Parkland's psychiatric services benefit patients, providers, public

Published: 5/22/2014

It could be your neighbor, your co-worker, your child, your spouse. About one in four adult Americans suffer from a mental illness, and according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than 5.4 million adults who needed mental health care in 2012 did not receive any services. All too often, patients in Dallas end up in Parkland’s Emergency Room or the Dallas County jail when their mental health issues become critical.

As one of only two large facilities in the seven-county Dallas/Fort Worth area to provide psychiatric emergency services, Parkland Health & Hospital System faces a high volume of often complex patients, with a limited community safety net for ambulatory mental health and substances abuse treatment. In 2013, Parkland treated 8,539 patients needing acute psychiatric care in the Psychiatric Emergency Room and provided behavioral and psychiatric services to an average of 1,409 inmates per day in the Dallas County Jail.

May is National Mental Health Month, and the theme for 2014 is “Mind Your Health.” The observance hopes to build public recognition about the importance of mental health to overall health and wellness. For behavioral health experts at Parkland, it’s also an opportunity to educate the community about the challenges they face in meeting the growing demand for psychiatric care with limited resources.

According to a report released on May 15, 2014 by the House Energy and Commerce oversight subcommittee studying federal mental health resources and programs, Americans with the most severe mental health problems – such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression -– are the least likely to get the help they need.

“You can’t see a mental illness. What you can see are the behaviors exhibited by an acutely ill psychiatric patient,” said Tamara Johnson, MS, BSN, RN, Parkland’s Executive Director of Psychiatric Services. “What is important to recognize is that mentally ill patients can and do recover. No one wants to be diagnosed with mental illness. At least 25 percent of people in the U.S. have a mental health diagnosis, yet society still attaches a stigma. A friend or neighbor can empathize if they hear of a heart attack or a broken bone, but they have difficulty finding empathy for mental illness.”

Despite the obstacles they must overcome, Johnson said the vast majority of patients she has seen in her career want the same thing – to be well.

That’s all Shelly (note: the patient’s name has been changed to protect her identity), the 29-year old daughter of a Parkland nurse, wanted.

It was just before the holidays when Shelly broke down and finally called her mother for help. A fiercely independent woman, Shelly had suffered from depression on and off for years. This time was different. This time she cried out for help. She was in distress, scared.

“I was scared too,” her mother admitted. “No one wants their child to suffer like that. I was scared for her.”

An initial visit to an area emergency room proved to be less than successful so Shelly, with her mother by her side, left against medical advice. “No one explained what was taking place and when they transferred her to a locked unit, she got hysterical – and so did I.”

The following week wasn’t much better. The holidays can be stressful, but they are compounded when searching for psychiatric resources in the community. “I can’t tell you how many places we called and left messages,” Shelly’s mom said. “But it was the holidays, offices were closed. I spent many nights lying awake making sure she was OK in the next room. I didn’t want her out of my sight.”

With Shelly’s level of depression deepening, she and her mother came to Parkland’s psychiatric emergency department. “The hardest part was hearing your child asked about their level of depression and trying to determine whether they would carry out the act of suicide,” her mother said, reflecting on that moment.

Satisfied that Shelly was not suicidal, she was discharged later that night. In the weeks after, Shelly began seeing a counselor and started focusing on the future. “She decided to go back to college and pursue a degree in health care. She’s looking to the next year, not the next hour,” her mother said, acknowledging how proud and grateful she is that her daughter reached out for help.

Parkland is working to improve psychiatric services to help patients like Shelly and thousands of others. Parkland is currently participating in two behavioral health care projects funded by the Medicaid Transformation 1115 waiver, which provides federal and local funds for health care providers to improve access and quality of care for low-income patients.

“Parkland can and must provide high quality care for psychiatric patients,” said Kris Gaw, Parkland’s Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer Hospital Operations. “Our patients deserve excellent care, and the community is dependent on our success. Community support of Parkland’s mental health services is vital because for many patients, Parkland is the only option.”

For more information about Parkland behavioral health services, call 214.590.5536. Back