The Role of Prereferral Intervention Teams in Early Intervention and Prevention of Mental Health Problems

Abstract

Prereferral intervention teams provide consultation to teachers using a problem-solving process to better serve students, provide teachers with skills to assist future students, and prevent inappropriate referrals to special education. The present study is a comprehensive qualitative investigation of 4 prereferral intervention teams. Data collection included a review of records, interviews, observations, a survey, and feedback sessions. The study gathered information on types of referrals teams received, the interventions they developed and their level of preventiveness, and the involvement of community members on the teams. Differences across these areas between the elementary and secondary levels were identified. Key findings included the following: teams frequently addressed behavioral/ social-emotional issues; most interventions were treatments presented outside classroom and/or school; there was a greater focus on outside school issues (e.g., community and drug problems) at the secondary level; and community social workers focused on social-emotional issues and helped to integrate services between the school and community.