On behalf of Africans for Mental Health, we support the passage of Virginia Senate Bill 546: Emergency custody and temporary detention orders; evaluations, presence of others. Every day we advocate for Caregiver [family, friends, coworkers, legal guardians, etc] engagement in the process, not as forced, silenced and/or excluded observers but as recognized participants and partners in the mental health treatment plan of their loved ones whether they are in the hospital or in out-patient care. In some cases, the exclusion of caregivers during the medical evaluation process and the lack of available beds relegates patients to cycle out. Sometimes, individuals seeking mental health treatment come voluntarily but when they are denied care because they did not meet criteria, their health deteriorates and hence the need for an ECO.
The interaction cannot only be when caregivers share collateral information with [988/911 responders, emergency room physician, nurses, law enforcement, community services board representative, EMT, social worker et al] and when they pick up their loved ones from discharge. Caregiver presence affirms their lived experience and reinforces their voice as members of the care team.
Once the patient is discharged, it is the caregivers who are front and center in making sure their loved ones health is improving. Caregiver engagement has to be collaborative throughout the entire process.
Furthermore, caregivers should be able to speak directly to the physician without barriers when their loved ones are admitted in the hospital. The mode and method of transportation should recognize that individuals experiencing mental health crisis are patients not criminals. The mode of transportation should be humane as not to injure the patient and cause additional stigma and trauma when seeking mental health treatment.
Whether you seeking for help as an individual or those around you are seeking for help on your behalf, individuals living with and experiencing a mental health crisis deserve to be treated with the utmost dignity and compassion. Anything short of this will makes it so challenging for anyone to seek for help.
Founded in 2017, our mission at Africans for Mental Health (AFMH) is to break the stigma of mental illness in the African global community. We do this work because no one should be criminalized for or denied access to life saving mental health treatment. We do this work because Irvo Otieno’s lived experience deserved compassion and because so many silently go through barriers to quality and dignified mental health treatment. We do this work because Mama Leon and Irvo fought so hard for her son. We get calls about how to navigate the mental health system in the US from individuals with lived experiences and their caregivers.
Thank you to Carolyn Ouko and Leon (Leo) Ochieng, Allan Chipman for the turning your pain to agency, the Justice for Irvo Committee for staying committed, for Senator Bagby, Delegate Willett and the entire legislature working together to normalize the importance of individuals and caregivers with lived experience asking for help, seeking help and receiving help. This legislature speaks to the communities we serve at Africans for Mental Health. We look forward to the passage, implementation and practice as we normalize mental illness in our communities.
Thank you
On behalf of Africans for Mental Health, we support the passage of Virginia Senate Bill 546: Emergency custody and temporary detention orders; evaluations, presence of others. Every day we advocate for Caregiver [family, friends, coworkers, legal guardians, etc] engagement in the process, not as forced, silenced and/or excluded observers but as recognized participants and partners in the mental health treatment plan of their loved ones whether they are in the hospital or in out-patient care. In some cases, the exclusion of caregivers during the medical evaluation process and the lack of available beds relegates patients to cycle out. Sometimes, individuals seeking mental health treatment come voluntarily but when they are denied care because they did not meet criteria, their health deteriorates and hence the need for an ECO. The interaction cannot only be when caregivers share collateral information with [988/911 responders, emergency room physician, nurses, law enforcement, community services board representative, EMT, social worker et al] and when they pick up their loved ones from discharge. Caregiver presence affirms their lived experience and reinforces their voice as members of the care team. Once the patient is discharged, it is the caregivers who are front and center in making sure their loved ones health is improving. Caregiver engagement has to be collaborative throughout the entire process. Furthermore, caregivers should be able to speak directly to the physician without barriers when their loved ones are admitted in the hospital. The mode and method of transportation should recognize that individuals experiencing mental health crisis are patients not criminals. The mode of transportation should be humane as not to injure the patient and cause additional stigma and trauma when seeking mental health treatment. Whether you seeking for help as an individual or those around you are seeking for help on your behalf, individuals living with and experiencing a mental health crisis deserve to be treated with the utmost dignity and compassion. Anything short of this will makes it so challenging for anyone to seek for help. Founded in 2017, our mission at Africans for Mental Health (AFMH) is to break the stigma of mental illness in the African global community. We do this work because no one should be criminalized for or denied access to life saving mental health treatment. We do this work because Irvo Otieno’s lived experience deserved compassion and because so many silently go through barriers to quality and dignified mental health treatment. We do this work because Mama Leon and Irvo fought so hard for her son. We get calls about how to navigate the mental health system in the US from individuals with lived experiences and their caregivers. Thank you to Carolyn Ouko and Leon (Leo) Ochieng, Allan Chipman for the turning your pain to agency, the Justice for Irvo Committee for staying committed, for Senator Bagby, Delegate Willett and the entire legislature working together to normalize the importance of individuals and caregivers with lived experience asking for help, seeking help and receiving help. This legislature speaks to the communities we serve at Africans for Mental Health. We look forward to the passage, implementation and practice as we normalize mental illness in our communities. Thank you