Monday, January 26, 2004

State facing repeat of budget issues (Connecticut)
New Haven Register story - "When the General Assembly comes back into session Feb. 4, it will revisit many of the same budget issues as last year, including the millionaire’s tax, social service cuts and a deficit. ... State Rep. Patricia Dillion, D-New Haven, worries about the hammering social programs, particularly funds for the mentally ill, have taken in the last year. She said that has already been compounded by the $12 million in recisions the administration ordered last month, with 25 percent directed at the Department of Social Services and 16 percent at the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services."  
  

County to discuss high suicide rates (Ohio)
News Journal story - "Richland County's suicide rate nearly doubled in 2003 from the previous year, prompting community groups to schedule a roundtable meeting Feb. 3 to create a 'Suicide Prevention Coalition.' Richland County averaged 13 suicides per year, over the past 10 years. But in the first 10 months of 2003, 22 lives were lost to suicide. ... Co-sponsors for the roundtable are the Richland County Mental Health and Recovery Board, Mansfield-Ontario-Richland County Health Department, MedCentral Health Systems, Mansfield mayor's office, The Center for Individual and Family Services and Richland County chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. "  
  

State to change kids' mental aid (Illinois)
Chicago Tribune story - "Mental health screenings for children in crisis psychiatric situations will be merged under a single statewide program to save money and streamline services, according to a plan announced Sunday by Gov. Rod Blagojevich. The state plans to set up a hot line and consolidate the screening programs geared toward children from low-income families by July 1, said Mike Claffey, spokesman for the governor. The new system will allow Illinois to generate an additional $1.1 million in federal matching Medicaid funds and will include follow-up medical services not currently in place, he said. ..." [Viewing Chicago Tribune resources requires registration, which is free].  
  

Mentally ill hit hardest by homelessness (Canada)
Vancouver Sun story - "...Vancouver's Downtown Eastside has turned into an outdoor asylum, with the highest density in the city, province and country of people with mental illness. The Strathcona mental-health team that serves the Downtown Eastside has 1,100 patients on its roster -- 300 more than are currently at the province's psychiatric institute, Riverview -- and it's estimated by some that there are actually three times that number of mentally ill people living in the neighbourhood..."  
  

More and More Autism Cases, Yet Causes Are Much Debated
New York Times feature story - "No one disputes it. Cases of autism, the baffling and often devastating neurological disorder that strikes in early childhood, are rising sharply. In California alone, the number of children receiving special services for autism tripled from 1987 to 1998 and doubled in the four years after that. National figures tell a similar story. The upsurge has lent urgency to calls for more research on autism and more government spending to educate autistic children and has inspired federal officials, who late last year held an 'autism summit' meeting in Washington, where they presented a 10-year plan of action. But what lies behind the increase in cases is sharply debated.." [Viewing New York Times resources requires registration, which is free].  
  

RMHC investigation extended (Minnesota)
Story in the Daily Tribune (Hibbing MN) - "Two investigations into whether city councilors engaged in discriminatory housing practices by denying the rezoning of Range Mental Health Center at the former Cobb-Cook School have been extended. Councilors were notified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development late last week that the investigations relative to complaints filed by Gordon Hoelscher, chief executive officer of RMHC, and Ruth A. Holm, client of RMHC, in September were not completed within the statutory timeframe. The law requires HUD to complete an impartial investigation within 100 days of the official filing of a complaint..."  
  

Stress Epidemic Strikes American Forces in Iraq
Story originally published in The Observer (UK) reprinted at Common Dreams - " Up to one in five of the American military personnel in Iraq will suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, say senior forces' medical staff dealing with the psychiatric fallout of the war. This revelation follows the disclosure last month that more than 600 US servicemen and women have been evacuated from the country for psychiatric reasons since the conflict started last March. At least 22 US soldiers have killed themselves - a rate considered abnormally high - mostly since President George Bush declared an end to major combat on 1 May last year, These suicides have led to a high-level Department of Defense investigation, details of which will be disclosed in the next few weeks..."  
  

Bipolar disorder is often misunderstood
Sentinel & Enterprise (Fitchburg MA) story on bipolar disorder, focusing on one local resident - "... While difficult to diagnose, bipolar disorder is treatable. Doctors often prescribe mood stabilizers, such as lithium, and recommend therapy. The road to recovery for many patients can be a long struggle, according to Leroy Spaniol, a psychologist and researcher at Boston University. He said it can take years before doctors find the best treatment for each patient...."  
  

Not many on hand to voice mental health questions (North Carolina)
Story in the New Bern Sun Journal - "Providers and recipients of services previously provided by Neuse Mental Health Center fired questions and voiced concerns Thursday as time nears for full implementation of the state's mental health system reform. But not many. Craven Community College's Orringer Auditorium, that was nearly full two years ago as the first system wide reform in 30 years was unveiled, drew only about 40 Thursday night. Even for those, however, there are few definitive answers to many of their questions. .."  
  

Inmates Would Be Screened For Suicide Risks, Mental Health Under Senate Plan (Kentucky)
WAVE3TV story - "Jail inmates would be screened over the telephone for possible mental illnesses or suicide risks while they're being booked, under a plan a Senate panel approved Thursday. It's an attempt to prevent depressed inmates from committing suicide and to help others with mental illnesses, said Senate Majority Floor Leader Dan Kelly, the bill's sponsor. In recent years, Kentucky has had a number of inmates commit suicide, and this is an attempt to prevent future incidents, Kelly said..."