One psychologist per thousand students: the mental health crisis hitting schools

The severe shortage of psychological services in the education system, against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic and the war. The chair of the Psychologists' Union and the chair of the Educational Counselors Association describe unfilled positions, waiting lists of up to a year, and one counselor per hundred kindergartens. The gap between needs and services is widening.

The severe shortage of psychological services in the Israeli education system, against the backdrop of the coronavirus crisis and the war, is leading to growing distress among students. Yonat Bornstein, chair of the Psychologists' Union in Israel, describes a standard of one psychologist per thousand students in regular schools, with only 70% coverage before the war. According to her, the low salaries in the public system are driving psychologists away, and a new salary agreement has not succeeded in bringing enough of them back. Waiting lists for treatment reach up to a year. Dr. Ella Sharel-Mahlev, chair of the Educational Counselors Association, adds that there is one counselor per hundred kindergartens, and in elementary and middle schools there is no fixed standard. In middle schools, she says, the situation is particularly difficult due to adolescence and high teacher turnover. The article quotes both senior officials but does not include an official response from the Ministry of Education.