Officials at homeless shelters in New Hampshire say more resources are needed to help people deal with mental health crises. The mental health crisis. “We are not prepared to deal with these serious mental health issues. said Arvelo. Staff are trying to handle it in the best way they can, but it’s a situation where they’re really not trained to deal with these very critical episodes,” he said. Mental health and housing services have a very high percentage,” said Jonathan Brown, director of the clinic. Rising labor costs over the past two years have exacerbated our ability to take in new patients.We need to think as a community and put resources towards it. All parties need to work together to find ways to provide more resources, he said.
Officials at homeless shelters in New Hampshire say more resources are needed to help people deal with mental health crises.
Will Arvelo, executive director of Cross Roads House, said he never wants to turn people away, but he’s seeing more and more people arriving in the midst of a mental health crisis.
“We are ill-equipped to deal with these serious mental health issues,” said Arvelo.
If staff are overwhelmed, people at risk are taken to the hospital, where they stay for a day or two before returning.
“We’re in this revolving door situation, and it’s really not helping anyone,” says Arvelo.
People living in shelters are paired with case managers who try to get each person back together.
“Our staff are trying to handle it in the best possible way, but they are not trained to handle these very critical episodes,” said Arvelo.
Nashua’s Harbor Care provides mental health services to people experiencing homelessness.
“The demand for mental health and housing services is very high,” said clinic director Jonathan Brown.
Brown said that due to the lack of staff, it is difficult to connect clients to the service due to the reduced resources available.
“Given the staffing shortages and soaring labor costs over the past two years, these exacerbate our ability to take in new patients,” he said.
Arvelo said something must be done to address the growing problem.
“I think that’s something we need to look at as a community. We need to put some resources towards that,” he said.
Arvelo says it’s not just about shelters, health systems and states. He said all stakeholders need to work together to find ways to provide more resources to vulnerable people whose needs are not met.
