...The purpose of this essay is to discuss, within a case study context, the impact of severe mental health problems on a client whose care I have been involved in and, to discuss how the condition has affected the person, their informal carers, family and supporters. This essay will aim to provide an explanation of severe mental illness as well as an overview of the chosen client’s background, diagnosis and the impact this has had on them and those involved in their care. To protect the identity of the client and to respect the principle of confidentiality, a pseudonym has been used throughout this essay (NMC, 2008). The reason for choosing John for my case study is that having worked with him for approximately 2 years now, I feel I have already developed a therapeutic relationship with him. Having this Therapeutic relationship means there is an ongoing rapport resulting in John feeling at ease in disclosing personal information.. There is no universal understanding of what a severe mental health illness is it tends to be seen differently by the person experiencing it, their family and doctors. The term can refer to an illness where psychosis occurs, e.g. Schizophrenia; it also includes mood disorders, e.g. manic depression, schizoaffective disorder and clinical depression, and often referred to severe mental illness Psychosis describes the loss of reality a person experiences. (Rethink, 2009). This case study is based around a 24-year-old man who shall be referred to as John...
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...Recovery Model Introduction If the famous quote by Heraclitus, “The only thing that is constant is change,” is true, then one must wonder how the mental health field resisted change for so long. In light of the modern age, characterized by scientific methodologies, the mental health field advanced rapidly. Amazingly, the human condition could be put to test, understood and categorized. Sadly, anything falling outside the “norm” became “abnormal.” Once a person was identified as “abnormal,” they were the lucky recipients of a label they carried with them for life, or until they “recovered.” Mental health labels carry with them a certain stigma that communicates to the person they are different, perhaps less of a person and that “normal” may never be a reality with their “illness.” Recovery would be based on becoming symptom-free, or at the very least, a significant reduction in symptoms (Gehart, 2012). The mental health field has experienced tremendous growth in terms of understanding the plethora of conditions people experience, as well as in treatment of those conditions. However, one thing remained unchanged until recently. The idea behind recovery shifted from coercive treatment to person-centered change (Onken, et al, 2007). Gehart states is this way, “instead of using the medical paradigm of disease, the recovery paradigm approached mental “illness” using a social model of disability that emphasizes psychosocial functioning over medical symptomatology” (2012). The focus of recovery...
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...Mental Health Abstract Introduction: Metabolic abnormalities, predominantly weight gain, are related with the use of Antipsychotic medications. Objectives: This paper will help us understand the underlying factors that cause metabolic and cardiovascular abnormalities; and to advice interventions that would help improve the condition of mental health consumers. Background: The review articles used in this paper shows a high linkage between metabolic and cardiovascular abnormalities with the use of Antipsychotic medications; which is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity among metal health consumers. Approach: Selective Article Reviews are being used. Findings and Implications: Metabolic and cardiovascular side effects such as weight gain, diabetes and hypertension are some of the risks of Antipsychotic drugs; however, there are other underlying factors that cause this such abnormalities such as genetic factors, lifestyle, and other medications. Hence, education, early monitoring and lifestyle modification is highly recommended. Conclusion: Atypical drugs are the frequently used treatment for mental disorders, particularly schizophrenia; but despite of its metabolic and cardiovascular side effects still it’s used is increasing. Therefore, early intervention and monitoring must be implemented, with the promotions of education, lifestyle and diet management. Introduction It is well known that psychotropic drugs, in general and antipsychotic...
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...The couple separated because of violence; they had gotten into an argument and he pushed her. His ex-wife stated OG’s depression had gotten worse over the past week. The patient said he suffered from blackouts and he couldn’t remember things that had happened. On September 21, 2011 he was arrested while working in Las Vegas for using technology to lure a minor and was in jail for 11 days. The patient said he blacks out and did not remember the incident and woke up in jail. In October of 2011 his physician NP Brantman, prescribed him trazodone, Abilify and Seroquel. He was admitted for suicidal ideation and major depression. Hispanics for the most part believe that health is a gift from God. The majority of Hispanics practice some form of Catholicism, with an increasing percentage of Pentecostalism as a diverse and complex movement within Christianity and illness is seen as a wrong doing or punishment from God. Some Hispanics believe that the prevention and treatment of illness is accomplished with prayer or wearing religious medals, others believe that evil...
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...Social Policy: Texas Mental Health Elizabeth Awad University of Texas at Arlington Social Policy: Texas Mental Health Historical Background A recent change in the Texas law was passed for the Code of Criminal Procedure under the 84th Legislature, Under Texas Law Article 46B.102. CIVIL COMMITMENT HEARING: MENTAL ILLNESS is covered when (a) the court determines that the defendant may be a victim of mental illness, then the court shall hold a hearing to determine whether the defendant should be court-ordered by the state of Texas to mental health services under Subtitle C, Title 7, Health and Safety Code. And (b) Proceedings from the committed defendant determine that they should be court ordered mental health services that are governed by Subtitle C, Title 7, Health and Safety Code. “Mental Health does not respect zip codes, mental health affects everybody and formed the Texas State of Mind to ensure that Texans can have access to mental health help when they need it” states Tom Luce, Chief Executive Officer of the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute who decided to advocate for court ordered and non-court ordered state funded mental health treatment for all Texans (Texas State of Mind., 2015, March 24). Texas Mental Health has been a longstanding concern for Texans and Americans altogether. In 2014, The Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute initiated to help serve Texans. Back in July and August of 2012, The Meadows conducted a quantitative research project to its previous...
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...1-Given the increasing longevity of Americans and the costs of providing long-term care, anticipation of the costs should be a major element of every family’s financial planning. Current information suggests however, that very few families or individuals give this consideration. What factors might impede this advance planning? What measures might be effective in raising awareness among the Americans about this important matter? Age, diagnosis, and ability to perform personal self-care and the sites of care delivery vary widely. Also, the unrelenting progression of time is the one constant that expresses the diverse range of life's possibilities. According to Calmus (2013), Long-term care in the United States is in crisis. The current system is not meeting the needs of the frail elderly and disabled populations. As the 77 million baby boomers enter retirement, the Long-term care crisis will likely grow, both because of the sheer number of the baby boomers and because of medical advances that have increased longevity. Regrettably, few have prepared to pay for their Long-term care, either through insurance or savings. Policymakers need to move swiftly to reform the current system to ensure that tomorrow’s retirees have access to high quality care without bankrupting future generations. According to the article "5 Big Reasons Why Americans Don't Save Their Money," Savings aren’t just important for buffering life’s emergencies; research shows that financial assets, more than income...
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...Crazy Like Us “Crazy Like Us” is a enlightening book written by San Francisco journalist, Ethan Watters, in which he contends that the exportation of typical American psychological disorders included in the DSM to other countries is an ineffective approach at attempting to aid mental health patients in those countries. Watters educates readers about the dangers of applying American mental disorders to individuals in other countries due to differences in diets, culture, and social norms. He documents a series of case studies in which victims of mental health disorders in various countries are affected by culture and societal norms. He argues that classifying a mental illness under a generic American disorder is dangerous and downright inappropriate. American mental disorders are not “one size fits all” and exportation of them can cause significant damage to the people in the countries who suffer from mental health disorders. I concur with Watters’ chief point that cultural specificity must be accounted for and significant cultural differences exist throughout the globe, particularly in the field of mental health. The first case involves anorexia in Hong Kong, in which a 14-year old girl died suddenly. When reporters investigated her death, they entered her symptoms into the Google search bar to attribute a cause of death. The results configured symptoms very similar to American anorexia. Due to this revelation, the media orchestrated awareness campaigns, which stimulated an...
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...* * * * * Issues of Social Development in Adulthood Yvonne Gonzalez University of Phoenix PSY/201 Foundations of Psychology Tracy S. Ramos, Faculty April 7th, 2013 * * * * * * * * * I found this article to be very interesting. Surprisingly, it was difficult to locate a credible article that discussed women in their midlife; which it is why I really liked this article. Life Course Transitions and Depressive Symptoms among Women in Midlife, discusses about different issues that has accrue in adult women through midlife. It also discusses how midlife in adult women can affect their social development. This article will provide you with transitioning stage of midlife in adult women, as well as some of the consequences that can occur as women transition into midlife. It gives you step by step as to how each transition will affect her. This study was done on women from the ages 50-59 to show midlife transition and depression will affect the women. It will also tell you things about the male midlife transition and how they will react differently than women in their midlife transition. * Yes, I find that this article would be a great choice as a main source for a research paper. I say this because; it provides you with credible information and statistics on social development in women transitioning through midlife. It also provides you with information on how to overcome the issues that...
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...period or under increased stress, such as starting a new career or going through a divorce (Hawkins, 2010). Most psychotherapy tends to focus on problem solving and is goal-oriented. That means on the onset of treatment, you and your therapist decide up on which specific changes you would like to make in your life. These goals will often be broken down into smaller attainable objectives and put into a formal treatment plan (Hawkins, 2010). The purpose of this study was to explore public attitudes toward psychotherapy treatment and how they perceive importance of psychotherapy treatment, mental health issues are of ever growing importance in modern society. While there are numerous studies on the attitude of the general public toward psychiatry in general, little research has been done concerning the specific field of psychotherapy (Hawkins, 2010). 2. Literature review 2.1 History of mental illness in the Middle East 2.1.1 Pre-Islamic era: Ancient Egyptians believed that diseases were mainly because of evil spirits or wrath of gods. Their philosophy of the afterlife came from the idea that they were part of continuous cycle. Therefore, they believed in the physical continuation of the life after death. From this belief, they gave much attention of the psychology and personality thereafter. (Mohit, 2001) In ancient Mesopotamia, diseases were blamed on spirits and ghosts. They linked each disease with a spirit or ghost. Therefore, medicine was part of magic. There...
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...ll over the world the issue of mental health is a rampantly growing problem. With budget cuts both statewide and federally since the 1980’s by President Ronald Reagan, our country has had to create more cost efficient ways to meet the needs of our mental health crisis. Because of these budget cuts the need for more mental health services has grown and our county has responded to the outcry from those with mental health issues. Tulare County has come up with a way to help meet these needs locally through the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA), which was voted for in November 2004 and became effective January 2005. From August 2009 to October 20011 MHSA has helped over 16,000 Tulare county residents with mental health issues. This is possible because of a 1% tax surcharge on those who make $1 million or more per year. Mental health groups in Tulare County treat a broad spectrum of problems. From Bipolar Disorder and depression to schizophrenia, there are support groups to help clients deal with the difficulties associated with mental illness (HHSA, 2012). In California the rate mental illness vary from county to county....
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...The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) was created by, and is an agency within, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It was formed to lead public health efforts to advance behavioral health of the nation, and to make substance use and mental disorder information, services, and research more accessible. The mission of the SAMHSA is to reduce the impact of substance abuse and mental illnesses on America's communities. Important parts of providing the community with health services is prevention, treatment, recovery support services for behavioral health; this is to improve our health and reduce costs to individuals, families, businesses, and governments. This goal of these important aspects is to prevent costly behavioral health problems, provides treatment and services for people with mental and substance use disorders, and build strong and supportive communities. The basic purpose of the SAMHSA is to provide better health for all Americans, in different ways than other organizations. The leadership SAMHSA provides, along with various resources, is to help the U.S. Act on the knowledge of four main facts: behavioral health is essential for overall well being, prevention works, treatment is effective, and people recover from mental and substance use disorders. SAMHSA provides leadership and devotes its resources, including programs, policies, information and data, contracts and grants, to help the U.S. Act on the knowledge that:...
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...When someone breaks their arm or has the flu they go to the doctor. The doctor will then prescribe them medicine or guide them to the path of recovery. This, however, is not the case when it comes to mental illness. It is not widely accepted or talked about to get treatment for a mental illness, but mental health is just as important as physical health. In today’s society, those with disorders like depression are told to simply “get over it”, to “stop being so sensitive”, or that they are simply seeking attention. There is a major negative stigma surrounding mental illness that leads to more harmful effects, and it needs to be eradicated. One of my close friends has been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, depression, and has quite...
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...Interdisciplinary Practice Paper Population I am in my advanced year of internship at River Community residential treatment facility in Azusa Canyon. River Community is part of the Social Model Recovery Systems. River community is a coed facility, that houses up to 38 residents. Social Model Recovery Systems is a non-profit 501(c) 3 that provides direct treatment services (at 12 locations in Los Angeles and Orange counties) for those whose lives have become unmanageable due to alcohol and other drug use and/or whose mental health issues are interfering with leading productive lives. River Community itself is a unique residential treatment program providing recovery services to individuals with concurrent mental health and chemical dependency problems. The current director of River Community is a LCSW and ACSW. Social Model Recovery Systems ascribes to the principles and practices of social rehabilitation. The social rehabilitation approach is one in which addiction is viewed as being centered in the reciprocal relationship between...
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...Chapter 10 Mental Health * “Social workers are the nation’s largest providers of mental health services.” * Assessment: the process of determining the nature, cause, progression and prognosis of a problem and the personalities and situations involved. * The information obtained in the assessment process determines the requirements and direction of the helping process. * A mental health social worker “gathers information about the present situation, elicits history about the past, and anticipates service expectations for the future.” * A source for information about the client mostly comes from the client directly, family members, significant others, but another source may be medical records and health care providers. * Clients, especially with mental health problems, often have feelings of being lost, alone, and ineffective in what they have done or tried to do. * This clouded judgment is one reason social workers aim to empower the client, by using a strengths-based assessment. * This identifies positive behaviors and accomplishments. * Finding client’s strengths may help to empower the client to make changes in her life * Person-in-Environment Classification System- (the PIE) a coding of the client’s problems and the client’s ability to accomplish the activities necessary for daily living. The process is built upon two major premises that are basic to all social work practice: recognition of social considerations...
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...Welcome to Community Connections! Community Connections provides comprehensive, respectful and effective mental health and residential services to residents of the District of Columbia and Montgomery County, Maryland. Our Mission Community Connections provides comprehensive, respectful and effective mental health and residential services to residents of the District of Columbia and Montgomery County, Maryland. Our Philosophy Community Connections was founded on the premise that service integration could best be achieved by vesting a single agency with responsibility for a full range of activities. Although it maintains collaborative relationships with public and private providers throughout the Greater Washington area, Community Connections continues to develop and maintain "in-house" services to meet the many needs of its clients. Core Values | | Integration and non-duplication of services | | Innovative treatments for complex problems | | Gender and culturally sensitive and informed treatment | | Humane, safe and affordable housing | Clinical Programs for Adults Since its inception in 1983, Community Connections has created a comprehensive range of supportive services and treatment designed to help consumers meet their personal goals of recovery. Our programs are for adults in need of mental health services and those with co-occurring substance abuse treatment needs. Most consumers come with histories of violence and victimization, incarceration...
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