Mental Health and Treatment in the US, Essay Example

In general terms Health and Policy makers in the USA look towards evidence based guidance with regard to how mental health treatments are approached. This is essentially a framework approach based upon the organization and the locus of care. Organizations are assessed on the types of clinical treatment that they can provide, considering aspects of research, treatment options and the strategy for administering care and treatment. In historical terms treatment was based upon community services, asylum treatment centres etc. Modern practices have come much more of a holistic concept looking at social care service providers, hospital treatment facilities and effectiveness of different types of treatment. (Goldman, H.H. 2000)

Hospitals have also been referred to as treatments and the term ‘hospitalization’ referred to as a treatment centre. Equally community mental health institutes are similarly referred. This may be a means of addressing the stigma of mental illness and moving away from Victorian terminology of mental asylums. During the 19th Century it was considered that there was a strong link between serious mental disorder and violent behaviour.

The violence is considered to be in the minority grouping of those patients with mental disorders and there has been strong links associated with behavioural dysfunctions through substance abuse or noncompliance with medical applications. Research conducted by Dr.E.F. Torrey in the United States looked at a cross-section of mental illness patients with violent or aggressive tendencies. In 1990 the National Association for the Mentally Ill in the USA studied some 1400 Families with Mental illness and violence. From this research they discovered a link that the majority of cases resulted from three distinct types of psychological conditioning i.e. Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder and Acute Depression. (Torrey, E.F. 1997)

Dealing with the mentally ill requires specialised psychiatric nurse training and as such this can affect those hospital administrators who have not been exposed to formal training. In particular Administrators should be familiar with evidenced based practices i.e. “A way of providing health care that is guided by a thoughtful integration of the best available scientific knowledge with clinical expertise.” (US National Library of Medicine, 2012). Hence the responsibility of an Administrator who has not been exposed to dealing with the specialist requirements of dealing with the mentally ill is somewhat disadvantaged in the current system.

References

Goldman, H. T. (2000). Organizing mental health services: An evidence based approach. Journal of mental health policies and economics, Iss 3, 69-75.

Torrey, E. (1997). Violent Behaviour and Mental Illness : A compendium of Articles. New York: American Psychological Associsation.

US National Library of Medicine. (2012, 2 20). Evidence-Based Practice and Health Technology Assessment. Retrieved from US National Library of Medicine: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hsrinfo/evidence_based_practice.html