CHINA-SHANDONG-ZHANGQIU-ADOLESCENT-MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM (CN)

(241120) -- JINAN, Nov. 20, 2024 (Xinhua) -- Song Yeming (C) shares a graph of her feelings during a mental health class at Zhangqiu No. 4 Middle School in Zhangqiu District of Jinan, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 23, 2024.

The peer support scheme at Zhangqiu No. 4 Middle School is part of an adolescent mental health and development program jointly launched by China's National Health Commission, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League and the United Nations Children's Fund.

The program, carried out from 2021 to 2025 in 10 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, is scheduled to eventually cover 300 schools.

In addition to peer support, experts have also devised "mental health service packages." This standardized curriculum has been designed to help teens better understand themselves, control their emotions, be kind to themselves, appreciate others and solve problems.

TO GO WITH "China Focus: Mental health program brings smiles back to students' faces" (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)