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Surgeon General's Office Focuses on Mental Health Issues
During the past year the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Surgeon General's Office have increased focus on mental health as a major public health issue. This summer the Surgeon General's Office releases a "call to action" on suicide prevention. In December 1999, the first ever Surgeon General's report on mental health was released.
Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent Suicide
In July 1999 the Surgeon General's Office issues a "Call to Action to Prevent Suicide". The purpose of the report is to broaden the public awareness of suicide and its risk factors; to enhance services and programs; and to advance the science of suicide prevention. The document outlines fifteen steps that can be taken by individuals, communities, organizations and policymakers to bring attention to the topic and to decrease the incidence of suicide. This report is part of a larger federal effort to develop a national strategy for the prevention of suicide. The CDC will take the lead in completing a draft document for consensus building around the national strategy by early 2000. Following this, the CDC is planning to organize a series of large regional meetings to consider and refine this draft, culminating in a large national meeting to finalize the National Strategy to Prevent Suicide. The Surgeon General will use his office to bring visibility to the issue of suicide. He will bring together health professional organizations, educators, health care executives, and managed care clinical directors to discuss gaps in scientific knowledge of effective mental illness interventions and everyday practices in order to improve the health of individuals and to decrease the incidence of suicide.
For further information contact:
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Mental Health Report
In December 1999, the Surgeon General's Office released the first-ever report on mental health. The 500-page document,
Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General, asserts that mental
illness is a critical public health problem that must be addressed by the
Nation. The report was developed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
and the National Institute of Mental Health
(NIMH) under guidance of
the Surgeon General. The report is geared towards the general public,
to educate the public about mental illness.
The Surgeon General's Office states that the document is being released at this time due to the tremendous scientific advances over the past two decades with have broadened the understanding of mental illness and improved the way in which mental health care is provided. However, according to the report, nearly half of all Americans who have a severe mental illness fail to seek treatment. The report suggests that the complex and fragmented mental health care delivery system, financial barriers and stigma are all deterrents to the receipt of appropriate care. The document focuses on barriers to receiving mental health treatment, and on specific mental health issues of children, adults and the elderly.
Monthly events will be planned for the next year to highlight specifics of the report. Additional reports are expected from the Surgeon General's Office including one on cultural issues as they relate to mental health and illness.
The Executive Summary of the report, a resource directory, fact sheets and a catalog of related materials available from federal agencies can be obtained by calling the toll free number, 1-877-9-MHEALTH. A full copy of the document is available at
http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth/home.html
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