DENVER – El Centro Comunitario de Salud STRIDE (‘STRIDE Community Health Center’) se ha unido a la campaña “Hablemos, Colorado” (‘Let’s Talk Colorado’), una coalición de más de 20 organizaciones sanitarias, y este año el énfasis está en enfrentar algunos de los singulares retos que los hombres encaran sobre su salud mental. La doctora Erin Baurle, sicóloga del Centro “STRIDE”, dice que los hombres no buscan tanto los cuidados como las mujeres, aunque las cifras muestran que sufren de depresión, ansiedad y otros obstáculos para su bienestar, tanto como el resto.

“La falta de tratamientos para la salud mental supera cualquier otro problema del salud que tengamos, la gente se resiste a buscar atención y no recibe lo que necesita para enfrentar problemas y preocupaciones que son muy reales.”

Baurle menciona que en STRIDE la salud mental es vista como parte de la salud general y el bienestar, y profesionales certificados en salud mental hacen frente solidario con los proveedores médicos durante la visita médica de un paciente. Seis millones de hombres en los Estados Unidos admiten que experimentan depresión, y los hombres son casi cuatro veces más proclives a morir por suicidio que las mujeres, según los Centros para el Control y Prevención de Enfermedades (‘Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’). De los casi mil doscientos colorados que murieron por suicidio en 2017, casi 900 fueron hombres.

Baurle dice que es común que los hombres eviten por vergüenza hablar sobre sus sentimientos directamente o en ambientes formales, por lo que recurrir a un acercamiento hombro con hombro puede ser útil para sacar a la luz los problemas. Agrega que una buena idea es decir casualmente a los hombres que haya en tu entorno –mientras conduces paseas al aire libre– que cuando estén listos tú estarás en disposición de hablar y presente para apoyarles.

“Pero tal vez ser no sea en el momento en que abres el tema por primera vez; tal vez sea en otro momento. Y cuando acuda a ti, es importante enfocarte realmente y escuchar, porque los hombres pueden sentirse apenados o ignorados si están pasando otras cosas.”

Agrega que tajar los problemas al principio del ciclo, cuando alguien comienza a sentir un estrés muy grande, es buen momento para buscar atención profesional antes del que empeore el problema. Baurle dice que un buen primer paso para tener ayuda profesional es hablar con quien brinda atención de primer nivel. Todos los 21 centros comunitarios de salud tienen servicios conductuales in situ, o arreglos con un socio de la comunidad para poder referir a los pacientes.

Información del CDC, en www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/suicide-datasheet-a.pdf.

Rates of suicide among young people have increased by about 36% in roughly the last two decades and the surge has caught the attention of federal policymakers.

The Biden administration has a new National Strategy for Suicide Prevention and a Federal Action Plan, highlighting the need for a coordinated approach to prevention and equity in treatment and research. It follows the Bipartisan Policy Center's launch of a youth mental health task force in January.

Val Demings, co-chair of the Youth Mental Health and Substance Use Task Force and a former member of Congress from Florida, said in Sioux Falls last week rural communities face unique mental health challenges.

"For example, having access to care, the affordability of care, removing the stigma," Demings outlined. "You may be in a substandard educational setting. You may also have substance abuse, addiction in the household. And so we have got to, as a nation, deal with the social ills that cause decay in certain communities in the first place."

A big focus of the task force is a link between suicide and increased use of technology and social media. The U.S. Surgeon General said young teens who spend more than three hours a day on social media are at double the risk of mental health struggles, including depression and anxiety.

Technology can also be used to help deliver health care services in rural places. In 2021, the Helmsley Charitable Trust launched a virtual crisis care program in South Dakota, equipping law enforcement with iPads, so they can connect people with mental health professionals by video.

Walter Panzirer, trustee of the trust, has seen positive results.

"We had a 75% reduction of transports to the mental health facilities," Panzirer pointed out. "They were able to get care at home, locally; 25% of the calls were for youth."

People living in rural places are almost twice as likely to complete suicide than those living in large cities, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency said South Dakota had the fifth-highest suicide rate in the country in 2021 at over 200 deaths.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.

New continuing education classes can help New York psychologists better work with disabled patients.

The courses center on understanding disabilities - providing universal access for patients with disabilities, ethics, and cultural competence.

Sharon McLennon-Wier, Ph.D. - executive director of the Center for Independence of the Disabled New York - said in developing the curriculum, there were certain takeaways people should have.

"The first step really is for people to understand that a disability is a disability, and there are going to be barriers to the environment with it," said McLennon-Wier. "And we need to work together to ensure that each and every person has access to treatment."

Other takeaways are ensuring clinicians are aware of their expectations, noting they're not trained to work with every single client.

It's taken two years to get these courses up and running, and McLennon-Wier said she is eager to see how these will shape up.

The first course begins on May 29 and anyone interested can register online at www.cidny.org/ce.

There's also a hope psychologists will learn about confronting their stigmas toward disabilities.

McLennon-Wier said she feels this begins by looking through the lens of ableism. She said people should consider how they implement universal access for disabled patients.

"Does your biases prevent you from utilizing the knowledge of treatment that you have?" said McLennon-Wier. "Does it work with what's needed by that person who has a disability because first is the treatment practice, but also you have to understand the implications of disabilities."

Other considerations should be given to issues like the segregation disability creates. She said she thinks certain determinants of health like race and gender also impact a person's mental health.

Future classes could deal with different psychological treatments with an infusion of multicultural disability competence.

The 2024 Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Public Conference kicks off Saturday, where industry experts and researchers will share the latest scientific developments and ongoing advances to fight Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

David Coon, director of the Center for Innovation in Healthy and Resilient Aging at Arizona State University, will lead the conference.

Coon said experts continue to see growing numbers of people developing dementia in the Grand Canyon State, which also means increased demand for care from family and friends.

"The reality is we're still facing this," he said, "and we're facing it also with a growing number of people living alone with cognitive decline, and that is very important for us to recognize as well."

It's a growing public health crisis in Arizona, according to the Alzheimer's Association. An estimated 152,000 people 65 and older are living with Alzheimer's disease in the state.

Coon said increasing awareness about the disease is critical to not only diminish stigma but also plan for the future.

Saturday's event is free and will take place from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Memorial Union on ASU's Tempe campus. Coon said a panel of experts will share information about treatment options, but also the resources and support systems available across the state.

He added that it is critical for people not to wait until a crisis strikes, and that the sooner patients know their cognitive-health status, the better they can have a voice in their own preferences for care.

"How you get assistance, who's engaged, and I think that is really important for you to be, in part, in the driver's seat," he said, "and similarly, for somebody that's going to help you along that way to have those conservations."

Coon called Saturday's event a "family affair," and encouraged anyone impacted by dementia or Alzheimer's to bring family and friends to learn more. Topics will range from new drug treatments to reducing the risk of Alzheimer's with exercise, as well as resources for caregivers.