Improving Access For Psychiatric Treatment For Children

In my experience, small towns often lack the mental health competencies and capabilities necessary to meet the challenges that face their citizens both individually and collectively. Having volunteered more than 300 hours in small communities, numerous shortfalls and gaps as it related to treatment and psychoeducation were discovered. As a result of these findings, I would like to devote time and research to such areas in order to establish and implement community based programs that will allow for mentally healthy

Schools need to educate parents and children about mental health and illness. According to an article published by the Association for Children’s Mental Health, “1 in 5 children and youth have a diagnosable emotional, behavioral or mental health disorder and 1 in 10 young people have a mental health challenge that is severe enough to impair how they function at home, school or in the community” (Problems at School). Schools could hold educational meetings on mental health to inform and aid parents and children to determine when they need to address mental health. Additionally, incorporating a stronger mental health aspect in the state required health

Every parent who has a child suffering from a psychological disorder that affects their behavior dreads a new school year. This means new teachers not aware of the disorder, more parent-teacher conferences, and more pressure to medicate the child. The most common and well known behavioral disorders are Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

The first obstacle that must be overcome when Appalachians want to get help for mental health issues is the lack of access to mental health professionals. While there are mental health treatment options available, they are mainly located in the more urban areas of the region (Susan Emily Keefe, Appalachia’s Children). All too often, people are unaware of the services available to them for the treatment of mental health disorders. Even if they do possess knowledge of what is available, it may not be feasible to get to these services. Many of the residents may not have insurance or the financial capabilities necessary to pay for treatment. Because the

Furthermore, tremendous advances have been made in the understanding and treatment of mental illnesses in the recent decades. Nowadays, someone with a mental illness is treated with respect, just like every other person, because, in fact, everyone is equal. Society’s goals today are to treat and support the mentally ill individuals enough so they can live in

Up until this day, people with mental disorders are misunderstood which often leads them to being mishandled in the United States. So when the Perry v. Louisiana case was brought to the Supreme Court, it was clear, the decision would have lasting effects. Though many may find it easy to use people’s mental disorders as excuses to punish them, it is wrong in fact, as they are unaware of the harm being caused to others or themselves.

One of the biggest criticisms that Managed Mental health has received is that because of the way the managed care system works in regards to reducing cost utilization, then Managed mental health care could limit access (Boyle & Callahan.1995). However, in reality, there is a belief and some empirical evidence that Medicaid managed behavioral health care for children enhances access to care and that patients are more likely to obtain services in a timely and appropriate manner than under financially restrictive, traditional fee-for-service care (Boyle & Callahan, 1995). Regardless of this, the Surgeon General 's 1999 comprehensive report on mental health noted the seriousness of the problem and estimated that 70% of children needing mental health services do not receive those (Mennen & Trickett, 2007). Therefore, focusing on

Proportionately 13.5% of adults in the Appalachian region experience serious psychological distress problems, compared to the 11.6% of adults outside Appalachia (Zhang, et al., 2008). 8.2% of adults have major depressive episodes, which is higher than the 7.6% of individuals from outside the region (Zhang, et al., 2008). This trend is not equally distributed throughout the region. Higher rates of psychological distress and major depression are found in central Appalachia (Zhang, et al., 2008). The lack of access to regular care facilities for mental health contributes to the fact that more patients enter community hospitals for mental health treatment via the emergency room especially in poverty ridden counties and coal mining areas (Zhang, et al., 2008). An Analysis of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disparities & Access to Treatment Services in the Appalachian Region case study suggests that cost or insurance barriers are the primary self- reported reason why people do not receive the mental health treatment needed (Zhang, et al., 2008). The second most reported reason was that people did not feel treatment was needed, and believed they could handle the problem without professional help. Third, stigmatized treatment of mental health disorders within small communities discouraged individuals from seeking

Between 2013 and 2016 records show that there were at least 160 if not more shootings across only 38 states. Many people do not think they need help, but they actually do and when services are offered to those children in need, some parents are still reluctant to have their child take them. School districts in South Florida require children as young as kindergartners to fill out a short questionnaire to help evaluate their mental status while in other schools like in Minnesota student answer questions about drug use and depression. However, the number of students being screened for mental health problems has dropped significantly over the past few years. In Olympia, 21,000 students were screened for substance abuse and mental health screening, but that number dropped to about 7500 in 2012 due to lack of funding and parents not wanting their children screened. The main reason why parents don’t want their child evaluated is because they fear that their child will be over evaluated and put on medication that has harmful side effects. Other reasons also include societal factors, in some areas and culture being diagnosed with a mental health illness is considered to be a bad thing. Even in school some kids with these illnesses are considered “retarded” and called other very insulting names, being bullied in school only worsens these adolescents mental conditions even more and end up going into depression or even worse, they end up committing

Mental illnesses are very common in the United States, with one in five of adolescents having a diagnosed mental illness and in the last year less than half of these adolescents have received proper treatment. The most common mental disorders, anxiety and depression, can disrupt daily life and result in suicide, which is the third most frequent cause of death in teenagers (“The Office of Adolescent Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services”). Ten percent of adolescents did not have health insurance in 2013 and those who did, had a very limited amount of mental health care services provided to them (“The Office of Adolescent Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services”). It has been proved that it is even less likely that adolescents who are poor, homeless, gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender will receive the care that is necessary for their health and even life (“The Office of Adolescent Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services”). Mental disorders are not only an

Though there are many treatments that are effective in helping children live and thrive with these issues, they are not always available to them. Unfortunately, children and teens throughout the United States are having difficulties accessing mental health care services. According to a survey conducted by University of Michigan, 30% of survey participants reported having lots of availability for children’s health care (Masson, 2013). Having poor access to such services can leave a negative impact on a child’s health and they can potentially carry these issues with them into their futures when left untreated. The topic of mental health is especially impactful for children on welfare as they are at a high risk for developing a mental illness since many children have experienced traumatic situations such as abuse or neglect (Levitt, 2009). Even though CHIP covers mental health services, the barrier to accessing these services still exists.

Mother’s mental health plays a key role on effective parenting and social engagement (Hartas, 2014, p. 18). Implementing a community assessment allows for observations, issues to be brought forward and interventions to take place (Stamler & Yiu, 2008, pg. 216). Public health nurses need to continually observe communities, reflect on observations and implement strategies to improve the health conditions within the allotted community. Specifically, in the Hillside-Quadra area there is a lack of support for new mothers. Providing a new mothers walking group will help vulnerable individuals with support, advice and coping strategies. The intent of this paper is to advocate for the well-being of new mothers by implementing a new mothers walking group in the Hillside-Quadra area.

Access to mental health care is not as good as than other forms of medical services. Some Americans have reduced access to mental health care amenities because they are living in a countryside setting. Others cannot get to treatment for the reason of shortage of transportation or vast work and household tasks. In some areas, when a

The mental health of adolescents is fairly considered to be one of the major prerequisites of the country 's sustainable development in economics, culture, and social life. Subsequently, the easy and nondiscriminatory access to the psychological treatment appears to be a matter of top priority for the federal government. Nevertheless, the recent statistical data indicates the substantial problems in terms of providing the adolescents with the necessary medical support. In accordance with the US Department of Health & Human Services, in 2014, less than 50% of the country 's adolescent population were provided with a required treatment (US Department of Health & Human Services). Moreover, the data on the minorities ' access to the mental health treatment demonstrates that, for instance, African-Americans are twice as likely as whites to be prescribed a treatment from schizophrenia (American Psychological Association). Undoubtedly, such a trend may be primarily explained by the insufficient efforts of both federal and local health care institutions in terms of providing the minorities ' representatives with the necessary psychological treatment. Consequently, in order to understand comprehensively the problem of the adolescent mental health in the US, it is necessary to define the issue-related objective and subjective concerns as well as to analyze the peculiarities of a potential corrective to the

Externalizing behavior issues make up about half of children’s mental health problems. External behavior problems are defined as delinquency and aggression. If externalizing behavior is not addressed from an earlier age, it can begin to worsen. The child may develop Conduct Disorders and also negatively affect their adult life (adult criminality and substance abuse). Treatment is imperative for these children as they are extremely malleable and positive intervention can only help them in the future. Another important aspect to note is parental characteristics and involvement. Children do not develop externalizing behavior isolated. Parents play an immense role in their child’s emotional, behavioral and social functioning.