In FY24, Edgewood served 3,146 clients across California’s Bay Area, addressing a critical and growing mental health crisis among children and youth.
Mental health profoundly influences children’s physical health, learning, and overall success in life. Untreated mental health disorders can lead to school failure, substance abuse, violence, and even suicide. Early intervention is key to positive outcomes.
Tragically, 65% of children with anxiety and depression do not receive treatment. Suicide rates among youth aged 10-24 have increased by 62% in the past decade. The pandemic magnified gaps and inequities in mental health care access, and many systems remain overwhelmed and under-resourced. Providers frequently see children misdiagnosed or facing insufficient treatment plans that overlook the child’s wider support system of parents, caregivers, and teachers.
Mental illness often progresses quietly, much like cancer, becoming more complex and costly to treat as symptoms become visible. Left untreated, mental health challenges can lead to serious physical health problems later in life. Prevention and early intervention before symptoms escalate are essential to addressing this crisis.
Parents of children in crisis face an overwhelming, unfamiliar journey through an under-resourced system fraught with obstacles. California has just over 1,000 child and adolescent psychiatrists for nearly nine million youths. Therapists are often booked for months or not accepting new patients. For many families, the cost of care is prohibitive, forcing them to seek help in emergency rooms ill-equipped to provide mental health services, often causing additional trauma.
Families who do not qualify for public insurance but cannot afford private care face the greatest risk of falling through the cracks.
Edgewood is committed to being a safe haven where families find the care they need. Our vision, “A Place to Begin,” is to build a fully integrated mental health care continuum that expands access to care for every family in the San Francisco Bay Area. This model aims to provide seamless, comprehensive services that other agencies can replicate as best practice.
For 173 years, Edgewood has embraced the unique needs of each child and their family, recognizing the family as integral to the healing process. Our pioneering programs include:
Phase 1: Building Capacity
Edgewood improved staff retention from 41% to 84%, expanded clinical training by integrating the San Francisco Psychological Services Center, and assessed capital infrastructure needs on our historic campus. These accomplishments create a solid foundation for growth.
Phase 2: Expanding Outpatient Mental Health Services
We are expanding outpatient services to serve up to 600 new families by 2027, providing a full range of social, emotional, and intensive interventions within an integrated care model. This expansion includes:
The Place to Begin Campaign aims to raise $10 million over a three-year period to realize this vision. Philanthropic investments will:
Join us in creating a future where every child and family can thrive.
Edgewood upholds the Platinum Seal of Transparency from Candid and the Gold Seal of Approval from The Joint Commission, affirming our commitment to high-quality, safe, and accountable care.
