We learn from every situation in which mental illness leads to death. If we choose to. In the attempted murder and suicide case of Gus Deeds, there is much to be learned. If you don't remember, Creigh Deeds was found wandering after being stabbed by his mentally ill son, Gus. When the police found Gus, he'd committed suicide using a gun. The previous day, Gus had been evaluated as needing inpatient mental health treatment. He was released to his family because it was thought that there weren't any beds in the area that he lived in. After the fact, it became clear that there were beds. The horror in that situation is that Gus died. His Dad was severely injured. And another family has been fatally impacted due to mental illness.
This article discusses the situation: http://cbsn.ws/1k1XAbb. I think the article is totally correct. This situation points out two important areas of concern, First of all, there is the shortage of beds. When we cut the funding to treatment options for the severely mentally ill, we are creating more situations that lead to violence. This can be seen clearly in our headlines. The situation with Creigh Deeds and his son is not the only incident of violence committed by mentally individuals in our recent history. Obviously. How many incidences of this kind of violence will it take until we recognize the need to provide treatment? Would Gus Deeds still be alive if he had been hospitalized after the evaluation? It can also be clearly seen in the numbers of mentally ill in our jails. If the place that the mentally ill most often find treatment is in jail...our system is a failure by definition. The point is to prevent criminal behavior.
The other issue that was raised is about communication. The article points out that after Gus Deeds died, it was claimed that there actually were beds available at the time that he needed them. I know that one of the biggest difficulties of providing mental health treatment involves creating a system. There needs to be a variety of options to deal with the variety of situations and problems that come up. As a Case Manager, I knew that my effectiveness was tied to my knowledge about what was available. I needed to know what kinds of clients would qualify for a program. I needed to understand intake procedures. I also needed to do an effective job of checking out what was available at the exact time that my client needed the assistance. That is one of the most complex parts of the job. In the situation with the Deeds family, whether the beds were found was a matter of life and death. Unfortunately, in this case, the result was death. Without criticizing the individuals working on the Deeds case, I would like to point out that communication in the mental health system is problematic. Having the resources available and knowing what resources are available can be complicated. The key is in adequate and targeted spending. Having the staff available. Improving information flow. Paying attention to resources and what is needed.
Obviously, the system didn't work for the Deeds family. Cutting mental health dollars can be a fatal decision for many of those dealing with the reality of mental illness. Virginia should be seriously looking at the mistakes made and what needs to be changed to ensure that this won't happen again. My question is: Will they actually look at it? Or is the political desire to cut spending more important than saving lives? What do you think?
This article discusses the situation: http://cbsn.ws/1k1XAbb. I think the article is totally correct. This situation points out two important areas of concern, First of all, there is the shortage of beds. When we cut the funding to treatment options for the severely mentally ill, we are creating more situations that lead to violence. This can be seen clearly in our headlines. The situation with Creigh Deeds and his son is not the only incident of violence committed by mentally individuals in our recent history. Obviously. How many incidences of this kind of violence will it take until we recognize the need to provide treatment? Would Gus Deeds still be alive if he had been hospitalized after the evaluation? It can also be clearly seen in the numbers of mentally ill in our jails. If the place that the mentally ill most often find treatment is in jail...our system is a failure by definition. The point is to prevent criminal behavior.
The other issue that was raised is about communication. The article points out that after Gus Deeds died, it was claimed that there actually were beds available at the time that he needed them. I know that one of the biggest difficulties of providing mental health treatment involves creating a system. There needs to be a variety of options to deal with the variety of situations and problems that come up. As a Case Manager, I knew that my effectiveness was tied to my knowledge about what was available. I needed to know what kinds of clients would qualify for a program. I needed to understand intake procedures. I also needed to do an effective job of checking out what was available at the exact time that my client needed the assistance. That is one of the most complex parts of the job. In the situation with the Deeds family, whether the beds were found was a matter of life and death. Unfortunately, in this case, the result was death. Without criticizing the individuals working on the Deeds case, I would like to point out that communication in the mental health system is problematic. Having the resources available and knowing what resources are available can be complicated. The key is in adequate and targeted spending. Having the staff available. Improving information flow. Paying attention to resources and what is needed.
Obviously, the system didn't work for the Deeds family. Cutting mental health dollars can be a fatal decision for many of those dealing with the reality of mental illness. Virginia should be seriously looking at the mistakes made and what needs to be changed to ensure that this won't happen again. My question is: Will they actually look at it? Or is the political desire to cut spending more important than saving lives? What do you think?
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