Low complexity mental health care is provided by our Primary Care Team. We are excited to introduce an integrated behavioral health model that augments the care delivered by our clinicians and includes two behavioral health consultants (onsite) and one behavioral health/collaborative care manager (remote). The availability of specific prescribers varies depending on individual scheduling.
Mental Health Services at Ithaca College
NYS Residents May Continue with Their Existing Providers
If you are a New York resident, you may also be able to continue to receive treatment services through your existing providers via Telehealth. Parents and students are encouraged to speak to current providers to see if this a possibility so that effective, current, treatment relationships do not have to be interrupted with the transition to College. If you require medication and you have established care at home, we strongly encourage you to retain the services of your local provider. There is limited capacity for mental health care- not only on campus, but also for the town of Ithaca and Tompkins county.
Limitations of our Services
Our goal is to accurately assess and assist the needs of all IC students. However, there may be some specific limitations to what we can offer. There may be cases where the recommended best care is to refer a student to a specialist in treating a certain disorder/set of symptoms or to make a referral to a more comprehensive or specialized level of care (i.e. Inpatient Hospitalization or a Psychiatric Day Program). Examples of this include:
- Symptoms of moderate to severe Eating Disorders where ongoing medical oversight and nutritional counseling and supervision are required, or the student’s medical health is potentially or imminently jeopardized
- Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder that requires specialized clinical interventions such as immersive exposure therapy
- Newly diagnosed and unstable mental health conditions such as Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia, other Psychotic disorders.
- Substance use/abuse/addiction that interferes with a student’s ability to engage not only in their academic responsibilities but that requires a higher level of treatment (such as Medical Detoxification or Rehabilitation)
- Symptoms of persistent suicidal ideation, psychosis, mood instability, behavioral impulsiveness, or sensory impairment that substantially prevent a student from exercising reality-based judgement, exhibiting safe self-care, or that potentially jeopardize a student’s own safety or the safety of others
- A pattern of recurrent self-injury or maladaptive coping behavior that substantially interferes with attendance to academic or social goals or that disrupt the campus community in some manner
- Psychiatric management of complex, persistent or treatment-resistant mental health conditions requiring a higher acuity of monitoring and care. (Such as conditions requiring complex medication regimes, overlapping concomitant medical and psychiatric concerns, limited success with multiple medication/treatment trials, etc.) These and similar examples may require more frequency of visits, laboratory testing, physical examinations, and clinical attention than are reasonably available through the provisions of Health Center resources.
In cases such as these, we can offer an initial assessment of symptoms and then work with the student, and often with their family, to identify an off-campus provider or program that best meets the clinical need.