Budgets Balanced at Expense of Mentally Ill
March 2011 NASW News

Most states — still reeling from the recent economic recession — are looking to make further cuts to their health care expenditures, not increase them. By law, states must balance their budgets, the bulk of which is dedicated to health care expenditures. As a result, the fragmented and fragile mental health care system is in serious peril.  Experts note that mental health care is countercyclical — demand for services tends to increase as the economy declines. This is evident in last year’s higher-than-expected enrollment in Medicaid, which pays for more mental health services than any other source.

During the past year, numerous heartbreaking national and international disasters have filled news reports telling emotional stories and showing heart-wrenching images — from the tsunami in Japan to the tornadoes in Joplin, Mo., and the South, to the flooding in Minot, N.D., and beyond. Many individuals who witness these stories wonder what they can do to help — and some respond, often by making a monetary donation or participating in hands-on volunteer work. But social workers, who are both trained to support those in need as well as feel a strong inherent calling to do so, are even more likely to act on that impulse and volunteer, and their response makes a significant difference.

As researchers and practitioners have explored gender roles in society, many have begun to focus on the socialization that men experience and the ways it can affect their physical, social and mental health. Social workers are among those recognizing the need to approach working with men with attention to the particular coping mechanisms they use when facing challenges.

The opportunity to gamble legally is at its peak in the nation's history — and according to the latest figures from problem gambling hotlines, so is the number of people seeking assistance for resulting troubles. Social workers involved in treating problem gamblers say that the trend is more widespread than initially believed and that thousands are suffering in silence. Part of the challenge is that most problem gamblers won't seek help until it is too late, with financial and personal ruin the result.

The field that started out as a way to help workers deal with their alcohol or drug addictions has grown into a broad spectrum of aiding a company's workforce and its productivity. The field is employee assistance, and a majority of those in it are trained in social work. EAP professionals need to be well rounded to address an array of problems. Issues that may affect job performance that are brought up by employees as often as any traditional addiction include personal relationships, depression and anxiety.

Migraine headaches, anxiety, depression, attention problems. For many people, access to prescription drugs is the most frequently sought remedy. More and more social workers, however, are discovering a field of treatment that requires no drugs and in many cases brings remarkable results. The objective of biofeedback practitioners is to help people develop greater awareness and voluntary control over their physiological processes that are otherwise outside awareness. With biofeedback as a guide, the patient learns how to control the biological response system generating the biofeedback signal.