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Tag: mental health care access

  • "Patriot Act" Host Hasan Minhaj Talks Mental Health, Stigma

    "Patriot Act" Host Hasan Minhaj Talks Mental Health, Stigma

    “I remember telling my dad, ‘I’m feeling really sad.’ He’s like, ‘Drink some water and take a nap.’ Ironically, if you know someone who is drinking and sleeping all day, they might be depressed.”

    Netflix’s Patriot Act recently returned for a new cycle and host Hasan Minhaj is tackling the hot button topic of mental health. Ahead of the show’s return, the comedian spoke to Teen Vogue about mental health care, stigma, and how good it feels to talk to a therapist because they can’t “legally snitch on you.”

    “It is something that I think is very much finally being spoken about, but in communities of color there’s still a stigma around mental health,” Minhaj said. “I kind of wanted to tell my own personal story in regards to that, but also talk about the systemic mechanisms put in place that are preventing people from getting the mental health care that they need.”

    He then described his personal relaitonship with mental health and how his family views the highly-stigmatized topic.

    Sweeping Depression Under The Rug

    “Well for the longest time, you know, in our community we just didn’t think of mental health as a thing. I remember talking to my parents about it, and it’s like in our community if you’re ever feeling down or if you feel like …you’re going through issues, it’s like, you need to pray more and you need to sleep,” he explained.

    “I remember telling my dad, ‘I’m feeling really sad.’ He’s like, ‘Drink some water and take a nap.’ Ironically enough if you know someone who is drinking and sleeping all day, they might be depressed. It’s one of those things where it’s like we’re finally getting to a place where okay, we can have that conversation, overcome the stigma.”

    For those who are able to overcome the stigma and reach out for help, access to care remains a pervasive issue. Something Minhaj acknowledged in both the Teen Vogue interview and on The Patriot Act.

    “The saddest part is, is that if you are one of the few people that are actually lucky enough to have healthcare in this country — if you think getting physical healthcare is hard, getting proper mental healthcare treatment is incredibly difficult by design”

     

    Fans of The Patriot Act know that while the topics can be heavy they are always infused with humorous asides. In this case, Minhaj cracks on how awesome it is to tbe completely honest about your feelings to a therapist because they are legally obligated to keep your info confidential. 

    Benefits Of Talk Therapy – No Snitching

    “One of the things that we talk about in the episode is, ‘Hey, can we all just admit it’s nice to talk to somebody who can’t legally snitch on you.’ We all have this fear of if I tell people, even people that I love, things that are hurting me or concerning me, this could come around and hurt me later. Or, maybe I’m telling them too much, or maybe I’m being a burden. I think that just being able to say that I think is a step in the right direction of like, ‘I think I just may need someone to talk to.’”

    Minhaj added, “Approximately 43 million Americans suffer from a mental health issue. Again, it is sort of a sliding scale and it varies case to case, depending on what your personal circumstances are, what your biological and genetic circumstances are, and also substance [use disorder]. What substances you are taking or not taking. The thing that we wanted to focus on is just let’s just focus on mental health as an overarching topic, you know. I just love that we were able to actually tie it into a very specific piece of legislation called the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • California Mental Health Workers To Take Part In Indefinite Strike

    California Mental Health Workers To Take Part In Indefinite Strike

    The employees would like patients’ wait times to be cut, as well as increased access for those looking for therapy.

    A union representing mental health workers announced Monday (June 3) that they will be taking part in an indefinite strike beginning Tuesday (June 11) due to unaddressed concerns about patient care. 

    The union represents about 4,000 Kaiser Permanente workers from more than 100 California facilities, according to The Sacramento Bee.

    The Bee adds that the National Union of Healthcare Workers is working on a new labor contract and says the employees walking out would like wait times for patients to be cut, as well as increased access for those seeking therapy. 

    “We have been working between sessions on some short-term, relief-type efforts,” Kenneth Rogers, a Kaiser psychologist, told the Bee. “but really the problem with us not accepting their last offer was there is no accountability for the patient care and work issues that we had addressed.”

    On May 23, Janet A. Liang, the president of Kaiser’s Northern California Region, and Deborah Royalty, chief administrative officer of the Permanente Medical Group, reportedly made an offer to “provide immediate relief to staffing shortages and constraints in appointments.” 

    Their offer included a number of actions for the coming 30 days, including expanding recruiter numbers, having a temporary agency focus on crisis intake, scheduling on-call staff for emergency departments, providing more staff for scheduling, and more. 

    “We believe these changes will make meaningful, immediate improvement in your daily office schedule,” Royalty and Liang stated in their letter, according to the Bee. “However, these actions are just the beginning, and so together we need to innovate and collaborate to design an integrated model of evidence based care that truly makes Kaiser Permanente the best place to receive care and best place to work in mental health.”

    Despite their efforts, Rogers tells the Bee that management hasn’t included these offers in the contract. He says one of the workers’ main requests is that their schedule booking requirement decreases from 90% of the time to 80% so that they have more time to respond to emails, take notes, check in with parents of minors, and more. 

    “We can’t wait any longer to fix this problem,” Kaiser therapist Alicia Cruz said in a statement. “I work with young people who are suicidal and self-harming, and our group sessions are so crowded that children and their parents have to sit on the floor. We just don’t have the resources at our clinic to provide the services these people need.”

    According to the National Union of Healthcare Workers, the union also plans to attend a rally for mental health in Sacramento on Wednesday, June 12. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Are Older Adults Receiving Adequate Mental Health Care?

    Are Older Adults Receiving Adequate Mental Health Care?

    Suicidal ideation, self-harm and depression are among the mental health issues that senior citizens are battling without professional help. 

    Older adults are getting left behind when it comes to mental health care, according to an opinion piece in the The Guardian by Emily Reynolds.  

    According to recent research in the British Journal of Psychiatry, the self-harm rate for older individuals was around 65 per 100,000. This was based on an analysis of about 40 studies.

    But these results are hardly surprising, Reynolds writes. She states that in 2014, the World Health Organization discovered that in those over age 70 across the world, the suicide rates were highest.

    Additionally, the Royal College of Psychiatrists determined that 40% of older individuals in basic care clinics struggle with mental health, as do 50% in hospital settings and 60% in care facilities. 

    While it’s widely believed that focusing on eliminating or decreasing loneliness in older adults could aid in this issue, that’s not the full problem, Reynolds says.

    “Loneliness is sometimes presented as the primary problem when it comes to tackling mental ill-health in older people—and, while it indubitably contributes, this explanation doesn’t really go far enough,” she writes. “Many of those experiencing self-harm, suicidal thoughts or other signs of mental distress already have diagnoses—they’re people who have dealt with mental illness their whole lives. Social isolation may contribute to their problems, yes, but it’s not the full picture.”

    According to Reynolds, who cites research from the Journal of Psychiatry, there is more at play. Other factors apart from loneliness include age, an individual’s history when it comes to self-harm, physical conditions and other existing psychiatric diagnoses. 

    Another barrier, Reynolds points out, is access to aid—what she calls “a perennial bugbear for mental health campaigners.” Research from the Royal College of Psychiatrists has determined that 85% of those in the older population who struggle with depression do not receive the help they need.

    Additionally, they are only one-fifth as likely as younger generations to be able to utilize “talking therapies.”

    According to Reynolds, the solution starts with simply acknowledging who needs help. 

    “And on a very basic level, acknowledging that mental illness is not a problem that suddenly vanishes as you age would be a huge step,” Reynolds writes.

    “The current face of mental illness is young, white, middle-class, diagnosed with a condition such as depression or anxiety. People of color, those with more serious diagnoses and the elderly are often not given a look in at all.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • For Millennials, Accessing Mental Health Care Is A Major Issue

    For Millennials, Accessing Mental Health Care Is A Major Issue

    The high cost of mental health care and a lack of mental health availability make it harder for millennials in need.

    Aishia Correll, 27, grew up in a world where therapy was not an option. So, when the Philadelphia woman began struggling with her mental health, she turned to painting instead. 

    But now, Correll tells The Bristol Herald Courier, she is a health care strategist and is working to increase access and affordability for mental health care, especially for millennials, women of color and the LGBTQIA community – all of whom are in desperate need of increased access.

    According to a 2018 survey by the American Psychological Association, millennials and Generation Z are at a higher likelihood of rating their mental health as fair or poor in comparison to other generations. In the same survey, millennials were found to have the highest stress levels of all generations. 

    However, the survey also revealed that millennials and other young adults were more likely to seek out professional mental health care than older generations. In fact, over one-third of millennials and Generation Z said they were receiving treatment or therapy from a mental health professional.

    The Bristol Herald Courier also reports that since 2014, millennials have continually reported the highest stress levels. In Philadelphia specifically, one barrier to treatment is not having health insurance. According to a Pew report from 2014, 22% of those ages 18-34 in Philadelphia had no health insurance. 

    Jennifer Schwartz, inaugural director of Drexel University’s Psychological Services Center and an associate professor in the department of psychology, tells The Bristol Herald Courier that without insurance, therapy can cost anywhere from $75 to $200 for one session.

    At Drexel, Schwartz states, patients are offered a sliding scale price that is based on income, and services are provided by doctoral students.

    “We have a large demand for our services, bigger than we could possibly provide,” Schwartz said. “We do get people who call us and are upset by the lack of services that they’ve been able to locate and access.”

    According to executive director of the Black Women’s Health Alliance, Brenda Shelton-Dunston, this issue is even bigger for millennial women of color.

    “There is a void in mental-health availability and access to mental-health prevention and support services for women of color in Philadelphia,” she told The Herald Courier.

    According to Correll, one solution could be services focused on millennials and located in the right areas. 

    In the meantime, she is continuing to turn to art as a means of therapy and is hoping to provide a space for others to do the same through her creation of a “healing” art gallery in North Philadelphia. 

    “I didn’t see that my family had a place like that,” she said. “I want to make sure I have a place like that.”

    View the original article at thefix.com