In recent years, the number of Israeli children and youth experiencing mental distress has increased considerably, due mostly to COVID-19 and the Israel–Hamas war. At the same time, the burden on the mental health system has grown, and shortages of staff and available services for these children and youth have become acute. Against this background, in 2022, 11 crisis intervention centers for children and youth were established under Ministry of Health support criteria. The centers were designed to provide rapid, intensive, and short-term response for children and youth in crisis, with the aim of preventing deterioration and delaying or avoiding psychiatric hospitalization. The centers became even more relevant and needed due to the Israel–Hamas war, as mentioned above.
This study was designed to develop a shared service model for these centers, while allowing flexibility and adaptation to each center’s characteristics and to the local population. It examined the target population, referral pathways, operating principles, the nature of treatment, staff composition and training, and continuity of care after the intervention ended. It was based on 39 interviews with 37 directors, staff members, and senior professionals; operational framework surveys completed by all 11 centers; and a survey of 27 parents.
The report includes a model of the service provided at the centers, addressing their operating principles, treatment goals, definition of crisis and target population, the role of parents and family, characteristics of short-term treatment, and treatment success criteria. In addition, the report describes the service provision process — from referral and admission to the center, through intake, development of the treatment plan and interventions, to the end of treatment and referral to continued care — as well as staff composition and multidisciplinary work. Alongside the service model, the report raises key issues in operating the service, including treatment duration, training and supervision, workload and burnout among professionals, and the centers’ role in the child and youth mental health system.
The study shows that the centers play a unique role along the continuum between community care and hospitalization. They provide focused short-term treatment that combines work with the child, parents, and family; multidisciplinary care; and contact with education, welfare, and mental health providers in the community.
Alongside the centers’ contribution to improving access to treatment, reducing the burden on emergency departments and clinics, and guiding families toward continued care, several key challenges emerged. These included workload and burnout, shortage of dedicated training in short-term treatment, limitations related to the duration of the intervention, and shortage of continuing care in the community.
For MJB’s publications on National Emergencies press here
Suggested citation (APA):
Rimon-Greenspan, H., & Yabo, M. (2026). Crisis intervention centers for children and youth: Service model, operational challenges, and policy recommendations. RR-092-26. Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute.