Children and Youth Counseling Services

No Child Should Have to Suffer Alone

SchooLink North Inland – North Coastal & Fallbrook

Under contract with the County of San Diego, this service is offered to children, teens, & young adults whose behavioral health challenges are significantly impacting their daily functioning. These youth counseling services are more intensive and require a higher level of family engagement.

Clients must be Medi-Cal beneficiaries or uninsured.

Behavioral Health Member Handbook

The County of San Diego issued a notice of significant changes to the Behavioral Health Member Handbook. The updated handbook is effective Feb. 1, 2026. The notification dated Jan. 1, 2026, and Summary of Changes are available here:

2026-01-01 BHS Information Notice – Beneficiary Handbook Changes (PDF)

The same notice is also available on the Optum Beneficiary & Families page.

For more information regarding our full-service youth counseling services, contact: Analia Chapero, Lead Behavioral Health Consultant

Open Payments Database Notification to Clients

For informational purposes only, a link to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments web page is provided here. The federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act requires that detailed information about payment and other payments of value worth over ten dollars ($10) from manufacturers of drugs, medical devices, and biologics to physicians and teaching hospitals be made available to the public. 

It can be found at https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov/.

School Based Counseling Services

In partnership with local school districts, this program serves students who are struggling socially, emotionally, and/or behaviorally.

Services tend to be short-term (8 – 10 sessions) and are offered individually or in small groups. Coordination and consultation with parents, teachers, and school staff occur as needed to best support students.

We offer these services at select schools in Vista and Valley Center. 

Educationally Related Mental Health Services (ERMHS)

Palomar Family Counseling Service is certified by the California Department of Education as a Nonpublic Agency in the North Inland area to provide Educationally Related Mental Health Services to students receiving special education services. When added to a student’s Individual Education Plan (IEP), the student may receive counseling to help academic performance by improving emotional well-being, school engagement, and attendance.

Designated Instructional Services (DIS)

DIS are youth counseling services that an IEP Team determines are necessary for a student to benefit from his/her special education program. An assessment is done to identify need and to guide the type, duration, and frequency of service.

Other Counseling Services for Children & Youth

We also offer fee for service counseling for children, youth and families. Visit our counseling page for more information.