We Need to Talk… About Mental Health

When we say we’re working to help make every San Diegan healthy, safe and thriving, what comes to mind when you think about “healthy?” Things like eating right and having normal blood pressure?

Of course, those are essential parts of it. But what’s sometimes overlooked when we discuss health topics, even though it’s every bit as important, is mental health. We need to change that. May is recognized nationally as Mental Health Month, and over the next few weeks we are taking a number of steps to raise awareness among employees about mental health.

We’ve recently stepped up the resources we put into offering mental health services to the public. I want to see that of level of commitment reflected internally as well.

I’ll bring up the statistic that mental illness of some form affects one in five adults in any given year. That’s one in five people who walks into a family resource center. One in five who comes to get a building permit. One in five who pays child support or property taxes.

They are our customers. They’re customers for every department, not just Behavioral Health Services. Part of being prepared to serve them is understanding how common mental illness is and learning to address their particular needs. It’s one more way we can serve with HEART.

They are also us. That one-in-five figure extends into our workplace and includes the people we work alongside every day. We care about each other. The more aware we are of the struggles many of our colleagues are facing, the more supportive we can be. That will only make our County team stronger.

We’ve seen great interest in our Employee Wellness program, with many of you taking part in the variety of activities offered. We want to see mental wellness become just as big a part of our culture.

The first step is to do what I’m doing right here: talk about it. One of the biggest challenges for people with mental illness is overcoming the stigma that’s still often associated with it. That’s what keeps many people from getting the help they need. No one should ever feel any shame seeking help for any kind of health problem. Bringing it out into the open and talking about it helps erase that stigma.

So we have a series of activities this month meant to keep mental health in the spotlight and a topic of conversation. The most visible will be next week when you’ll see daily messages and challenges as part of Mental Health Awareness Week. Watch for more details appearing soon.  

You’ll find a new module in LMS with resources and information about trainings such as QPR – Question, Persuade and Refer – a suicide prevention technique.  Also this month, over 100 employees will go through a full day of training in what’s known as Mental Health First Aid. It teaches the lay person how to recognize signs and symptoms of mental illness and how to direct people to the appropriate resources.

And it’s not a special event, but this is a good opportunity to remind you once again of our Employee Assistance Program. Among the services EAP provides is counseling for both employees and their household members. It’s free and strictly confidential. If you could use these resources, please, take advantage of them. Part of the message we’re trying to drive home right now is if you need help, ask for help.

I hope you can take a little time to join the activities we’re offering this month and focus on this critical topic. And the real goal of course is to have you take that knowledge into the future and keep building on it. We’ll be better for it, in how we work with both our customers and each other.