Statement On Death Of Mental Health Patient In Psychiatric Emergency Room Of Kings County Hospital


Statement On Death Of Mental Health Patient In Psychiatric Emergency
Room Of Kings County Hospital
02 Jul 2008

The reports of the death of a mental health patient in the Kings
County Hospital psychiatric emergency room are deeply troubling and
demand further investigation to determine the root cause of this
incident. Given the problems that were first raised in a federal
lawsuit filed a year ago, it should also spur greater scrutiny of the
hospital's administration and practices.

Mental Health America's fear is that this incident reflects a broader
public attitude that devalues individuals with severe mental health
conditions who are served in public systems. We call on people who
share our abhorrence at these acts to continue to combat the ignorance
and discrimination that still exists toward people with mental
illnesses. If appropriately treated people, even with the most severe
illnesses, can and will recover. Hope and respect are central
components of this treatment. Devaluing people further prolongs their
disability and likely contributes to the 25 years of lost life for
persons with severe mental illnesses that are served in public
systems.

This incident is also a tragic illustration of systemic problems in
public mental health, where needed mental health care is too often
provided as a last resort instead of a first response, and where
medical problems too often go unrecognized and untreated.

Those systemic problems go far deeper than breakdowns in psychiatric
emergency services. By their very nature, emergency services are not
adequate alternatives for the many people whose illness could be
managed before it becomes a crisis

Rather, this tragic incident underscores a real crisis in mental
health service-delivery - the failure to invest adequately in early-
intervention and other community-based services and supports, even as
hospitals have reduced psychiatric bed capacity. The facts are that
over two-thirds of adults and over half of children with a diagnosable
mental health condition do not receive the mental health treatment and
services they need. At the same time, people with serious mental
illnesses served in the public system die, on average, 25 years early
from preventable health problems such as heart disease and diabetes.

As we discuss and debate "health care reform," these shocking data
highlight the importance of making mental health reform a key
component of needed health reform.

Mental Health America is the country's leading nonprofit dedicated to
helping all people live mentally healthier lives. With our more than
320 affiliates nationwide, we represent a growing movement of
Americans who promote mental wellness for the health and well-being of
the nation - everyday and in times of crisis.

Mental Health America
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Article URL: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113679.php

Main News Category: Mental Health

Also Appears In:  Psychology / Psychiatry,


URL: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113679.php
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