioning whether meaningful progress is even possible. In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Bob Batterson of Children’s Mercy Kansas City to explore how that narrative is shifting. Hear how their team is confronting stigma head-on, demonstrating measurable impact, and building a model of care that proves early, effective intervention is not only possible — it’s transformative.

In this week's episode we talk with Brooke Briscoe at Children's Wisconsin about how the pandemic dramatically intensified youth mental health needs while simultaneously disrupting access to care, leading to longer waitlists and more young people reaching crisis before receiving support. In this six-minute conversation, we explore how identifying and addressing concerns early, we can improve outcomes, reduce the need for high-acuity services, and ultimately eliminate the bottlenecks that create waitlists in the first place.

In this 6-minute episode, national psychiatric leader Dr Justine Larson with National Children's Hospital in Washington D.C., makes the case for a simple but powerful shift in youth mental health care: bring care to kids, instead of pulling kids out of their lives to get care. From schools and primary care settings to community spaces families already trust, this conversation explores why meeting kids where they are leads to earlier support, better outcomes, and stronger communities—and why our systems must catch up to what kids actually need.