Reducing stigma: St. Rita's social worker talks behavioral health
Nov. 4—LIMA — One in four Americans suffer from a mental health disorder, but many don't seek treatment due to fear of judgment or discrimination, said Dawn Mansfield, director of behavioral health services at Mercy Health-St. Rita's Medical Center.
"They fear losing their jobs. They feel that they're going to be treated differently," Mansfield told the Lima Rotary Club on Monday.
Mansfield wants people suffering from mental health disorders to feel just as comfortable asking for help as they would seeking medical care for high cholesterol.
Untreated anxiety and other mental health issues are risk factors for substance use disorders, Mansfield said.
Still, nearly half of all people who know they are suffering from mental health issues delay seeking treatment or never reach out for help, she said.
The St. Rita's emergency department saw 143 patients for suicide attempts and 129 opiate overdose patients last year alone.
Another 70 opiate overdoses and 84 suicide attempts have presented at the emergency department in the first three quarters of this year.
The hospital, which provides emergency, inpatient and outpatient behavioral health services, renovated its adult inpatient behavioral health unit in July to improve privacy.
The 21-bed wing is the only one of its kind in the hospital's 10-county region, admitting an average of 1,000 adult patients each year. The average stay: four days.
"Our focus is on healing and recovery," Mansfield said.
Art therapy plays a significant role in recovery: Members of the Lima Symphony Orchestra and ArtSpace/Lima visit St. Rita's inpatient and outpatient behavioral health units for group classes.
Eighty-five percent of patients show improvement after partaking in ArtSpace groups, Mansfield said.
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