WICHE Mental Health Report
April 03, 2007
Volume 1, Number 3
In this Issue:
- InFocus: Why Focus on 'Rural'?
- Selected Highlights of Recent Staff Activities
- WICHE MH Staff Writings and Publications
- FYI…
- WICHE MH Personnel
[RECENT ISSUES: Feb 2007 . March 2007]
InFocus: Why Focus on ‘Rural’?
The previous issue presented the three most common definitions of ‘Rural’ within the federal government. Depending on which definition is used, a different demographic picture of Rural America is painted. These definitions tell us where to find rural areas, but they do not convey a functional picture of the lives of Rural Americans. Simple numbers cannot tell us what daily life is like for a person, rural or urban. As a result, in 1952, WICHE established the WICHE Mental Health Program (MHP) to provide a mechanism for the western states to examine their rural populations to determine their mental health needs as well as provide the technical assistance to build departments, programs, and services in response to those specific needs. To accomplish these tasks, the MHP has gathered a strong base of research on rural mental health and developed a methodology for examining gaps in rural mental health care.
Historically, research has suggested that there is no significant difference between rural and urban populations in terms of the prevalence of substance abuse and mental health disorders. However, new data, collected with an awareness of the statistical dynamics of differing population sizes strongly indicates that there are significant differences in substance use and abuse between rural and urban populations. We are currently waiting on the release of new data to see if this dramatic reverse will occur in the mental health field as well.
Regardless of this information, the major barriers to effective mental health treatment remain the same. It is not a question of which population develops more symptoms, but rather, which one is healthier due to receiving adequate, appropriate, quality treatment. Over the course of 50 years of research, we have discerned the three main barriers behind this differing treatment: Accessibility, Availability, and Acceptability.
Accessibility: getting there and paying.
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Rural Americans travel further to provide and receive services.
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Rural Americans are less likely to have insurance benefits for mental health care.
Availability: someone there when you are.
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Rural areas suffer from chronic shortages of mental health professionals.
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Specialty providers are highly unlikely to be available in rural areas.
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Comprehensive services are often not available.
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Few programs train professionals to work competently in rural places.
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Rural people often lack choice of providers.
Acceptability: choice, quality, and knowledge.
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Stigma in rural areas is compounded by a lack of anonymity.
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People in need often delay receiving care.
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Rural Americans are less likely to recognize mental illnesses, and understand their care options.
Within these three main areas, many nuances differ widely between and among communities. When we are invited into a community, we bring these three areas with us as a roadmap and let the communities fill in their own details, providing us with an intricate picture of their system, what their unique barriers are, and how they think they are best addressed. To see a sample of some of these differences, visit our state webpage at http://wiche.edu/mentalhealth/States.asp
Over the next several issues, we will begin to highlight some of the major areas and programs that we work with. The May newsletter will present an introduction to one of the largest aspects of our work: state workforce development.
TOP OF PAGESelected Highlights of Recent Staff Activities
Project Director Chuck McGee previously was the Program Planning and Evaluation Specialist for the Missouri Department of Mental Health. He holds an M.A. in Psychology from the University of Colorado, with an emphasis on program evaluation. Chuck provides technical assistance on developing performance and outcome indicators using multiple data sources, including consumer surveys. Chuck helped develop cultural competence items for the national MHSIP survey instrument and reports on WICHE’s evaluation work at national MHSIP conferences. Chuck has spent the last year in Anchorage, Alaska to help facilitate The Outcomes Identification and System Performance Project (OISPP). OISPP will provide ongoing monitoring of the Alaska behavioral health service delivery system’s impact on improving the behavioral health of Alaskan residents.
Above: Chuck McGee "on assignment" in Alaska.
WICHE MH Staff Writings and Publications
Chuck McGee and Allan Press have just finished two annual reports for the Wyoming Mental Health Division: 1) a survey of adult consumers and 2) a combined parent/caregiver survey and youth survey. Each year the Wyoming Division of Mental Health has contracted with UPLIFT (a family-based organization) to manage the project and contracted with WICHE to provide both technical consultation and to supervise the survey process. These reports will be available on the WY website next month.
In addition, Chuck and Allan completed one report for the WY Substance Abuse Division on a survey of youths and adults. This is the first year for the substance abuse survey. This is also a collaborative project between the Substance Abuse Division, UPLIFT, and WICHE.
FYI...
The National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services has recently released The 2007 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human Service Issues, March 2007. This report includes an extensive chapter on Substance Abuse in rural and frontier committees, detailing current statistics for rural and urban areas, pointing out gaps in the data, and presenting recommendations for action. Here’s a brief excerpt:
Eighth graders living in small towns are 104 percent more likely to use meth than those who live in large cities. For these reasons, the Drug Enforcement Agency considers methamphetamine the number one illegal drug in rural America. Results for the 2003 National Survey on Drug Use and Health show that eight out of every 1,000 rural residents report methamphetamine use, noticeably higher than the five out of every 1,000 urban citizens who report abuse.
The Rural Health Care Pilot Program has just announced the Deadline for Pilot Program Applications. The deadline for this application is May 07, 2007. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Consumers and Governmental Affairs Bureau developed this program to connect rural and urban health care providers using a dedicated nationwide broadband network. The following is from the Public Announcement:
Selected applicants will receive up to 85 percent of the costs of building state and regional broadband networks and connecting those networks to Internet2 or National LambdaRail, Inc., dedicated nationwide backbone providers, as well as the costs of the advanced telecommunications and information services that will ride over those networks. Selected applicants will also receive up to 85 percent of the costs of connecting to the public Internet.
WICHE MH Personnel
Dennis Mohatt, MA Mental Health Program Director
Scott Adams, Psy.D. Associate Program Director
Chuck McGee, MA Project Director
Mimi McFaul, Psy.D. Research Associate
Candice Tate, Ph.D. Research Associate
Fran Dong, Statistical Analyst
Jenny Shaw, Administrative & Project Coordinator
Jeanette Porter, Administrative Assistant
Tell Us How the WICHE Mental Health Program Has Impacted You
The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education is seeking your comments on how our services have affected mental health services in rural communities. Please send an e-mail telling how WICHE has influenced you to ctate@wiche.edu. We would also love to hear your nominations for promising rural practices. Feel free to also contact us with requests for state-specific rural assistance or to just ask us a question about our experience with rural mental issues and public policy.
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