Woman feeling sad and hopeless
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Even as a quick agreement of two coronavirus vaccines raises hopes that the end of the pandemic could be on the horizon, experts warn that a mental health crisis will run parallel for years to come. . Mental health disorders and substance abuse issues can be just as deadly as the virus. A consortium of the nation’s leading mental health advocacy groups and professional associations say this latent illness often deserves urgent and united action.
“The mental health crisis that has accompanied the COVID outbreak is unprecedented,” the directors said in a joint statement. “The taxes have broken a terrible care system and state leadership needs to move to address mental health care as an essential part of their pandemic response.”
The consortium’s detailed policy recommendations include prominent bodies such as the American Psychological Association, the National Federation on Mental Illness, and the Kennedy Forum focusing on the public sector. But business leaders will find “A unified vision for the transformation of mental health care and substance use” as a useful lens for shaping their health and wellbeing programs.
Moreover, the group’s desire to see mental health issues in a social context is more than a timely reminder that the pandemic and our national count with a wide range of social justice issues are highly interconnected.
“Broken” mental health infrastructure
While it is the coronavirus and the resulting economic slowdown that has pushed many Americans to the breaking point, the group reveals in op-ed that the mental health crisis in -currently been several years.
“Over the decades, America’s mental health care system has been underfunded and fragmented to make people with a serious mental illness more likely to live on the streets, mourn in prisons, or ‘dying two decades prematurely in poverty rather than receiving merciful treatment. And that was all before COVID-19 arrived. “
The Kaiser Family Foundation also argues that the pandemic has only made matters worse. There have been three times as many deaths as a result of drug overdose. Teenage suicide rates have doubled in the previous decade, and suicide is now the second leading cause of death in 12- to 17-year-olds.
While there seems to be a growing recognition of the pressures of pandemic on our mental health system, the response of public officials has not kept pace. Of the $ 2.5 trillion in emergency relief agreed in June, for example, only $ 425 million (just over a percentage of one percent) was earmarked for mental health treatment and substance use. At the same time, overcrowding has been on the rise, even though some clinics have closed their doors due to lack of facilities.
Early identification and prevention
Mental health issues often have deep roots. The “Unified Vision” report cites research showing that 50% of mental health illnesses begin before the age of 14. Trauma or crisis early in life can have a lasting effect. The incidence of “bad childhood experiences” (or ACEs) was already at alarming levels. With the increasing pressures of pandemic, and with young people removed from the support systems provided by schools, it can be expected that these numbers will go through the ceiling.
Accordingly, the report emphasizes that all situations where children and young people receive services should be “trauma-informed” – that is, staff should be trained. to identify trauma symptoms and equip them to make the appropriate references.
A look at equality
The report is consistent in highlighting how mental health issues link to larger issues of social justice. This is of particular concern in the emergency response to emergencies involving mental health and substance abuse. People in crisis need public health intervention, not a law enforcement response.
A recent report from the Brookings Institution also notes how inadequate funding of mental health services means that the police are engaging in situations that are unfit for treatment. One study finds that more than 20% of deaths involved officers were related to mental health or substance abuse. According to the National Federation on Mental Illness, people in mental health emergencies are more likely to happen to the police than get medical attention.
Mental health is therefore closely linked to other issues of racial and economic justice that we are currently pursuing as a nation. The Kaiser Family Foundation also finds that the pandemic is having a disproportionate impact on a woman’s mental health. 57% of women say the pandemic has adversely affected their mental health, compared to 44% of men. That is just one sign, they say, of a growing gender gap in mental health.
Complete view
Part of a holistic vision is to identify all the ways in which mental health intersects with a range of economic, ethnic and gender issues. It also means looking at how mental health and substance misuse are marginalized within the health care system.
Far too often, the “Unified Vision” report states, that mental health and substance use care are “siled” within health care delivery systems. Flat care not only leads to inferior care but it adds to the stigma surrounding mental health and discourages many from seeking help. Two methods are the most effective way to combat that stigma. First, mental health screening and substance use should be integrated into all primary care services. Second, appropriate care should be readily available within the primary care system.
Unfortunately, the coronavirus has revealed a broken health care system that is gradually responding to emergencies. We have seen the very opposite of a unified vision – in our response to the pandemic itself, to a range of related social and economic issues and parallel pandemics in mental health and substance misuse. The silver lining is that the pandemic has opened our eyes to the true sense of well-being. It really takes a town to ensure healthy and resilient communities. Going forward, we can unite hope around a new perspective of our common health and well-being.