Washington’s Mental Health Referral Service for Children and Teens
Washington’s Mental Health Referral Service for Children and Teens connects patients and families with evidence-supported outpatient mental health services in their community. This free, telephone-based referral service is funded by Washington Healthcare Authority and operated by Seattle Children’s.
The Mental Health Referral Service will provide thorough mental health referrals for children and teens 17 and younger from across Washington.
Information for family members is available here.
How do families access this service?
- Families can call 833-303-5437 or submit an online request form.
- We will ask for your patient’s information, including their mental health needs, location, and health insurance plan.
Interpreter Services
- To call our program using an interpreter, call 1-866-583-1527.
- Listen for the your preferred language and select the number provided.
- You will be placed on a brief hold while an interpreter is selected.
- Once an interpreter is on the line, ask them to call our program directly at 1-833-303-5437.
What can patients and families expect?
- After matches are found, a referral specialist will call and email the family to access providers or agencies in real-time.
- A few weeks after providing the referrals, a referral specialist will contact the family to see if they were able to make an appointment and ask if additional resources are needed.
- If no appointment has been made, we will address any barriers or link the family to another provider.
What can primary care providers expect?
- Referral information provided to your patient will also be faxed to you.
Washington’s Mental Health Referral Service Flyers for Families
Download informational flyers about our program for families. All flyers are PDFs.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Who connects patients and families with evidence-supported mental health services?
Our mental health referral specialists, trained in evidence-supported models of coaching and relational support.
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How does the referral service identify providers?
Washington’s Mental Health Referral Service keeps a database of licensed mental health outpatient providers that we update daily. Information comes from health plan panels of providers and outreach calls we make. See information for mental health providers who would like to be added to the database.
The database includes details on:
- If the provider has openings for new patients
- Provider’s mental health specialties and types of treatment offered
- Which health insurance or state programs the provider accepts
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What evidence-supported therapies do providers offer?
A goal of the service is to match families with an evidence-supported practice when possible. These therapies include:
- Addiction treatment (substances/internet/gaming)
- Applied behavioral analysis (ABA)
- Behavioral therapy
- Cognitive behavioral intervention for tics and habit reversal therapy
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)
- Eating disorder treatment
- Exposure and response prevention therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Infant/parent dyad therapy
- Insight-oriented therapy
- Neurofeedback
- Parent management training
- Telemental health
- Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy
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Is this part of Seattle Children’s Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Program?
No. Seattle Children’s operates the Mental Health Referral Service for Washington state. The service is for children and teens from across Washington who need outpatient mental health services in their local communities. Your patient does not need to be seen at Seattle Children’s.