Check In is a mental health wellness single day program lasting from two to four hours that takes place at schools, workplaces, and in the community. Check In is an adapted version of Fresh Check Day that engages participants in conversations that improves mental health awareness and reduces stigma through educational and interactive activities in a festive atmosphere. Connecticut Children’s Youth Suicide Prevention Center (YSPC) Fresh Check Day, originally created by the Jordan Porco Foundation, is an evidence-informed mental health promotion and suicide prevention program for college aged students. Fresh Check Day is also listed as a Best Practice in the Suicide Prevention Resource Center. The Connecticut Children’s YSPC team will be presenting on the structure, design, and impact of the Fresh Check Day and Check In programs, followed by an immersive modified experience of the Check In program tailored for the conference attendees. We will share the methods and approaches to applying Check In in either a “lunch and learn” model or singular event model within school, work, and community environments.

Join Connecticut Children’s YSPC for an immersive mental health fair, Check In. Check In incorporates mental health messaging with engaging activities in a festive environment. It aims to reduce stigma and connect participants to resources. Learn how to apply Check In to any environment and check in on your mental health through this interactive presentation.

Content Outline: The YSPC will further describe the programs, Fresh Check Day and Check In, suicide prevention programs that combine simple mental health messaging with engaging activities, working to reduce isolation and stigma and normalize conversations around mental health. This presentation will include a description of the programs, data about the impact of the programs, and the two frameworks in which the Check In program can be adapted: a lunch and learn framework, and a single event fair-like framework. The YSPC will then demonstrate an immersive modified version of Check In with conference attendees. Attendees will engage in several of Check In’s booths and participate in the activities. The YSPC will then conclude with a presentation on how to adapt Check In to any environment, and the impact of incorporating Check In to their existing wellness and prevention programs.

1. Understand how the Fresh Check Day and Check In programs reduces stigma and fosters help-seeking behaviors through effective mental health messaging
2. Learn how to apply the Check In program, with adaptable frameworks, to any school, community space, or workplace environment
3. Check in on their own mental health through a modified immersive Check In program