Mental health a growing concern on South Shore
By Kathryn Reed
Mental health issues are a problem for educators, law enforcement, medical professionals and others. The illness tends to permeate nearly every facet of the population and not always in ways that are obvious.
When Barton Health conducted its Community Health Needs Assessment in 2012 mental health was one of the three priorities that needed to be addressed. Access to care and substance abuse rounded out the top concerns. (Barton is in the process of doing its second needs assessment.)
“Mental Health is multi-faceted, so there is not a quick or simple answer. Ideally having options for prevention, maintenance and acute crisis during different developmental phases would help support people when they need that support,” Kindle Craig, executive director of Barton Health Foundation, told Lake Tahoe News.
Mental health can be difficult to treat because of limited funding and facilities, especially in an area like Lake Tahoe because it is nowhere near a metropolitan area that has more resources.
“The adult populations experiencing the greatest barriers to mental health care in El Dorado County, and particularly in South Lake Tahoe, include low-income populations, the Hispanic community, ex-offenders, homeless and co-morbid mental health and substance addicted adults. According to the patient panel of the county Mental Health Division, dual-diagnosis patients (mental illness and substance abuse) comprise approximately 80 percent of the population served, and the county has reported an increase in the number of youth with this dual diagnosis,” the mental health assessment concluded.
Law enforcement is often interacting with people who are mentally unstable. It’s an issue South Lake Tahoe Police Chief Brian Uhler regularly brings up. He did so again at Saturday’s strategic planning workshop – saying more resources are needed and attention paid to mental illness in the community.
“A February 2012 report to the California Department of Health Care Services indicated that approximately 5 percent of the El Dorado County population needed mental health services based upon the serious mental illness definition. Within households below 200 percent of the federal poverty level, this rate increased to approximately 9 percent. When a broader definition of mental health needs is utilized, the percent of population that had a need for mental health services increased to approximately 12 percent of the population, and within households below 200 percent FPL, the need increased to approximately 20 percent. This indicates that over 21,000 county residents may need mental health services, many of whom are likely not seeking treatment,” the mental health assessment states.
According to the National Institute of Mental Illness, mental disorders affect tens of millions of people each year, with only about half of those affected receiving treatment.
In September 2013 a group came together for the inaugural mental health forum on the South Shore. The next gathering is March 5.
“The goals of the mental health forum are to continue to raise awareness, identify gaps in service/access, and build a community care flow map allowing all parties – caregivers, providers, schools, and first responders – to understand the appropriate pathways for patient access with regard to patient age and insurance coverage,” Craig said.
She said the first forum provided greater understanding by those who participated of the mental health system, the deficiencies and why they exist.
“A specific positive outcome was developing a way to work across state lines to be able to transport certain patients to appropriate facilities in Nevada, as well as California, depending on the need,” Craig said of the 2013 gathering.
Barton, law enforcement, paramedics, El Dorado County, Lake Tahoe Unified School District and nonprofits were part of the first forum.
Invited to this year’s gathering are: Barton Health, LTUSD, Douglas County School District, Family Resource Center, city and county officials, El Dorado County Mental Health, South Lake Tahoe Police Department, South Lake Tahoe Fire Department, Drug Free Coalition, Lake Tahoe Collaborative, Live Violence Free, Child Protective Services, and others.
Next week’s all-day forum is designed to create achievable goals.
“South Lake Tahoe is in need of a more collaborative, effective approach to addressing mental health. Working cooperatively with the social services agencies and community members is essential to understanding the issues, identifying gaps, and solving problems,” Craig said. “As a healthcare provider, Barton offers an array of medical services including child psychiatry, bereavement counseling, and tele-psychiatry. Patients come to Barton through a variety of access points in need of assistance related to mental health. If it is not a medical need, Barton works with the appropriate agency to refer patients to the best location to receive appropriate services like counseling.”
“The maliciousness of psychiatry is that it promotes itself as a medical discipline, although it is actually only part of the state authority.”
Dr. Thomas Szasz
The maliciousness of Dogula is that she posts things that are inflammatory to people with problems she has ZERO clue about.
What would you do with these unfortunate folks who suffer daily from mental problems you can’t seem to understand? Have you ever had to deal with someone close to you that is unfortunately suffering from mental illness? Or is it more likely that you are just as ignorant about mental health as you are with most things. No Dog, I am not obsessed with you. You just really piss me off when you post idiotic things about groups of people you have no experience with or understanding of.
Wondering if the public, parents of those with mental disabilities, are invited to this forum on 3/5?
Haddi T. Uptahere:
I would like to thank-you for your comments with which I agree 100%.
Spouse – 4-mer-usmc
The degrees of mental illness are astonishing. I have a family member who suffers with this and I can’t begin to tell you how difficult it is to be an individual who “knows how to fix issues” but I have to work with the fact that she doesn’t understand it. Talking about mental illness is long overdue and I am so grateful that it is now on the table. Our family is just one of many who have dealt with this for many, many years. Thank you to everyone in our community who is bringing to light the importance of EVERYONE caring about this subject. Like all things, even if it doesn’t affect you personally, it does affect you as a community member in Tahoe and our world. Because services have been cut for so many years, we are now financially dealing with the consequences. When oh when will our nation put more of its energy and money into PREVENTION? Thank you to the folks like Diana Hankins who have been the troopers working on behalf of individuals who need our attention over the many years here in Tahoe. Thank you to the many services who have worked with her and who continue to make a difference in lieu of lack of funding and support. Get involved in our local NAMI people! Get out there and learn something.
HADDI, SPOT ON, AGAIN
Thanks Lisa, I agree that NOW is the time to get moving on this. Barton’s idea of tele-psychiatry is not sufficient – be it a short-term or long-term need. I wonder how many depressed or suicidal people go to the phone when they are in a crisis? Also, I believe the statistics are wrong – that lower-income homes have more brain health issues. Families with money hide it better.
I hope they address the need for adult day-care in SLT at the March 5th forum. There seem to be no services for folks who have eary onset-Azheimers (& similar) – no where for them to spend time while family has to be away at work. This population needs a place to spend a happy day with others – playing games, watching movies, etc where they can’t wander out & get lost,.
Isee-
You are clearly and totally correct about wealth being able to hide or diffuse mental health issues.
In my personal observations and experience, mental health is often called eccentricity if the one disturbed is connected to wealth, while a low income person will be called mentally ill.
It is hard to tell which one is more likely to get help, as there is the problem of not wanting anyone to know in both cases.
Dog-
Anyone can look up quotes by someone with initials before or after their name to make a point.
It is NOT an indication that you are smart or well read when you quote someone else.
Rather the opposite I think.
It’s not surprising that sociopathic-teanuts deny science and embrace ridiculous notions of the ‘young earth’- small gubmint tinkle down economics-and refuse to believe that brain imbalances and defects causing aberrant behavior exist. What a pathetic-dumbed down way to live
I am attending the Barton Mental Health Forum BUT I also attend the meetings of the El Dorado County Mental Health Commission. These are open meetings held the fourth Wednesday each month at 5:00 pm. Here at the lake we meet to video-conference with Placerville at the Mental Health Office, 1900 Lake Tahoe Blvd.
The public is welcome and encouraged to attend. Alas in the time I have been attending these meetings I have seen perhaps 2 members of our community sit in. If you are not part of the solution…. I applaud Barton for holding this forum but it is the residents of El Dorado county that need to come forward and voice their concerns and suggestions to and with a group of like minded people who can work together make change.
“The Mental Health Commission reviews and evaluates community mental health needs, services, facilities and special problems. This Commission is advisory to the Board of Supervisors and the County Mental Health Director”
Well put Haddi. Dogula, you convey so much paranoia in many of your posts that it seems that you would only need to look in a mirror to see possible mental illness. I’m not saying that you are. I’m saying that many of your posts suggest that it certainly seems possible. Many mentally ill people don’t realize when they are ranting in a paranoid way.
Lorrie, therein lies the problem you stated. No one attends the meetings just as no one seeks help. This is such a small town people are afraid and blind to the fact we have a major problem here. Perhaps the mental health folks could reach out to the families who have been affected by mental health issues and have learned to cope with it on a daily basis. I have offered my particular insight to the situation several times but have yet to be contacted. I do not have a fancy degree to hang on my wall showing my knowledge of mental health, I have two death certificates of children. One by his own hand and the other by a mentally ill person. I have given talks to the California National Guard, Nevada National Guard, Pathway Veterans home in Petaluma, Blue Star Mothers organization, Gold Star Families organization ( I am also a Gold Star Dad ), I spoke and was the Grand Marshall for the 9-11 Never Forget parade in Reno and I was a guest speaker at UNR for the Theater Of War which was about suicide. I have yet to speak in my own home town or even asked how we are doing. Rather than sit behind a desk and talk about situations and expect people to show up on their own, a little community outreach in the form of contacting affected people who have real world experience might be better. We all know who we are and it’s ok to talk about it. Talking about our situations works both ways when it comes to us, the healer becomes healed. Even teachers were students once.
Maybe Barton looking into this is a good thing. The county apparently has very little stability in retaining employees and holding a residence.
If I may come forward and offer the info that I personally had the opportunity to have been seen by the clinic video psychiatrist for almost a year. It’s a very quick session and the Doctor on a hunch will prescribe VERY potent anti-psychotic meds for the most part, that was not getting it for me. I have since been working with the Clinic Nurse Practitioners with very good results, they have a good grip on this issue. Since I’m dialed in with them now they do have a new professional therapist on staff named Betsy Glass I see every two weeks. It’s just great to talk things through and to feel a sense of relief and hope as one leaves from there. For a small town, Barton has a very good program at the clinic and may want to expand just a bit on what I writing about here, it’s a win, win for all who can benefit from this type of mental therapy. Let’s face it everyone copes with issues differently, some seek help while others don’t, we are all simply human. If you feel a need to speak to a Clinic pro as I do, by all means make the call.
Thank you Barton for the Clinic mental program, it’s there for you and it works for anyone down on their luck or for any legit mental reason.
Kenny-
Well put and clearly from a “been there” perspective. I am sorry for your experiences.
We appreciate your involvement in the mental health arena.
There are definite problems, and being a very small town does not help.
Kenny- Thanks you for your personal perspective on this subject. I am sorry that you have never been given the opportunity to relate your experiences in your own home town. I had the experience of getting the last call before a friend ‘checked-out’ and I’ve never had the chance to speak about it. Talk therapy may help but how would anyone know when even that is not easily available to us here. I am going to e-mail you so you can talk to me and visa-versa- if you want to.