The Coping Power Program is part of the Model Schools Pediatric Health Initiative (MSPHI), an innovative program to bring developmental and mental-health care to over 50 inner-city schools in Toronto.

Seventy-five per cent of the children receiving care through MSPHI are living with serious developmental and behavioural problems such as ADHD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder and other complex mental-health issues.

The Coping Power Program provides cognitive behavioural therapy for these kids, in the school setting. The goals are to remove barriers to mental-health care and to increase children’s social competence, self-regulation, and positive parental involvement.

The initial results are very positive: 75% of students believe the program is improving their anger management skills; 83% report that the skills they’ve learned are helping them at school; and 90% of parents think the program is teaching them skills to manage their child’s behaviour more effectively.

We will continue to evaluate and expand the program over the coming year.