Using The Media to Enhance Well-Being and Mental Health

Abstract

This article outlines one community’s efforts to enhance the well-being and mental health of its members. Each county health department of a Midwest US state is required to conduct community needs assessments in order to identify health priorities to be the focus of prevention efforts. The problems identified in one county were ‘undiagnosed mental illness and suicide attempts among youth and older adults’. The health department established the mental health action team in 2005 to address the priority problem. This coalition is an interdisciplinary team with both private and public agencies represented. They meet once a month and engage in planning and implementing a variety of activities which include mental health awareness walks, depression screenings, trainings for health care professionals, community presentations about depression and suicide, Signs of Suicide and Lifesavers programs in middle and high schools, magazine and newspaper articles. Of these activities, a partnership with the local newspaper demonstrates an enduring effort toward reducing stigma, raising awareness about mental illness, offering information about services and information to improve the general well-being of community members. The team is responsible for a weekly column called ‘Living Well’. The newspaper readership spans beyond one county to 10 rural counties. This article explains the development of this media partnership, the challenges and benefits of writing weekly articles and offers an outline for the development of this type of partnership in other locations.