“The goal of it is to bridge the gap by creating greater access for people of color,” said BlackWellness Network Founder Valarie Cunningham, referring to the gap she has discerned between the level of ongoing care provided to African-Americans vs. the experience of White patients.
The Science and Art of Well-being: Innovations and best practices in mental health care
With its new Behavioral Health Care and Access Center, Integrated Services of Kalamazoo builds a safety net for those with mental health issues.
“Trial and error is the hallmark of prescribing mental health medication. This test can help minimize, or even eliminate in some cases, that trial-and-error process.” — Anna Langerveld, president and CEO of Kalamazoo’s Genemarkers
While gaining some understanding of how one identifies is the first step toward being authentic to oneself, what comes next for many LGBTQ+ youth is confusion, anxiety, depression, isolation, fear and discrimination. Help is available if one is willing to reach out.
The 2023 SWMJC Mental Wellness Project produced packages of stories focusing on: the mental health of caregivers, published in March; issues around youth mental health, published in June; and mental health workforce issues, published in August.
Our final series this year is The Science and Art of Well-being: Innovations and best practices in mental health care. This package features four solutions journalism stories, all of which Watershed Voicewill publish this week.