Behavioral Health Initiatives
Increasing the availability of behavioral health services to the community, especially to children and youth, has been identified as a top priority by the Community Assessment Team (CAT) and local health and human service agencies.1 Stigma, the negative public or personal perceptions associated with mental health issues, can be a barrier to accessing behavioral health services, finding employment and housing, or reaching educational goals.
Members of various community agencies, including SVHC, have begun a joint effort to decrease stigma through the formation of a Behavioral Health Task Force. In March of 2007, the task force hosted a roundtable meeting at Cortland Regional Medical Center, at which local agency representatives and behavioral health professionals shared their concerns about:
- increasing the availability of mental health services to the community;
- reducing the number of weeks new patients must wait to get an initial appointment; and
- reducing stigma, which acts as a barrier and discourages individuals and their families from getting the help they need.
This meeting led to the development of an on-going Capacity Committee focused on improving access to and coordination of local mental health services.
May is National Mental Health Month, and in May of 2007 the Task Force initiated a series of articles about stigma and behavioral health in the Cortland Standard. Topics include depression, self-injurious behavior, holiday blues, and others, and additional articles continue to be published monthly. See Behavioral Health Articles for the list of titles and transcripts of each article.
In May 2008, the task force launched the Think Again! about mental health campaign. The goal of the campaign is to decrease the stigma surrounding mental and behavioral health. Using billboards, posters, and articles and ads in local newspapers, the campaign aims to educate the public about the frequency of different mental health conditions at various stages of life and to highlight the progress being made in diagnosis, treatment, and recovery for people dealing with mental health needs. View the billboards, posters, and newspaper ads used in Think Again! campaign.
The Stigma Task Force also supports local mental health service providers through continuing education programs. In November, 2007, Jud Staller, MD, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at SUNY Upstate Medical University, presented The Utilization of Psychotropic Medications in the Treatment of Children and Adolescents to an audience of more than fifty area professionals at the Ramada Inn in Cortland. Financial support for this program was provided by SUNY Upstate and a grant from the NYS Department of Mental Health, and also by Seven Valleys Health Coalition, Cortland County Mental Health Services, the Mental Health Association of Cortland County, and NY FarmNet. Additional programs are planned for the future.
Please call Seven Valleys Health Coalition at 756-4198 or email jackie@sevenvalleyshealth.org if you would like more information about any of these local behavioral health initiatives.
1Community surveys highlighting the need for improved access to behavioral health care include:
- The Cortland County Community Services Board 2006-2009 Plan for Mental Health Services identifies “Access to Services for Children” as its #1 priority and recognizes stigma as a significant barrier to achieving goals.
- The Strategic Plan for Health developed by the Community Assessment Health Track Team for the 2005 Cortland Counts report identifies the need to “Increase the Availability & Accessibility of Behavioral Health Services” as a priority goal; this plan also recognizes stigma as a barrier to accessing mental health services.
