SAFFORD —The Graham County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an agreement between the county’s Health Department and DialCare to provide telemental health counseling for local middle and high school students, but not before one supervisor expressed concern.
Supervisor Paul David asked if the Health Department could somehow ensure that counselors match the area’s “conservative values.”
“Having a counselor from out of the area, who doesn’t have our conservative values, and when there are controversial issues like gender and abortion, that kind of counseling is always a concern. That we don’t know what those counseling services are going to be discussing and recommending to kids,” David said.
He added that he’s supporting “a greater good here,” but asked for some type of monitoring.
Under the agreement, the Health Department will work with school counselors to determine which students could benefit from mental health counseling. After receiving approval from the parents, the family will select a mental health counselor and the school will provide a private room and computer for the student to have one-on-one telesessions.
The county received a $25,000 grant from Blue Cross Blue Shield to pay for the program, with the grant expected to pay for about 10 months of service from DialCare.
