Mental Health Care

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that mental illness, which also includes autism, Alzheimer's disease, addiction, mental retardation and epilepsy, affects people of all nations of all social, economic and cultural backgrounds; however, the poor suffer most from a lack of the most basic resources for effective treatment. The author points out that, even though available treatment methods for mental illness differ among regions and socio-economic classes, most patients are prescribed psychotropic drugs, such as antidepressants. The paper states that, in the U.S., managed care systems usually do not cover mental disease and insurance companies look to mental health benefits as the first place to cut in an attempt to reduce rising costs.

Table of Contents:
Mental Health and Primary Care
Status of the Primary Mental Health Care Industry
Incidence
Current Approaches
Recognition and Current Response
Policy Initiatives
The New GMS Contract
General Practitioners and Practitioners with Special Interest
Primary Care Graduate Mental Health Workers
Shared Care between GP Practices and Community Health Teams
Obstacles and Issues
Little Attention Paid to Improving Primary Mental Health Care
Fragmented Linkages of Substance Abuse Treatment with Community-Based Services
Obstacles to Accessing Primary Mental Health Care
Social Disparities
Developments
Effects of Cutting Back on Health Coverage
Legislation
Community-based Primary Care Satellite Clinics

From the Paper:

"Mandating mental health benefits has already been an ongoing policy process, as in fact, more than as many states have enacted legislation and the mandates have become more typically comprehensive than previous ones. However, state legislation has not proved to be adequate substitutes of a federal legislation. State legislation did not appear to have reached enough persons to create a significant difference at the population level. Many consumers in the parity states were not aware of their improved coverage or that parity legislation may have accelerated the development of managed care in the mental health care arena, which separates nominal benefits from actual benefits."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bao,Y. (2004). The Effects of State Mental Health Parity Legislation on Perceived Quality of Insurance Coverage, Perceived Access to Care, and Use of Mental Health Specialty Care. Health Services Research: American College of Healthcare Executives
• Glieb, S. (1998). Too Little Time? The Recognition and Treatment of Mental Health: Problems in Primary Care. Health Services Research: American College of Healthcare Executives
• Lee, S. D. (2006). Assessing the Service Linkages of Substance Abuse Agencies with Mental Health and Primary Care Organizations. American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse: Taylor and Francis, Ltd
• Menaged, S. C. (2003). Obstacles to Accessing Mental Health Care. USA Today: Society for the Advancement of Education
• Nierenberg, D. (2002). Mental Health Overlooked. Humanist: American Humanist Organization

More papers on Mental Health Care:

• Essay # 5749 : "The Lack of Mental Health Care Coverage"
• Research Paper # 26098 : "Job Satisfaction in Mental Health Care"
• Argumentative Essay # 93451 : "Mental Health Care"

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