BY PHILLIP REESE
Less than a decade ago, the emergency department at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, California, would see maybe one or two young people per day, says Benjamin Maxwell, the hospital’s interim director of child and adolescent psychiatry.
Now it’s not unusual for the emergency room to see 10 adolescents and young adults in a day, and sometimes even 20, Maxwell says. “What a lot of times is happening now is kids aren’t getting the care they need, until it gets to the point where it is dangerous,” he says.
ERs throughout California are reporting a sharp increase in adolescents and young adults seeking care for a #mentalhealth crisis. In 2018, California ERs treated 84,584 individuals ages 13 to 21 who had a primary diagnosis involving #mentalhealth. That is up from 59,705 in 2012, a 42 percent increase, according to data provided by the California of Statewide Health Planning and Development.
By comparison, the number of ER encounters among that age group for all other diagnoses grew by just 4 percent during the same period. And the number of ER encounters involving #mentalhealth among all other age groups — everyone except adolescents and young adults — rose by about 18 percent.
The spike in youth #mentalhealth visits corresponds with a recent survey that found that members of ‘Generation Z’ — defined in the survey as people born since 1997 — are more likely than other generations to report their #mentalhealth as fair or poor. The 2018 polling, done on behalf of the American Psychological Association, also found that members of Generation Z, along with millennials, are more likely to report receiving treatment for #mentalhealthissues.
The trend corresponds with another alarming development as well: a marked increase in suicides among #teenagers and young adults. About 7.5 of every 100,000 young people aged 13 to 21 in California died by #suicide in 2017, up from a rate of 4.9 per 100,000 in 2008, according to the latest figures from the U.S. #CentersforDiseaseControandPrevention.Nationwide, suicides in that age range rose from 7.2 to 11.3 per 100,000 from 2008 to 2017.
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
Disconnected and bullied:
Researchers are studying the causes of the surging reports of mental distress among America’s young people. Many recent theories note that the trend parallels the rise of #socialmedia, an ever-present window on peer activities that can exacerbate adolescent insecurities and open new avenues for bullying.
“Even though this generation has been raised with #socialmedia, youth are feeling more disconnected, judged, bullied and pressured from their peers,” says Susan Coats, a school psychologist at Baldwin Park Unified School District near Los Angeles.
“#Socialmedia: It’s a blessing and it’s a curse,” Coats says. “#Socialmedia has brought youth together in a forum where maybe they may have felt isolated before, but it also has undermined interpersonal relationships.”
Members of Generation Z also report significant levels of #stress about personal debt, housing instability and hunger, as well as #massshootings and climate change, according to the American Psychological Association survey.
Resources to prevent #mentalhealth crises among youth are often lacking.
“We’re not doing a great job with … catching things before they devolve into broader problems, and we’re not doing a good job with prevention,” says Lishaun Francis, associate director of health collaborations at Children Now, an Oakland, California-based nonprofit.
Struggling to keep up:
Many California school districts don’t have enough school psychologists and don’t devote enough resources to teaching students how to cope with #depression, #anxiety and other #mentalhealthissues, says Coats, who chairs the mental health and crisis consultation committee of the California Association of School Psychologists.
In the broader community, medical providers also are struggling to keep up. “Many times there aren’t psychiatric beds available for kids in our community,” Maxwell says.
Most of the adolescents who come into the emergency room at Rady Children’s Hospital during a #mentalhealth crisis are considering #suicide, have attempted #suicide or have harmed themselves, says Maxwell, who is also the hospital’s medical director of inpatient psychiatry.
These individuals are triaged and quickly seen by a social worker. Often, a behavioral health assistant is assigned to sit with the young people throughout their stay.
“Suicidal patients — we don’t want them to be alone at all in a busy emergency department,” Maxwell says. “So that’s a major staffing increase.”
Rady Children’s Hospital plans to open a six-bed, 24-hour psychiatric emergency department in 2020. Improving emergency care will help, Maxwell says, but a better solution would be to intervene with young people before they need an ER.
“The ED surge probably represents a failure of the system at large,” Maxwell says. “They’re ending up in the emergency department because they’re not getting the care they need, when they need it.”
This story originally appeared on Kaiser Health News. It has been slightly modified to reflect Spectrum‘s style.
James Donaldson is a Washington State University graduate (’79). After an outstanding basketball career with WSU, he went on to play professional basketball in the NBA with the Seattle Supersonics, San Diego/L.A. Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks, and Utah Jazz. He also played for several teams in the European Leagues in Spain, Italy, and Greece, and he toured with The Harlem Globetrotters to wrap up his career. James was an NBA All-Star in 1988 while playing center for the Dallas Mavericks. In 2006, James was inducted into the Pac-10 Sports Hall of Fame and also the Washington State University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2010, James was elected as a board member for the NBA Retired Players Association.
James frequently conducts speaking engagements (motivational, inspirational, educational) for organizations, schools, and youth groups.
In 2010, James was the recipient of the NBA Legends of Basketball ABC Award, awarded for outstanding contributions in Athletics–Business–Community.
He believes in being a role model for success and professionalism to the scores of young people to whom he devotes so much of his time. He currently serves on several boards and committees and is a member of many organizations.
James believes in developing relationships that create a “Win-Win” environment for everyone involved, and in being the best he can be!
For more information about James Donaldson or to request he speak at your event, contact him at:
www.StandingAboveTheCrowd.com
JamesD@StandingAboveTheCrowd.com
1-800-745-3161 (voicemail & fax)
James Donaldson is the author of “Standing Above The Crowd” and “Celebrating Your Gift of Life” and founder of the Your Gift of Life Foundation which focuses on mental health awareness and suicide prevention, especially pertaining to our school aged children and men.
If you’re interested in having James come and speak to your group of young adults, business entrepreneurs, aspiring political and community leaders, and athletic teams, please contact him at jamesd@yourgiftoflife.org and or leave a personal message for him at 1-800-745-3161. Keep up with him and read about how he is reaching out and making a difference in the lives of so many around the world at www.yourgiftoflife.org
