When it comes to access to mental health care in Texas, the data is clear. Mental Health America is the leading organization that promotes mental health and well-being, and puts the death of the nation last in the nation Access ranking, Measures insurance, treatment and access to mental health workers.
“Every 700 people in Texas, there’s one mental health expert. In California, it’s one in every 70 people,” says Christina Judge, executive director of Mental Health Connections in Tarrant County. “So what are they doing that we haven’t done?”
These statistics have returned to Tarrant County, where one in six people have been diagnosed with depression. The county’s mental health care status is in the heart of February 26th. An honest conversation event At Texas Wesleyan University. During a panel hosted by the Fort Worth Report, mental health experts will gather to discuss talent’s lack of access to mental health care and possible solutions to improve resource visibility.
If you’re going
when: 7:30-9 AM February 26th
where: Nick and Lumertin University Center (2nd floor), Texas Wesleyan University;
3165 E. Rosedale St., Fort Worth
what: A panel of experts discusses access to mental health care. A complimentary breakfast will be offered at 7:30am and the program will be launched promptly on the 8am register here A $5 donation. If the proposed donation is of concern, please email hello@fortwortretherport.org. Make sure you can participate.
The panelist discussing this topic is Zelia Baugh, Vice President of Behavioral Health at the JPS Health Network. Kimberly Harris, Commander of the Arlington Police Department’s Action Health Law Enforcement Unit. Lachelle Goodrich, founder and executive director of Champ Texas. Dr. Chelsea Angelque, psychiatrist and founder of Central Psychiatry + Wellness.
Moderated by Fort Worth Report CEO and publisher Chris Cobbler.
Numerous agencies work together to improve the mental health workforce in Tarrant County Mental health connectionscommunity members are not yet knowledgeable about these resources, the judge said.
“People don’t know where to go or who to ask,” the judge said.
So is Tarrant County The biggest in Texas According to a resolution county commissioner adopted in December, there were no state mental health facilities at the border. County officials advocate for the state Funding new state psychiatric facilities The 2025 legislative conference will reduce the number of people on the waiting list for care. The proposal did not gain traction in 2023.
Susan Garnett, CEO of My Health, is CEO of Tarrant County’s resources, which offers community-based mental health services, said considering access to mental health care insurance is a major factor.
“For people with mental health conditions, they may struggle to ensure their insurance companies allow adequate services for them and have access to their providers to provide those services. ” Garnett said. “That can be complicated.”
If individuals have insurance and modest mental health needs, like counseling, they can easily get care through their insurance network, Garnett said.
However, those who need specialized care for mood disorders and require regular psychiatric visits will have more difficulty getting treatment, Garnett said.
“Increasingly, we see psychiatrists who choose not to join the insurance network and instead offer services only through cash payment options,” Garnett said. “We, like every other part of the US, have an insufficient number of psychiatrists available and certainly struggles for our children.”
The reason why psychiatrists and counseling professionals no longer accept insurance is because they believe that they are paying too little to implement personal practices.
“This issue of insurance payments is an incredibly, incredibly important issue,” Garnett said.
Teneisha Kennard, executive director of Behavioral Health Ambulatory Services at the JPS Health Network, said that for many years, a problem that has plagued Tarrant County resource accessibility is being able to navigate the health care system.
“It’s complicated for us as healthcare professionals,” Kennard said. “When we seek our own care or try to navigate for our family, it is a wake-up call of how difficult it is, whether you are in a stressful or risky situation. ”
Stigma, lack of transparency and lack of knowing what to expect when seeking mental health treatment are another factor that bans resource accessibility, Kennard said.
The panel goes further Discuss the barriers This limits access to mental health care in Tarrant County and solutions that could make future generations more easily and easily accessible to treatment.
The Covid-19 pandemic has encouraged more open conversations about mental health, but Kennard said getting care and going through the door is another hurdle, primarily due to unknown anxiety.
“It’s the idea that you’re separate from what you’re considered the norm,” Kennard said.
Kathryn Miller is a reporting fellow for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at kathryn.miller@fortworthreport.org. In the Fort Worth report, news decisions will be made independently of board members and financial advocates. Read more about the editorial independence policy here.
