Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division

Interagency Performance Standards and Practice Guidelines

Please note that as of July 1, 2012 the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division will be using the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Performance Standards (CAMHPS) instead of the Interagency Performance Standards & Practice Guidelines (IPSPG). Please visit this link to learn more about the CAMHPS or to view the document itself.

On July 1, 2002, a collaborative effort between the Department of Health (DOH) Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division (CAMHD) and the Department of Education (DOE) was launched with the implementation of the Interagency Performance Standards & Practice Guidelines (IPSPG), which became more commonly known as the Blue Book or Green Book depending on the color of the cover, which represents the edition and year of publication. The current edition of the IPSPG is known as the Purple Book.

The IPSPG is an integrated manual, jointly developed by DOH-CAMHD and the DOE, for use in the development and provision of behavioral health/mental- health services to students who: a) have been certified as qualifying under Individuals with Disabilities Educational Act (IDEA) for special education services, and/or qualifying under Section 504-Subpart D of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and who are in need of related behavioral health/mental -health services to benefit from their free and appropriate public education; and b) students who meet the eligibility requirements for the DOE/CAMHD Support for Emotional and Behavioral Health (SEBD) program.

These standards and guidelines are designed to define service content standards, and to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the school-based behavioral health services and the array of intensive mental health services.

IPSPG Documents