LYNNFIELD — The town’s health advocacy group wants 16 parents to participate in a confidential study aimed at finding ways to better assist middle and high school students.
Social Science Research and Evaluation (SSRE) is conducting the confidential focus group on behalf of A Healthy Lynnfield with sessions scheduled later this month.
The goal of the focus groups is to help A Healthy Lynnfield better understand parent perspectives of youth and community substance use. The information will help inform substance abuse prevention programming. Registration is required through a brief phone screening to ensure representation by grade.
The sessions will be held at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel in the Winthrop Room. The session for Lynnfield Middle School parents will be Tuesday, Jan. 28 from 6-8 p.m.
The session for Lynnfield High School parents will be Thursday, Jan. 30 from 6-8 p.m.
A Healthy Lynnfield organized in 2017 primary to focus attention on substance abuse locally. But the organization has expanded into mental health advocacy, including providing mental health access service to reduce anxiety and frustration for families desperate for help.
The William James College INTERFACE referral service in Newton connects those with specific mental health problems with what its website describes as an “extensive database” of mental health professionals.
Calls to INTERFACE are answered by a William James mental health worker who will ask questions and match the description of the resident’s mental health concern with a specific provider capable of addressing the problem.
Parents interested in participating in the SSRE study will receive a $25 gift card redeemable at a local business.
To register, contact Peg Sallade, prevention coordinator for A Healthy Lynnfield, by phone at 781-334-5820 (Ext. 1103) or by email at [email protected]. For more information, visit A Healthy Lynnfield’s website at www.ahealthylynnfield.org.
Thor Jourgensen can be reached at [email protected].
