Wednesday, January 21, 2004

Guilty of Mental Illness
Article in the January Psychiatric Times - "According to a recent Human Rights Watch report, U.S. prisons hold three times as many people with mental illness as psychiatric hospitals. The majority of these individuals are there because community-based treatments are not available, they have co-occurring substance abuse problems or they have previous involvement with the criminal justice system. Partnering with law enforcement agencies is key to devising workable solutions that ensure individuals with mental illnesses get the treatment they need."  
  

NAMI Executive Director Leaves
NAMI press release - "NAMI’s National Board of Directors today announced that national executive director Richard C. Birkel, Ph.D. is leaving the organization, effective immediately. Birkel has served in the position since 2001. ... Appointed as acting executive director is Michael Fitzpatrick, NAMI’s policy director, who has served on the national staff for five years."  
  

Community in crisis: Drug use, mental illness and crime are a complicated combination (California)
The third article in a Times-Standard series - " Social stigma combined with a scarcity of available treatment have added to the existing stress of mentally ill people in Humboldt County. Mental health advocates are trying to encourage better collaboration among agencies, and better public awareness of mental illness. The intersection of mental illness, drug abuse and the criminal justice system can create challenges even for those with expertise in one of these fields. The desire to keep the community safe from criminals -- mentally ill or otherwise -- must be balanced against the fear of arresting people for aggressive or bizarre behavior related to their illnesses. .."