Children and Youth with Special Health Needs (CYSHN)
Programs
- Birth Defects Monitoring and Analysis
- Early Hearing Detection and Intervention
- Follow Along Program
- Longitudinal Follow-up for Newborn Screening Conditions
Related Sites
Contact Info
Minnesota Pediatric Mental Health Access Program
The Minnesota Pediatric Mental Health Access Program is aimed at promoting consultation, training, and support to pediatric primary care and other providers so that children's mental health needs are met.
Childhood and adolescence lay the framework for lifelong mental health outcomes. During these crucial developmental stages, screening, evaluation, assessment, diagnosis, and appropriate treatment of mental health issues is critical for preservation of emotional well-being later in life. An estimated 20% of Minnesota children and youth (0-17 years old) have a diagnosed mental or behavioral health condition, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated many of these mental health concerns. For many children and their families, mental health treatment can offer hope for improvement in quality of life and positive outcomes.
Minnesota's project is working to build the skills and knowledge of pediatric primary care providers to make sure they can confidently screen for and respond to mental health concerns in children and adolescents. We are working to enhance and expand the reach of Minnesota's statewide Psychiatric Assistance Line (PAL) and FastTracker resources. The project's goals include:
- Cultivate Collaborative Leadership: Supporting a collaborative leadership structure where decision-making power is shared.
- Enhance Psychiatric Assistance Line: Improving the quality and reach of Minnesota's Psychiatric Assistance Line (PAL) to provide mental health consultations and referrals via telehealth.
- Increase Primary Care Provider Capacity: Increasing the capacity of primary care providers to screen for and respond to mental health concerns in culturally relevant and developmentally appropriate ways.
- Coordinate Centralized Resources: Coordinating and enhancing centralized resource directories to increase easeful access to mental health services and supports.
- Building Trauma-Responsiveness in Health Settings: Increasing the capacity of health settings to provide trauma-responsive care for children and adolescents presenting with mental health concerns.
- FastTrackerMN.org: A dynamic online search tool that gives Minnesotans access to real time information and availability of behavioral health services and supports.
- Minnesota's Psychiatric Assistance Line (PAL): Free service available to health professionals. Any healthcare provider can call for mental health triage and referral, or for a consultation with a Board-Certified Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist regarding a patient. Available Monday through Friday from 8:00am – 6:00pm. Providers can call the line at 855-431-6468 or can schedule a consultation using an online form. *Please note that this service is only intended for health professionals, not the general public.
- Minnesota American Academy of Pediatrics (MNAAP):MNAAP hosts a MOC4 quality improvement project aimed at improving documentation and administration of depression screening and referral of teens who identify as BIPOC and/or LGBQI+. This MOC4 module seeks to improve adolescent mental health screening rates at adolescent and young adult clinic visits. MNAAP hosts a MOC4 quality improvement project aimed at improving documentation and administration of depression screening and referral of teens who identify as BIPOC and/or LGBQI+. This MOC4 module seeks to improve adolescent mental health screening rates at adolescent and young adult clinic visits.
- Mental Health Collaboration Hub: Mental Health Collaboration Hub helps connect youth boarding in hospitals and emergency departments to mental health treatment and safe living environments. The MHCH is open to all health care systems, mental health treatment providers, and social service agencies that have a role in helping youth and families lives healthy lives.
Request for proposals
Pediatric mental health learning collaborative
The Minnesota Department of Health’s (MDH) Children and Youth with Special Health Needs (CYSHN) Section is seeking proposals from qualified organizations to facilitate a Pediatric Mental Health Learning Collaborative. This collaborative will focus on building the capacity of pediatric primary care settings to identify early signs of, address, and respond to mental health concerns in children and youth. The approach must be trauma-responsive and culturally responsive, supporting entire primary care teams – including clinical and non-clinical staff – in delivering care that reflects the diverse experiences and needs of the children, youth, and families they serve.
The Pediatric Mental Health Learning Collaborative grant is partially funded by the Pediatric Mental Health Care Access (PMHCA) program, a grant to MDH from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Minnesota uses these funds to support the Minnesota Pediatric Mental Health Access Program (MN-PMHAP), which addresses the growing behavioral health needs of children and adolescents.
- Request for proposals (PDF)
- Attachment B: Grant application face sheet (Foundant)
- Attachment C: Project narrative form (Foundant)
- Attachment D: Work plan (MS Word)
- Attachment E: Budget summary and justification form (MS Excel)
- Attachment F: Applicant conflict of interest disclosure form (PDF)
- Attachment G: Due diligence form (PDF)
- Attachment H: Indirect cost questionnaire (PDF)
- Attachment I: Application evaluation criteria (within the request for proposals PDF above)
- Community-based nonprofit or for-profit organizations
- Government agencies or Tribal governments
- Clinics and hospitals
- Community health or public health organizations
- Quality improvement organizations
- Professional provider associations
- Institutes of higher education
A total of $150,000 is available to fund one applicant. Funding will be allocated through a competitive process. If selected, you may only incur eligible expenditures after the grant agreement is fully executed and has reached its effective date, whichever is later.
| Funding | Estimate |
|---|---|
| Estimated grant amount | $150,000 |
| Estimated number of awards | 1 |
| Estimated award maximum | $150,000 |
- Friday, September 5, 2025 at 12:00 pm: Last day to submit questions
- Wednesday, September 17, 2025 at 12:00 pm: Proposals due in Foundant
- Early October 2025: Anticipated awardee selection
- Early November 2025: Anticipated grant start date
- September 29, 2026: Grant end date
MDH requires application submissions to be made through the grant interface portal, Foundant. Tutorials on how to set up accounts and apply for grant funds are available. We recommend that you set up or log into your Foundant account right away.
- New users: Please click on “Create New Account” to complete the registration process and create your logon credentials.
- Existing users: Please enter your credentials and log in. If you forgot your password, use the “Forgot your Password?” link to the left on the logon screen to reset your password.
- Not sure: If you think that you or someone at your organization has already registered in Foundant, do not create a new account. Please contact our MDH Children and Youth with Special Health Needs staff at health.cyshn@state.mn.us for assistance.
Once in the system, click on the “apply” button located on the upper tool bar on the home page. You will be redirected to a list of open applications in the system. Select "Pediatric Mental Health Learning Collaborative Grant".
Incomplete applications will not be evaluated. Applications must include all required materials, including attachments. Do not submit additional materials not requested in this RFP; they will not be reviewed or scored. MDH reserves the right to reject any application that does not meet these requirements.
Within one business day after the due date, MDH will “reply all” to the email address that submitted the application to acknowledge receipt. If you do not receive this acknowledgment email within one business day, it means MDH did not receive your application.
Please contact the CYSHN section at health.cyshn@state.mn.us immediately after the one business day for further instructions.
Questions and answers will be posted here within five business days of receipt. The final set of questions and answers, for those submitted by the September 5 deadline, will be posted no later than five business days after that date. Contact Alyssa Greene at health.cyshn@state.mn.us with any questions.