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– Today's News – |
| WELCOME TO THE MANHATTAN, KS NAMI HOMEPAGE! | 1-785 776-8519 |
NAMI 2008 ANNUAL CONVENTION - Tommorland Today - Making Recovery Real! On June 13-16 2008 at Rosen Cnetre Hotel, Orlando, Florida. More information see www.nami.org/convention
WOULD YOU REALLY LIKE TO HELP BRAIN RESEARCH - Contact Harvard Brain Tissue Resource Center, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA 02478, More information 1-800-BRAIN BANK
NAMI WALK - Saturday, May 10,2008 at 11:00 a.m. at the NAMI WALKS
FOR THE MIND OF AMERICA.
The NAM walk will be at Washburn University in Topeka. Topeka is one of
70 sites across the U.S. that will be helping to raise funds and educate
the public about long term mental illness. More information can be obtained
by contacting Robert Dickens, Manhattan 785-530-1091 marrob2@cox.net or
Elizabeth Potskowski, Topeka 785-221-8955 or epotskowski@nami.org. Contributions
will be accepted from those who do not want to walk but want to help advocate
for those with mental illness.
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Psych unit closing, others pressed
By Dave Ranney
KHI News Service
MANHATTAN, April 14 - Money pressures have prompted Mercy Regional Medical
Center to announce it will close its 10-bed psychiatric unit here next
week, raising concerns about the gap that will be left in the area's mental
health services. "This has nothing to do with need - the need is
clearly there," said Maggie Rassette, director of behavioral health
services at the hospital. "The reason is pure economics. Reimbursement
rates are just too low." The unit posted a $400,000 loss last year.
"The average daily census is 3.7 patients," said Judy Wagner,
Mercy Regional's vice president of mission services. "When you do
the math, you'll see we're losing $1,200 for every patient admitted. We've
done everything we can to hang on, but it's not gone well." Most
patients' stays, she said, are covered by Medicare, Medicaid or TRICARE,
the federal government's health insurance program for military personnel.
The average patient stay is 3.8 days. Plans call for the unit admitting
patients until 5 p.m. Sunday. The unit will close on or before April 18.
Mercy Regional opened the unit in 1989. "It's sad," said Rassette,
who has worked on the unit since 1990. "We fill a need. We're part
of this community's - and this area's - safety net. Now, it's a safety
net that, for some, won't be here any more." The hospital, she said,
expects to increase its outpatient services. In 2007, the region's community
mental health center admitted 162 patients to the unit. "That means
that in all probability there are going to be 162 people who are going
to have go outside the area for voluntary inpatient care," said Robbin
Cole, executive director at Pawnee Mental Health Services in Manhattan.
"That means Salina, Topeka or Kansas City." Some of these patients
- there's no way to know how many - are likely to end up at Osawatomie
State Hospital, she said. "What I'm afraid of is that when the people
who've used Mercy in the past realize they're now going to have to drive
one or two hours to Salina, Topeka or Kansas City, they will put it off,"
she said. "In some cases, that could lead to conditions deteriorating
to a point where we'll see an increase in involuntary admissions."
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NAMI Kansas Flint Hills President: Robert Dickens 785-539--1091 Other Contacts: Mary Alice & Norm Schlesener 776-8519
* * * * * CONTACT YOU LEGISLATORS: NAME members, and anyone who is an advocate for someone with mental illness needs to stay in contact with state and federal legislators. Let them know your story in the fight against long term mental illness. Families cannot survive without hospitals and treatments programs in our communities to treat diseases of the brain. Contact NAMI KANSAS, Rick Cagan, Executive Director for information about specific bills before the House and Senate. rcagan@nami.org or www.namikansas.org * * * * * "Why should I attend?" Many people find it difficult to do anything that would bring attention to a mental illness that they or a loved-one suffers from. Stemming from the stigma that society has placed with mental illnesses, fear of discovery overrides any motivational effort that a person might have in overcoming the diseases of the mind. Ironically, schizophrenia and the allied affective disorders are treatable once they are correctly diagnosed by a psychiatrist... but even getting to a 'shrink' is difficult for some people to do fearing 'what other people might think.' But the longer anyone waits (for whatever reason), the more difficult it becomes to deal with it later on.
Start with a support group... start by reading a book on affective disorders... start by getting professional medical help. The key is you being proactive with it and starting somewhere. "What is Mental Illness?" Choosing a Psychiatrist About Psychiatric Medications Finding a Psychologist
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