BEIJING -- Shortly after returning to her high school in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, Huang Huachun slipped back into her classroom routine, carrying with her a renewed mission from Beijing to push for stronger mental health support for millions of Chinese students.

Huang, the school's vice-principal, was among nearly 3,000 deputies who attended this year's session of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, in Beijing earlier this month.

During the session, Huang submitted a suggestion calling for mental health checkups to be integrated into regular health examinations for primary and secondary school students. As an NPC deputy, she had spent months researching and refining the submission before bringing it to the national stage.

The plenary session of the NPC, held once a year, is widely seen as an important occasion for reviewing China's development priorities and policy direction. During the session, deputies submit proposals and suggestions reflecting public concerns and contributing to policymaking.

As concerns grow over youth mental health in China, Huang sees an opportunity to bring her front-line experience to the country's top legislature.

"Children call me 'Mother Huang,' and this title is more precious to me than any honor. It is my duty to convey their voices and demands," she said.

In 2025, Huang launched a pilot mental health screening program at her high school to identify and help students in need. The results were striking, as about 15 percent of students showed signs of psychological distress. One boy wrote in his response, "I can't sleep every night, but I'm afraid to tell others about it."

The findings echoed a national study. According to a mental health survey involving more than 30,000 adolescents conducted by the Institute of Psychology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2022, 14.8 percent of respondents showed risks of depression to various degrees.

"Children and adolescents are in a period of rapid development in terms of mental health. Their mental health is easily affected by biological, psychological, social and environmental factors, among others," said Zheng Yi, chief expert on child psychiatry at Beijing Anding Hospital affiliated to Capital Medical University, highlighting the importance of early detection, early diagnosis and early intervention.

"Mental health is just as important as physical health. So why not have regular checkups for it, just as we do for our bodies?" This concern prompted Huang to take action.

Over the following months, she visited hospitals, consulted experts, crunched data and finally shaped her findings into the formal suggestion that she brought to Beijing this month, aiming to push for a change.

During her nine years as an NPC deputy, Huang has submitted more than 50 suggestions to the legislature, some of which have influenced the formulation of national policies and regulations.

"I used to think national policies were something distant and out of reach," she said. "But through my work over the years, I've come to see that the suggestions we make as deputies can truly shape policy, whether by establishing new measures or refining existing ones."

During the 2025 session, deputies like Huang submitted a total of 9,160 suggestions covering various aspects of the country's work, which were entrusted to 211 institutions for handling.

Huang is not alone in raising concerns about student mental health. Last year, a similar suggestion on improving the mental health education and service system for youngsters was selected by the NPC Standing Committee as a priority, with the Ministry of Education tasked to follow up.

The ministry subsequently conducted research with hospitals and experts and held discussions with NPC deputies and officials.

In October, based on the NPC's suggestion and its previous work, the ministry rolled out 10 new measures to enhance the mental health of primary and secondary school students, addressing key stressors such as overwhelming academic pressure, inadequate physical exercise and limited sleep time.

"These measures are extremely timely and could be a turning point for student mental health," said Yu Sumei, a senior researcher of the China National Academy of Educational Sciences.

The handling of the suggestion reflects how societal concerns can be translated into national policy.

"The state truly values our input," Huang said. "Every March, after submitting suggestions, I receive calls from ministries explaining how they plan to proceed, what can be adopted, what cannot, and why. Every suggestion and proposal gets a response."

"Year by year, policy changes in education have been real and visible. This gives me confidence and faith, both in myself and in my country," Huang said.