I don’t often know what it is I’m there for. I know overall. I have issues or simply unhappiness. Life isn’t what or where I want it to be, and I need someone to help make it right. Of course you’ve been telling me that’s my job, but in reality “me” is made up of me and you because I’ve been talking to myself way too long already. Not to mention my spouse, mother, brother, best friend, etc. I don’t like talking to myself anymore so I’m talking to you. Actually, I just need help and you’re giving it. I’m paying you of course, or my health plan is, but I recognize that you also do this because you care. You enjoy what you do, and so I feel I’m with someone who cares about this for more than the dollar.
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For a long time I’ve had an ambition, a goal. It was a goal I began to put together in high school. It has stayed with me. Over time that ambition became something of a vision, something I felt I literally had to achieve. Without going into details, since we all have our goals and things we need to achieve, I’ll say that it is something I still feel with the same fervor I did 35 years ago. Which means that it’s been 35 years, and it’s still not done. For the last 30 odd years I’ve been noticing the devastation of college towns by the minions of former students like myself, adults seeking to reconnect with their college experience. This influx of wayward grownups has all but ruined Harvard Square, turned it into “glitz central” catering to no culture whatsoever and certainly to no student needing things inexpensive and a world that is there for him and not a CEO. Ever since I saw the words “Healthy Choice” emblazoned on a box of frozen food at my local supermarket, I have been wondering what indeed makes up a truly healthy choice. According to the packaging that day, a healthy choice was a frozen convenience food possessed of less calories and more nutrition than your typical Swanson fried chicken dinner. The packaging said I would achieve health in terms of trimmer waist line, higher energy level and better general wellness, if indeed I was prepared to shell out the extra few bucks for it. I knew there was something I liked about First Lady Rosalyn Carter. Ms. Carter has been working on improving mental health care in America for the past forty years and has just written a book called, Within Our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis. In an article this week in Time Magazine, Ms. Carter talks about the book and her opinions on the subject of mental health in general. A study that came out on May 6, 2010 says that the numbers of physicians “open” to visiting pharmaceutical reps dropped from 71% to 58%. This has to be due, at least in part, to the relentless negative publicity that big pharma gets for its practice of sending out armies of sales reps to inform doctors about certain medications and to encourage them to prescribe them. I have seen this trend in effect for the mental health field, among psychiatrists, mental health nurse practitioners and mental health PAs. Let’s not allow the national debate over health care reform distract us entirely from the very impressive and clear victory that mental health advocates won recently in North Carolina and elsewhere. It’s called Mental Health Parity. One may like or dislike the ObamaCare plan, but it would take a truly self-interested employers trade association to object to the idea behind mental health parity: mental health illnesses are real ailments and it’s not proper to discriminate against those who suffer from them. While Carolina Partners may not necessarily agree with the content of each post, we are committed to posting those submissions that do not violate our terms of use in the interest of generating fair and vigorous debate. Private insurance companies have just about completed their stranglehold on mental health clinicians in America, with uniformly negative results for people suffering from mental health issues. We recently came across the following article about the 21% cut to physician’s fees by Medicare due to take effect because of a longstanding, outmoded formula created in the 1990’s. What’s interesting is that the proposed temporary fix that went into effect at the time this article was written is being proposed a second time as Congress has failed to act once again on behalf of primary care and mental health providers. We’re interested to hear the medical community and consumer’s feedback on this new legislation (or lack thereof). Associated Press 1.11.2010 article http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/11/AR2010011100261.html |
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Copyright 2009 Carolina Partners in Mental HealthCare, PLLC |
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