Mental Health Patient Mortality Study

Mental illness is nondiscriminatory, can affect any person and transcends all social boundaries. As a result, the issues surrounding mental illness have become common discussion pints among policymakers dedicated or required to formulate solutions around providing the long-term care needed by many patients. Healthcare reforms and changes to the systems that provide services to those living with mental illness and funding for services to the facilities providing care have become major social issues (Goldman, Morrissey, Ridgley, Frank, Newman, & Kennedy, 1992). The reason for this is primarily how it can affect a market economy and how much of a burden diseases of the mind can be in a country such as the United States. According to the 1991 Global Burden of Disease study conducted by the World Health Organization mental health burden accounted for “more than 15% in a market economy such as the U.S.” (The Impact of Mental Illness on Society, 2001). The study also states that for individuals over the age of 5, varying forms of depression are the leading cause of disability. A more recent study indicates that mental illness in general is found in more than 26% of the United States adult population, of which 6% are severe and limit the patient’s ability to function (Martin, p. 163. 2007).

Baumeister, A. A., Hawkins, M. F., Lee Pow, J., & Cohen, A. S. (2012). Prevalence and Incidence of Severe Mental Illness in the United States: An Historical Overview. Harvard Review of Psychiatry (Taylor & Francis Ltd), 20(5), 247. doi:10.3109/10673229.2012.726525

In 1965, there was a histrionic change in the method that mental health care was delivered in the United States. The focus went from State Mental Hospitals to outpatient settings for the treatment of mental health issues. With the passing of Medicaid, States were encouraged to move patients out of the hospital setting (Pan, 2013). This process failed miserably due to under funding and understaffing for the amout of patients that were released from the State Mental Hospitals. This resulted in patients, as well as their families, who were in dire need of mental health services. This population turned to either incarceration (jails and/or prisons) or emergency departments as a primary source of care for their loved ones.

Mental health policymakers overlooked the difficulty of finding resources to meet the needs of a marginalized group of people living in scattered sites in the community. Implications of changes in financing will need to be measured and unsuspected responses should be assessed promptly when they occur. A shortage of community resources will eventually mean that it may be necessary to preserve institutional beds primarily until community care is expanded. Structure in an important consumer role in policymaking, monitoring and evaluation has proven to be a valuable source of input in mental health policy advocacy. Particularly in politics who review the demographic pressure on long-term care services establishments. Deinstitutionalization accelerated nationwide due to the federal government in the late 1960s and 1970s. During this time Medicaid and Medicare were created with coverage for a range of services including components of the mental health field. Supplemental Security Income also made an appearance for the mentally ill. (Koyanagi, 2007)

One in five American adults have experienced a mental health issue, and one in twenty-five Americans have lived with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depression. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services also states studies show that individuals with mental health problems get better and may even recover completely, where they can continue living life healthily, with the help of treatments, services, and community systems. I, myself am one of the twenty-five.

The authors concluded that the overall mortality of psychiatric patients managed in a community-based setting was higher than expected; however, it was still lower than the mortality described in other psychiatric settings. The primary measure used in this study can be defined as: A. the total number of deaths divided by the mid-year population B. the number of deaths in a specific age group divided by a mid-year population in that age group C. the total number of expected deaths divided by a standard population D. the observed number of deaths divided by the expected number of deaths E. the number of deaths

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

In today’s society there is a greater awareness of mental illnesses. With this greater awareness one might assume that there would be a substantial increase in government involvement or funding in the area of mental illness treatment. Unfortunately this isn’t the case in the U.S. today. There are hundreds of thousands of people with mental illness that go untreated. These potential patients go untreated for many reasons. These reasons are discussed in the Time article “Mental Health Reform: What Would it Really Take.

The United States has never had an official federal-centered approach for mental health care facilities, entrusting its responsibility to the states throughout the history. The earliest initiatives in this field took place in the 18th century, when Virginia built its first asylum and Pennsylvania Hospital reserved its basement to house individuals with mental disorders (Sundararaman, 2009). During the 19th century, other services were built, but their overall lack of quality was alarming. Even then, researchers and professionals in the mental health field attempted to implement the principles of the so-called public health, focusing on prevention and early intervention, but the funds were in the hands of the local governments, which prevented significant advances in this direction.

In 2009, The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) gave the United States national mental health care system a ‘D.’ This grade is based on four sections: “health promotion and measurement; financing and core treatment/recovery service; consumer and family empowerment; [and] community integration and social inclusion.” While New Jersey received a grade of a ‘C’, which is better then the national average it is still a dismal grade that needs improvement.

People who were hospitalized with mental illness had a high risk of death and short life span from physical disorders even in Nordic or Scandinavian countries that have most socially progressive healthcare. This research study were compared the number of deaths from circulatory system diseases in patients with bipolar and schizophrenia and reviewed the life expectancy in these patients. The results showed a huge decline in life expectancy of ten to twenty years in patients with schizophrenia and slightly smaller in bipolar patients, both when compared to the general population.

It has been reported that the number of people with mental disorder is increasing in our communities at an alarming rate. Environmental and social changes are among the most mentioned causes of the accelerating rate of mental illness in society (Häfner, 1985). Despite the prevalence, about one fifth of the adult population will battle with mental illness every year ("Facts and figures about mental illness," 2014) and the acknowledgement of authorities mental illness is still given less attention then is needed to treat the problem successfully. Health bodies need to be putting more resources into this area as

Justification: “The answer, based on the prevalence of mental illness globally, is stunning: 8 million people die each year due to mental illness. That is, 8 million deaths could be averted if people with mental illness were to die at the same rate as the general population.” (NIMH)

One in five adults has a mental health condition, that's over 40 million Americans; more than the populations of New York and Florida combined (Mental Health in America, 2017). More Americans have access to health care services by the Affordable Care Act. Access to insurance and treatment increased, as healthcare reform has reduced the rates of uninsured adults. The greatest decrease in uninsured adults with mental illnesses was seen in states that expanded Medicaid, but most Americans still lack access to care; 56% of American adults with a mental illness do not receive treatment (Mental Health in America, 2017). Even in Maine, the state with the best access, 41.4% of adults with a mental illness do not receive treatment (Mental Health in America, 2017). There is a serious

Mental illness is much more common than people would think. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that 1 in 5 adult Americans will develop a serious mental illness sometime during their lives. (DAI Life) Certain mental illnesses are strongly correlated with suicide risk, with the vast majority of suicide victims suffering from a diagnosable mental health issue. Due to the fact that underwriting is based on risk assumption, applicants with mental illnesses will often times have issues finding coverage. There are three significant mental illnesses that are largely problematic for applicants with efforts to purchase life insurance, and they are as follows: major depression, bipolar disorder, and paranoid schizophrenia. However, the spectrum of mental illness is vast, and because of this, different illnesses often warrant different policy rates. The severity of a