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900 W. Main St.,
PO Box 690 Grangeville, ID 83530
Phone: 208.983.1200 |
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| Idaho's mental health all our responsibility |
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| Opinion - Edmunds, IDHW |
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In media coverage of the horrific tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., I heard repeatedly, "Somebody has to do something." As the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare's administrator in charge of the state mental health system, and more importantly as the father of three young children who attend a public elementary school, I believe we all can do something.
Given effective care, a person with mental illness is no more likely to be violent than anybody else. Mental illness is a chronic disease, like diabetes and asthma. There is not a cure, but it can be treated and managed. I believe that hope can be as powerful as treatment. Hope that they will find help. Hope that someone will show them compassion. Hope that they can be a part of a community rather than just a spectator. Any one of us can help create that hope. If we all take the responsibility to reach out to a neighbor, a friend, a family member or a coworker who we see struggling, we can be a part of the solution. Showing we care and asking, "Are you okay?" and teaching our children to do the same, can have immeasurable impact. We can all watch for the warning signs.
Mental illness can cause a person to have disorganized thoughts and difficulty differentiating what is real from what isn't. People with mental illness often struggle to find purpose in life and cannot see where they fit into their communities. A person with mental illness is much more likely to hurt themselves than someone else, which is also tragic.
The more we allow individuals with mental illness to live in the shadows, be ignored, and go without treatment, the greater the chance they will view themselves as outsiders. Any person disregarded to a great extent can be unpredictable, whether they have mental illness or not.
The mental health laws in Idaho and nationally are built around the premise of self-determination. The exception to this is when a person with mental illness is at imminent risk of life-threatening harm to themselves or someone else, or is disabled to the point of not being able to meet their own physical health and safety needs. This is a legal process that requires a judge to effectively order them into treatment. However, individuals can access care voluntarily and services are available to meet the needs of Idaho's citizens. If you know or see someone who needs help, please don't assume someone else will assist them. Together, if we accept the responsibility for the mental health of our communities, we can have an impact and hopefully prevent tragedy in Idaho.
Please call the 2-1-1 Idaho CareLine or visit www.211.idaho.gov to get information or to ask for help. If you need to talk to someone because you feel unsafe, call the Idaho Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
Ross Edmunds is the administrator of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare's Division of Behavioral Health, which oversees mental health and substance use disorder services.
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