Ways of managing mental health programmes for children and adolescents based on the example of Polish schools

Psychiatrists in Poland are becoming increasingly alarmed about deteriorating mental health of children and adolescents in Poland. The foundation for building and developing psychosocial health of children and adolescents is the family environment. However, it is important to remember that school is also an important part of that environment. Educational institutions should therefore be places that engage in comprehensive actions to protect the mental health of children and adolescents, with all members of the organization getting involved in the process. Mental health must be recognized as an important issue in student development. There is also a need to build a culture of openness and understanding, as well as to promote pro-health attitudes and behaviors, and to promote mental health education. Therefore, it is worth considering how Polish educational leaders deal with the growing mental problems among their students. How do they manage the school’s mental health programme for children and young people? To that end, a desk research was performed by searching for nationwide programmes for mental health protection for children and adolescents and a survey was conducted among Polish school principals to find out what specific protection and education measures regarding pupils’ mental health are being taken. The results of the conducted research show that both education and protection concerning the mental health of children and youth in Poland are insufficient. Therefore, it is necessary to diversify and intensify the activities undertaken. The results and conclusions may be useful for policymakers in establishing mental health protection programmes for children and adolescents, as well as for school leaders. Moreover, the results provide an excellent basis for further research and may therefore be of interest to researchers. This article is also addressed at those interested in prevention of mental health issues in children and adolescents.