Why is mental health not treated like physical health?
I read an article yesterday that stuck with me.
According to the article written by Adriana Belmonte "Why Mental Health Care in America is so shoddy",
More than 47 million American adults are experiencing a?mental illness, according to Mental Health America (MHA)'s latest?annual report, and yet 57% of adults with a mental illness are receiving no treatment.
Why is the U.S. struggling to better manage mental health?
The fundamental issue, according to experts, is that mental health care has historically been treated differently than physical health care.
Wait a minute..
Read that again.
"Mental Health Care has historically been treated differently than Physical Health Care".
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As Healthcare Leaders and Caregivers, we must step out of our comfort zones if we are to make any change to this.
I am not an expert in this field. In fact, for more than 25 years I can probably look back and say that the quote above accurately described my leadership philosophy. As leaders we "triage" the problems that stick out to us the most. We have missed the opportunity to make a real impact.
It is not just our Patients that this affects. It is our community. Our staff. Our Providers. Our Spouses. Us.
How do we make a change? We have to "hard wire" our future habits with new tools and goals.
We must start by asking ourselves this question every day. What have I done today that made a difference?
Then we start educating ourselves. How do I put mental health on the same level as physical health? What are the best practices? How do we come together as a team to make an impact?
I can tell you I know the reimbursement of every ER CPT code that is frequently used but I have no idea what coverage is out there for mental health.
I would like to hear from all of you about one thing that you did that made or is making a difference.