Adults and Mental Illness

As many as one in four US adults may have some form of mental illness, surveys suggest.
The Wall Street Journal (1/14, Bialik, subscription required) "The Numbers Guy" blog reported that as many as one in four US adults may be troubled by some form of mental illness, according to the results of two surveys conducted during the early 1990s and then about ten years later. Psychiatrist Darrel Regier, MD, MPH, director of research at the American Psychiatric Association, said of the surveys' findings, "We were really surprised." Dr. Regier, who is vice chairman of an APA task force working on the updated version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, also pointed out that the DSM-V will attempt to separate symptoms of mental illness from its results in an effort to tease out more information about the degree of mental illness.
Group says learning how to identify, help people with mental illnesses should be a common first-aid skill. The Washington Post (1/17, Saslow) reported, "Learning how to identify and help people with mental illnesses should be a first aid skill as common as CPR, according to the Washington-based National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare (NCCBH)." The Post pointed out that "since 2008, the organization has offered 12-hour 'mental health first aid' certification courses nationwide" during which students are provided with "a five-step action plan for identifying individuals in crisis and knowing more about when and how to intervene." Since the Jan. 8 shooting in Tucson, AZ, "inquiries about the program have spiked...according to NCCBH spokeswoman Meena Dayak."
Psychiatrist says college mental-health programs overwhelmed by number of students needing help. On its website and on its "Morning Edition" program, NPR (1/17, Neighmond) discussed the fact that "severe mental illness is more common among college students than it was a decade ago, with most young people seeking treatment for depression and anxiety." Child psychiatrist Jerald Kay, MD, who has worked with the American Psychiatric Association's committees on college mental health, explained that today's "college mental health programs are typically overwhelmed with the numbers of students needing help." What's more, despite the presence and availability of mental health counselors, Dr. Kay noted that "most schools have psychiatrists available only a few hours a week -- a dire shortage of specialized help in such a time of great need, he" said, particularly at a time when many institutes of higher learning have had to cut back on their mental-health programs for budgetary reasons.