Mental health workforce shrinking

In northwest Ohio and statewide, there's a growing recognition that the mental health care workforce is shrinking just when it is needed the most. "Based on a statewide survey of private and nonprofit behavioral health care organizations conducted last fall, The Ohio Council's 'Breaking Point' report shows that clinicians and specialized medical staff are becoming more difficult to find, easier to lose to competing industries, and harder to replace when they leave," states an email from the Ohio Council of Behavioral Health and Family Services Providers about this February report. "These challenges have been worsened by the pandemic, which has driven more Ohioans to seek treatment." Ohio Council CEO Teresa Lampl said that just as so many Americans have been living through the stresses of the pandemic, juggling remote work and child care, "our workforce is feeling those same stresses." At the same time, she said, state leaders were recognizing a "dramatic demand" for services even before the pandemic, in part due to the opioid crisis. Since the pandemic, this demand has increased. Precia Stuby, executive director of the Hancock County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services, said Ohio is changing its Medicaid managed care plan to cover more home-based services, and "we 100% support that concept." The timing of this change, however, means the Ohio Department of Medicaid is itself hiring more employees in this field, which may cause some to leave other agencies. She added that the trauma of the pandemic has forced many people to reassess their priorities and perhaps find that they want to make a career change. And some mental health workers who were "on the bubble" of retirement may have decided to go ahead and retire once the pandemic hit. All of these factors combine to create "a perfect storm," Stuby said. Lampl said behavioral health practitioners aren't just competing with other health care fields anymore. With retail stores, manufacturing and distribution centers, and even fast-food restaurants raising wages, people may find they have multiple opportunities to earn $18 an hour or more — while working more consistent hours, she said. Aeryn Williams, chief clinical officer at Family Resource Center, said ADAMHS boards statewide are focusing on growing the workforce among not just college, but even high school students. She said that while the need for adult mental health care is increasing, it is increasing faster among youths. Lampl said people who have private health insurance, in particular, tend to have access to fewer practitioners, and may find those practices "don't have any open slots." The Ohio Council has been hearing that in some places, what used to be wait times of days or weeks to get an appointment are "now weeks and months." But, she said, the earlier a professional can intervene, the better. Just as when treating cancer it's easier to treat if found at stage 1 than stage 4, mental health issues take longer and become more expensive to treat as they progress. Family Resource Center CEO John Bindas said the agency is working to expand telehealth, so people who live in one region may be able to treat patients in another. And with a recent grant, FRC is opening sites where people lacking home internet access can come to receive telehealth services. Lampl reminded anyone looking for treatment that "there's always help available. … Just keep trying." Reaching out to your primary care doctor or seeking a telehealth appointment are good options, she said. It's always possible to reach out for treatment at the emergency room or by calling the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255. To reach Ohio's Crisis Text Line, text "4hope" to 741-741. (In Hancock County, the local crisis line is 888-936-7116.) Arthurs: 419-427-8494