The Mental Health Workforce

Abstract

Letters Health AffairsVol. 35, No. 10: Insurance, The ACA, Care In India & More The Mental Health WorkforceJoel E. Miller Affiliations American Mental Health Counselors Association Alexandria, Virginia PUBLISHED:October 2016Free Accesshttps://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2016.0932AboutSectionsView PDFPermissions ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmail ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsDownload Exhibits TOPICSMental healthSerious mental illnessHealth conditionsIn his detailed discussion of the significant segments of the mental health workforce (Jun 2016), Mark Olfson completely omitted (except for a single mention of “mental health counselors” on page 984) the more than 100,000 clinical mental health counselors in the United States who are primed and ready to address many of the needs of people with serious mental illnesses.Under many new delivery arrangements in the private and public sectors, members of the American Mental Health Counselors Association treat people with major depression, bipolar disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder, to name just a few conditions. Many clinical mental health counselors are providing services to people with serious mental illnesses in individual practices and through integrated care models and team-based approaches such as coordinated care. The counselors are embedded in many clinics and agency settings that serve a majority of people with psychotic disorders.For example, many of the counselors work with people with serious mental illnesses as part of an assertive community treatment team, which is a best practice or model of care of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Moreover, clinical mental health counselors are also well integrated into psychosocial treatment services and vocational rehabilitation services that treat people with serious mental illnesses. The counselors are well trained in applying evidence-based treatments and practices and knowledgeable about key social services (such as those designed to meet housing needs) that are critical to long-term recovery for people with serious mental illnesses.Knowledgeable and skilled clinical mental health counselors are prepared to address the high rates of morbidity experienced by Americans with serious mental illnesses and should be part of any comprehensive policy and program discussion on addressing the nation’s mental health capacity needs. Loading Comments... Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. DetailsExhibitsReferencesRelated Article Metrics History Published online 1 October 2016 Information Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc. PDF download