Dr. Manny Alvarez: After Florida shooting, we must do something -- Students need mental health screenings

Seventeen people are dead in a senseless act of violence perpetrated against our most vulnerable targets: our children. Americans are once again sending thoughts and prayers to all those affected as we mourn those lost.

But as is the case whenever mass shootings occur in this country, which is far too often, we haven’t even waited for the tears to dry before the mental health overhaul versus gun control debate comes up.

No matter which side of the coin you land on, there’s one thing I think we can all agree on. We must do something.

As the investigation into Nikolas Cruz, 19, who is accused of murdering 17 people Wednesday at a Florida high school unfolds, we begin to see a portrait of what officials are calling a troubled “loner.” By the accounts of many who knew him, Cruz showed alarming signs that something was amiss in the months and weeks leading up to the attack.

There is often a mental health component when it comes to school shootings. And I think the best place for the federal government to start looking to make a positive impact is at the school level.

Back in 2002, the Department of Education and the U.S. Secret Service completed a study called the Safe Schools Initiative. They looked at targeted violence in schools around the country from 1974 through 2000 and used their findings to develop “Threat Assessment in Schools: A Guide to Managing Threatening Situations and to Creating Safe School Climates.”

Source :- foxnews