Polaris Health Directions Inc.POLARIS-COMS (COLLEGE OUTCOMES MANAGEMENT SYSTEM)
Helping colleges detect and treat behavioral disorders among their students
For many young adults entering college, it is their first time away from home. They are faced with new sources of anxiety and pressure without the support systems they had when in high school. With tragedies such as the one at Virginia Tech University still in the forefront of the nation's memory, it is imperative to have a system in place to detect serious emotional and behavioral health issues before they escalate.
The publication, in 2005, of "College of the Overwhelmed" alerted the nation to a mental health crisis at America's colleges. Citing a national survey, the publication pointed to the significant number of students seen at college health and counseling centers who are suffering from severe and even life-threatening behavioral health disorders, including substance abuse, eating disorders and the contemplation of suicide. Two years later the American College Health Association in conjunction with the National College Health Association, and the Anxiety Disorders Association of America conducted health surveys across the nation to measure the prevalence of mental health problems among college students. The results from the two studies indicated an increase in the number of students seeking treatment; the number of students seeking counseling with an existing history of mental illness also increased. Dropout rates were equally alarming.
The students are not the only ones overwhelmed. The health and counseling centers who treat these students have limited capability to detect these conditions. Many do not have a staff psychiatrist, and among those that do the psychiatrist is often part time. The Polaris team conceived of Polaris-COMS to meet this challenge—to help college health and counseling centers detect serious disorders, plan treatment and monitor students' response to treatment. With Polaris-COMS, health centers will be able to effectively screen students seeking medical services for alcohol abuse, depression, anxiety and other behavioral disorders, to facilitate pharmacological treatment or refer them to a counseling center.
The system will also demonstrate that the services provided by college health and counseling centers contribute measurably to the health and well being of students, ameliorate severe psychological disorders, reduce the risk of death or serious injury (such as drinking-related accidents), and contribute to a college's fiscal health by reducing avoidable dropouts.
Currently, the initial assessment and screening tool is available. The update version is under development.
As with other Polaris products, the assessment is automated and strength-based, and reports are available immediately upon completion. On average, it takes 15 minutes to complete.
POLARIS-COMS IN BRIEF
The initial assessment and screening tool content includes items on:
✔ Demographics
✔ Treatment history for a psychological problem
✔ Reasons for wanting counseling and the degree to which the student is bothered by the problem for which they are seeking help, such as academic difficulties, roommate difficulties, family problems, and panic attacks, among others
✔ Strengths on which the counselor can focus to help create a strong bond between the counselor and student, and to help the student gain confidence in his or her ability to overcome obstacles; strengths are also significant predictors of treatment response
✔ Expectations of the impact of counseling, motivation and attitudes toward counseling, and opinions related to the assessment
✔ Measures for subjective well-being, symptoms of psychological disorders, including bipolar and psychosis, functioning disability, academic status and dangerousness
✔ Screens for inauthentic response
✔ Adherence to any prescribed psychoactive medications the student may be taking
Contact us at moreinfo@polarishealth.com to learn more about the benefits you will see by using Polaris-COMS or for more information on the further development of the system.
We are committed to helping you succeed in improving your outcomes.
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