State mental health director impressed at local partnerships

Lori Criss, director of the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, said she especially noticed when visiting Hancock County the community's "willingness to partner and to be creative and to share resources." Criss spent several hours in Findlay on Friday, most of it at the Hancock County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services, where she met with several groups including members of the board itself, the Opiate and Addictions Task Force and treatment providers. Criss noted that other agencies such as schools and Hancock Public Health were also represented. A common theme Criss heard while in Findlay? "Workforce is top of mind for them and for us." Criss said she also talked with ADAMHS board members about how to better use data and see where Hancock County is doing well compared with the rest of the state, and what could be improved. "I'm really impressed with Hancock County and how collaborative the partnerships are throughout the community," she said. Her visit to Findlay was part of an effort to touch base with local communities throughout the state. Criss also visited Focus Recovery and Wellness Community, a nonprofit recovery center for people in recovery from mental health, addiction and trauma issues. Focus is located at 509 W. Trenton Ave. and can be reached at 419-423-5071. "It was so warm and so inviting," Criss said. She had never been to Focus before, and said she could see how its staff were taking many opportunities to get people engaged in activities. She called it a "true asset to the community." Criss said Gov. Mike DeWine and her department are prioritizing early detection of mental health issues, so that people do not wait until they are in crisis to reach out. DeWine had placed a major emphasis on mental health in his March 23 State of the State address. He mentioned that, with the passage of the federal Community Mental Health Act of 1963, "hundreds of thousands of women and men with brain disorders were released from psychiatric hospitals, promised — as President Kennedy said at the time — that 'the cold mercy of custodial care would be replaced by the open warmth of community.' Despite good intentions — tragically — that promise was never kept — not nationally, nor in Ohio — and the community system was never fully built." Later in his speech, DeWine said, "My friends, the system isn't broken — it was just never fully built. ... And so, we must build it!" Criss on Friday said that in Ohio, "we definitely need more options," such as residential facilities, and more places like Focus where people can go and be supported. She said there must be services in place not just to respond to someone in crisis, but to keep people from going back into crisis once they have begun to recover. But, she said, infrastructure is not just brick-and-mortar buildings, but also trained, skilled people who can work in them. Criss said the pandemic has "created tremendous stress," and her department anticipates that it will take years for people to feel less anxious, afraid, sad and lonely. She said these concerns have been noticed nationwide as well as in Ohio. She said the state has seen more young people struggling with suicidal thoughts, especially in rural areas. Overdoses, too, have been increasing. "Those deaths are preventable," Criss said. She said her department has throughout the pandemic turned its attention to making sure people see different ways they can access care, including the Ohio CareLine. The CareLine number is 800-720-9616. To reach Ohio's crisis text line, text "4hope" to 741741. Criss noted the state also partners with the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. That number is 800-273-8255 but, this summer, will also be available simply by dialing 988, akin to dialing 911. The Hancock County crisis hotline is 888-936-7116.