Interview with suspected school shooter’s mother grabs attention of metro doctors

ATLANTA — Metro Atlanta mental health providers want parents who feel stuck, waiting for their child to receive treatment to know their options.

The message comes two days after the mother of the suspected Apalachee High School shooter spoke publicly.

Marcee Gray said she wanted her son, Colt, to start inpatient treatment a week before the shooting.

“Colt was on board,” said Gray.

She said his grandmother told the school counselor.

“She wanted us to wait until Colt could visit with some other therapist that comes to the school periodically,” said Gray.

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A week later, four people were dead, nine hurt, her son and his father were in jail.

Channel 2 Action News Reporter Courtney Francisco called and e-mailed Barrow County school board to confirm. Thursday, she stopped by administration headquarters in Winder. A spokesperson said no one would comment, and she said board members are not discussing because they do not want to impact the criminal investigation.

Dr. Kimberly Young works at Hillside, Inc. in Northeast Atlanta.

“School is an appropriate place to reach out to if that’s the first place to go,” said Dr. Young. “But, they [guardians] have to provide a significant amount of context and information to determine if hospitalization is appropriate.”

She said parents seeking inpatient treatment can drive their children to facilities that provide acute psychiatric care. There, experts provide assessments to determine if your child needs hospitalization.

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“You can absolutely do that,” said Young. “24 hours a day, they will do an assessment and determine if your child needs to be hospitalized.”

She said Hillside can provide residential facilities for a child after multiple hospitalizations.

Children can live on campus while getting treated for months at a time.

Young said money can be an obstacle for many families seeking mental health services at locations across the treatment spectrum.

Young said some providers do not accept insurance because reimbursement rates are slow. She said that’s especially true at private practice or smaller clinics that provide basic therapy and psychiatric services.

“Providers are not able to stay open if they’re accepting a lot of insurance,” said Young.

She said some children are waiting up to six months to see a doctor.

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“It comes down to the number of providers we have,” said Young.

She said if parents cannot get their child into an inpatient facility during a crisis, they can try calling 988 to get an assessment on the spot. 911 can help on the spot. The emergency department is also a place some people choose to go.

However, she said that can lead to emergency rooms bottlenecked with mental health crisis cases.

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