This week on Raising Joy, Wini King and Kristen Pyrc, M.D., learn all about the Parent Cafe program – which brings education and caregiving skills directly to parents across North Texas.

The guests are Aaron Olivares who oversees the Parent Cafe program for Cook Children's Center for Community Health, and Itzia Osco, a coordinator for the H.E.L.P. Program at Fort Worth ISD, which supports families experiencing homelessness.

The H.E.L.P. Program is just one of the dozens of examples of how the Parent Cafe program is being utilized to support parents with a variety of issues, from discipline and communication to mental health and working with your child’s school.

Now available in eight counties, this episode sheds light on the Parent Cafe program, how it started as well as information on how you can bring the curriculum to your school or community.

At a Parent Café, you can:

• Talk about the good stuff about being a parent and the parts that are hard.
• Meet other parents and caregivers and hear what they're going through.
• Get ideas and advice that can help you be an even better parent.

Learn more at https://www.cookchildrenscommunity.org/abuse/parenting-support/parent-cafe/

If you’ve ever tried to schedule a behavioral health appointment for your child, you likely know the wait can be longer than expected – even months. But did you know there’s a major shortage of child psychiatrists nationwide? In fact, there are roughly 850 child psychiatrists in Texas serving seven million children.

On this episode of Raising Joy, we’re talking about solutions with Gunit Kahlon, M.D., and Nanette Allison, D.O., who lead Fort Worth’s first Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship program at JPS Health Network.

The program, which includes rotations at JPS Health Network and Cook Children's, aims to increase access to mental health care for children and teens. With the first graduating class now working in Tarrant County, access to timely care and reduced wait times are more than a dream – they’re becoming reality.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• The impact of the shortage of child psychiatrists in North Texas
• How the Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship will help reduce wait times for mental health resources
• How the collaboration between health networks stresses the importance of community
• Retaining fellows offers potential growth for mental health services in the future

This week on Raising Joy, Wini King and Kristen Pryc, M.D., learn what resources your child’s school counselors can provide for you and your student with Bridgeport ISD Counselor Liz Cornett.

Liz addresses issues like conflict resolution, parental incarceration and self-harm ideation. She emphasizes the importance of early intervention and prevention, using tools like QR codes for check-ins and character development lessons.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Resources at schools to help your child
• How to self-regulate for you and your child
• Best practices for anxiety management
• Reasons behind the shift in the younger generation’s fast-paced maturity
• How to help your child if they are threatening self-harm

This episode is filled with self-help and regulation techniques to advocate for your child so that they feel heard.