A More Preventative Mental Health Model

I caught this article in USA Today and it introduced a fascinating concept – one I hadn’t heard of.

Many of you are likely familiar with the National Suicide Prevention Hotline, which has been used to stave off countless crises and has likely saved thousands of lives. Of course, calling this number is what you do at your worst moment – when you are at the bottom of the barrel and feel as if you might hurt yourself because you have nowhere else to turn.

What if there was a way to reach a person before it hit that crisis point?

Introducing the “warm line” from the Mental Health Association of San Francisco. From the article:

Unlike a hotline for those in immediate crisis, warmlines provide early intervention with emotional support that can prevent a crisis – and a more costly 911 call or ER visit. The lines are typically free, confidential peer-support services staffed by volunteers or paid employees who have experienced mental health conditions themselves.

In other words – someone can call, get support, talk to someone, and get access to more resources, thus potentially preventing a more expensive and serious crisis.

This is a great idea, and according to article, a wildly popular one. But, does it work? Will it cut down on arrests, suicides or other mental illnesses? According to one analysis, yes.

Here’s the real reason this appeals to me: It’s a paradigm shift. It’s so much more than just a band-aid or a cure for someone in a crisis. Don’t misunderstand – that’s incredibly helpful, and necessary. But what if we can stop someone from getting sick in the first place?

If you stop a physical illness before it gets infected, you save money, time, pain and lives. Hopefully, programs like this can help push in more into that sort of space when it comes to how we discuss, treat and cure mental illness. It’s why we should try to teach mental health in schools. It’s why physicians should conduct mental health screenings on routine exams. It’s why mental health first aid should be taught alongside physical health first aid.

We can stop these problems before they start.