Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine (TCHATT)
Some of the reasons students get referred to TCHATT:
Anxiety
School concerns
Anger
Frustration tolerance
Difficulties with focus or attention
Mood changes
Behavioral concerns
Sadness or depressed mood
Changes in appetite or changes in sleep
Bullying
Withdrawing from friends or changes in activities
Self-harm or thoughts of self-harm
Some of the Benefits of TCHATT:
Services provided at no-cost.
Your child can access virtual therapy sessions at no cost to the school or to your family.
Services are provided by licensed behavioral health professionals.
Your child and family have access to staff who are trained to work with youth and their families. This includes child and adolescent psychiatrists who are doctors that can help assess your child's need for on-going treatment.
Services are available to elementary, middle school and high school students.
TCHATT is available to all public ISDs and charter schools, from early education through high school. Children’s Health and UT Southwestern cover nine counties in DFW including: Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Fannin, Grayson, Hunt, Kaufman, and Rockwall.
TCHATT services include virtual therapy, case management, and psychiatric consultation.
We know that helping children often takes a village. TCHATT goes beyond your child’s virtual therapy sessions and offers support through:
TCHATT services begin with a virtual intake with a licensed clinician (LCSW, LPC, LMFT, LPC-A, LMSW). This 60-minute intake will determine the appropriate services for your student.
All students referred will receive case management services so that our team can connect families to community resources, services and long-term therapy if needed.
Our psychiatry services may also be available when a student’s presentation appears clinically complex. Services can include a one time consultation for diagnosis, treatment recommendations or for psychoeducation. With parent consent, our psychiatrist can also communicate with your child’s primary care provider to coordinate care for your child.
How to access TCHATT
We need your consent for your child to access TCHATT. If interested, talk to your child’s school counselor so they can submit the referral and get the process started. Once the referral has been submitted, our care assistant team will reach out to you within 2 business days to review the necessary consent forms and schedule your virtual intake.
You can also join sessions. In most cases, you don’t need to travel to an office and your child doesn’t need to leave school. You can also sign a digital consent form and access ongoing follow-up care to make sure your child continues to make progress.
Please check if your student’s campus participates at: https://tcmhcc.utsystem.edu/tchatt/
Some of the reasons TCHATT may not be a good fit:
Telebehavioral health is a wonderful resource, but it may not be for everyone. Some children's needs may require more immediate, emergency or crisis services. Examples include if your child is:
Experiencing hallucinations
Needing a provider who can prescribe medications for their behavioral health needs
Whose safety is compromised by their mental health
Whose mental health compromises the safety of those around them
Lack maturity to complete a virtual therapy session
History of severe trauma
If your child is in a mental health crisis, please call 911
