Mental Healthcare as a Right
We recently finished the first humanities unit of the year, on SDGs 1,2, and 4. During it, we discussed various levels of human needs, and whether people should be legally entitled to these needs. We also went on a Field Experience to the Lincoln Park Community Shelter, where we planned and cooked a meal for 35 of the people who use LPCS' services. We planned the meal, gathered ingredients, prepared it, and served it.
How many people in the United States experience mental illness each year? 1 in 50? 25? One might be surprised to find out that 1 in 5 Americans experience mental illness each year. (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Although this is only based on those who are diagnosed with a mental illness, not those without the time, money, or access to mental health services. Untreated mental health issues can create large problems for individuals, and when a sizable portion of citizens are unhealthy, for society as a whole. For these reasons, it would be a great benefit to everyone in the world to take decent mental healthcare from a need to a right.
Many countries deal with mental health in questionable ways that are both costly and unhealthy for those undergoing treatment. Mental health is difficult to fit into one category on the hierarchy of needs. It often is thought of as separate from physical health, although the two are more interconnected than people usually consider. Mental health is closely tied to physical health, and it is impossible to have peak physical health while ignoring mental health. In some countries, like Canada, although free healthcare is readily available, “the wait lists for psychotherapy is long and limited, leaving over 35 percent of Canadians feeling as though they didn't receive the therapeutic treatment they needed.” (Rodriguez-Cayro, 2017) This is to say that even though prescription medication is available, therapy is harder to access, and is an important an unignorable aspect of mental healthcare.
However, there are a few countries that have introduced new mental health programs with much more success than others. Luxembourg, for example, noticed some of what they were doing wrong in the way of mental health, and went about developing ways to fix it. They realized that as young as elementary school, children were being stigmatized for their differences, and felt even more uncomfortable discussing them as a result. According to Joanna Gilbride-West, after this realization, they started to find ways to “provide them with psychosocial support in schools and other community settings” They did this by changing teaching methods to cater to individual students, which removed the pressure of being the same on them. This made students much more confident in themselves and their work.
There are many ways the United States could fix our healthcare system. We could make denying healthcare to people because of mental conditions like depression illegal. We could also start by making all kinds of healthcare free. If everything from therapy to medicine was free, Americans would have a much easier time getting their needs up, for things ranging from general health to self worth. Although making it fully free would not be easy, it has been done before, and can most certainly be done again.
Free healthcare is not a radical or new idea. It was first introduced in Europe in the late 19th century. (Physicians for a National Healthcare Program) We wouldn’t be the only country with Universal Healthcare, or doing something unheard of. We would simply be catching up with where other countries already are.
“A Brief History: Universal Health Care Efforts in the US.” PNHP, pnhp.org/a-brief-history- universal-health-care-efforts-in-the-us/.
Gilbride-West, Joanna. “World Mental Health Day: Positive Education in Luxembourg.” City Savvy Luxembourg, www.citysavvyluxembourg.com/lifestyle/world-mental-health-day-positive-education-in-luxembourg/.
“NAMI.” NAMI, www.nami.org/learn-more/mental-health-by-the-numbers.
Rodriguez-Cayro, Kylie. “This Is How 9 Countries Worldwide Treat Mental Health Issues.” Bustle, www.bustle.com/p/what-does-mental-health-care-look-like-abroad-this-is-how-9-countries-treat-mental-illness-2885010.
3 photos, To, Hiu (2019)
After this, and more research, we began to write essays on various human needs, and why they should be rights. Topics covered by my classmates and I include education, food access, and my topic, mental healthcare.How many people in the United States experience mental illness each year? 1 in 50? 25? One might be surprised to find out that 1 in 5 Americans experience mental illness each year. (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Although this is only based on those who are diagnosed with a mental illness, not those without the time, money, or access to mental health services. Untreated mental health issues can create large problems for individuals, and when a sizable portion of citizens are unhealthy, for society as a whole. For these reasons, it would be a great benefit to everyone in the world to take decent mental healthcare from a need to a right.
Many countries deal with mental health in questionable ways that are both costly and unhealthy for those undergoing treatment. Mental health is difficult to fit into one category on the hierarchy of needs. It often is thought of as separate from physical health, although the two are more interconnected than people usually consider. Mental health is closely tied to physical health, and it is impossible to have peak physical health while ignoring mental health. In some countries, like Canada, although free healthcare is readily available, “the wait lists for psychotherapy is long and limited, leaving over 35 percent of Canadians feeling as though they didn't receive the therapeutic treatment they needed.” (Rodriguez-Cayro, 2017) This is to say that even though prescription medication is available, therapy is harder to access, and is an important an unignorable aspect of mental healthcare.
However, there are a few countries that have introduced new mental health programs with much more success than others. Luxembourg, for example, noticed some of what they were doing wrong in the way of mental health, and went about developing ways to fix it. They realized that as young as elementary school, children were being stigmatized for their differences, and felt even more uncomfortable discussing them as a result. According to Joanna Gilbride-West, after this realization, they started to find ways to “provide them with psychosocial support in schools and other community settings” They did this by changing teaching methods to cater to individual students, which removed the pressure of being the same on them. This made students much more confident in themselves and their work.
There are many ways the United States could fix our healthcare system. We could make denying healthcare to people because of mental conditions like depression illegal. We could also start by making all kinds of healthcare free. If everything from therapy to medicine was free, Americans would have a much easier time getting their needs up, for things ranging from general health to self worth. Although making it fully free would not be easy, it has been done before, and can most certainly be done again.
Free healthcare is not a radical or new idea. It was first introduced in Europe in the late 19th century. (Physicians for a National Healthcare Program) We wouldn’t be the only country with Universal Healthcare, or doing something unheard of. We would simply be catching up with where other countries already are.
“A Brief History: Universal Health Care Efforts in the US.” PNHP, pnhp.org/a-brief-history- universal-health-care-efforts-in-the-us/.
Gilbride-West, Joanna. “World Mental Health Day: Positive Education in Luxembourg.” City Savvy Luxembourg, www.citysavvyluxembourg.com/lifestyle/world-mental-health-day-positive-education-in-luxembourg/.
“NAMI.” NAMI, www.nami.org/learn-more/mental-health-by-the-numbers.
Rodriguez-Cayro, Kylie. “This Is How 9 Countries Worldwide Treat Mental Health Issues.” Bustle, www.bustle.com/p/what-does-mental-health-care-look-like-abroad-this-is-how-9-countries-treat-mental-illness-2885010.
Comments
Post a Comment