Consultation-liaison psychiatric approach for school-refusal students in Hiratsuka City, Kanagawa Japan.

In current school health care programs, it is necessary to check not only the physical condition but also for mental disorders caused by changes of sociocultural, economic or environmental conditions and, in fact, the relative importance of the latter is increasing every year. Taking these changes into consideration, the Kanagawa Prefectural Joint Teacher-Visiting School Doctor Mental Health Committee started various activities aimed at raising the psychiatric ability of school doctors in 1983. In parallel with the activities of the Kanagawa Prefectural committee, the Hiratsuka Medical Society established the Hiratsuka City Joint Teacher-Visiting School Doctor Mental Health Committee in May 1985. In April 1988, as an extention of the activities of the Hiratsuka Committee, a counseling class for non-attending junior high school students was set up. The purpose of this class was, to provide an opportunity for school, families and medical organization to exchange information and to collaborate to provide more effective treatment and education to cope with recent advanced and prolonged cases of school refusal. In addition to Hiratsuka City, Fukuoka is engaged in practical activities under the direction of a joint committee led by the local Medical Society.