The Goldfields region is currently facing a mental health emergency, after services in the area can no longer keep up with increased demand. Community leaders and health care professionals have noticed a dramatic increase in mental health-related problems. This increase is due to genetic and social factors alike. Though demand is high and growing, inadequate resources stretched to the breaking point leave residents with few options.
Dr. Mathew Coleman, a key leader in the region’s health care community, spoke to the multilayered nature of mental health challenges. He acknowledged that some of these ailments are genetically ingrained. Access to education and access to jobs, that sort of social determinants came into play, his focus on that too was highly important. His insights show how layered and complex the mental health landscape is for young people in his community.
Community Mental Health of West Michigan worker Chris Meyer has seen a problematic shift in calls for help. Requests over the last ten years have more than tripled. Meyer said the majority of their staff are suffering from burnout and morale issues, resulting in lack of retention and increased absences. At times, he was angry at the brokenness of a system that failed him. In times of crisis, he noted, the only two options are to contact law enforcement or transport people to the emergency room.
Urgent Need for Support
We’re incredibly grateful to Veronica Lavars for opening up about her family’s fight to navigate the mental health care system. Her daughter was diagnosed after her first psychotic episode at 17 and has been residing with Lavars ever since. Lavars, now 56 and with Cavalli grown, wants to ensure indefinite psychological wellness for her daughter. Yet, now she is left to flounder in her pursuit of services.
In the end, we ended up transporting a severely ill child to the hospital. Less than 15 minutes later, she emerged back out and walked down the center of the highway! Meyer pointed out, noting the failure of emergency mental health responses.
Federal lawmaker Anna Bonney expressed fears for the 700 First Nations residents who make up about 4% of the community. She emphasized that many individuals lose faith in mental health services due to long wait times and a feeling of being unwelcome. “I would like to see those [decision makers] come here to actually see how Esperance works, what is effective,” Bonney urged.
In remarks of her own, community advocate Lynne McCosh joined her in calling for an urgent focus on helping those in crisis today. She challenged us to think about what we could do when a person walks in with an acute mental health challenge. Despite the need to take swift action when individuals come to the table in an ultra-tense manner, what actions are we responsible for in that very instant? And why was that,” she continued, “she asked.
Systemic Challenges
Our current system simply cannot withstand these collected burdens of demand. In the Goldfields region, there are currently only two full-time equivalent psychologists from WACHS to cater to the needs of nearly 60,000 residents. This chronic underfunding means that millions are unable to access even the most basic mental health services.
Dr. Coleman spoke to systemic challenges built into our local health resource infrastructure. He called on health conveners and people funding health systems to start with a desire to listen to local communities. He calls for increased community control over mental health systems. He’s been clear about the inequities even in his own community. The impact Individuals of low socio economic status are disproportionately affected by mental health issues.
“So it’s only natural that the ‘have nots’ are up against harsher obstacles,” said Coleman. They carry a disproportionately higher burden of mental health problems. He urged decision-makers to spend more time in the community to listen and understand where the needs exist.
Community Solutions
Given these mounting challenges, local leaders are calling for far more holistic solutions. Meyer frequently gets people connected to Community Mental Health but continually runs into roadblocks. “If we call Community Mental Health because we’ve got someone who’s having an episode, we get all sorts of excuses why they can’t help us,” he remarked.
The local community is subsequently left with no time to look for other better and more justified solutions to their growing issues. Beyond that, Lavars wants her daughter to have day-in-and-day-out access to mental health professionals. In the meantime, Bonney is passionate about making change to ensure better services for First Nations peoples.
The region is at a critical juncture, with urgent challenges that need to be addressed. One thing is obvious—we need a broad, bold coalition to expand access to mental health care and supportive systems.
