It is impossible to miss the plight of the mentally ill on the streets. The greatest trick providers of mental health services ever pulled was convincing the general public that they are doing the best possible job to help the mentally ill.
Treating or caring for the mentally ill or the disabled is a business. At any given time, Alaska, through good financial times and bad, has the mental health care system that providers want. And that includes the recidivism, mistreatment, patient traumatization and chaos.
The chaotic way Alaska cares for the mentally ill was primarily designed by providers. Patients were rarely included during the designing of the mental health care system. Neither were patient advocates.
In the end, Alaska has the mental health care system providers want.
For years, providers of psychiatric services have refused to recognize and treat institutional trauma that causes PTSD. Providers have opposed improving the grievance procedure law for the disabled bringing the law into best practice. Providers have opposed providing adequate assistance when the disabled file a grievance.
In general, the disabled are in many ways excluded from their treatment plan and not given proper rights to protect themselves.
In a recent news story in the paper, a doctor at the psychiatric ER talked about staff being kicked and punched by patients. That is true. We served on an advisory board at a psychiatric hospital with a nurse who stated years ago he was assaulted by a patient. And he repeated the story four or five times. And there is the problem. Knowing it or not, the nurse was right at the point where he wanted to get even with every patient he came in contact with. There is no proper system for patients to be protected from staff concerning physical or mental abuse.
You can find us on YouTube — type in Faith Myers Dorrance Collins.
Faith Myers and Dorrance Collins,
Mental Health Advocates
Anchorage