Health Matters: Let's Talk Mental Health with Children
Suicide is the third leading cause of death in children under the age of 14. A problem, Dr. Emad Salman, the regional medical officer of Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida, says can be prevented. “About one in five kids, that&rs
Suicide is the third leading cause of death in children under the age of 14. A problem, Dr. Emad Salman, the regional medical officer of Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida, says can be prevented. “About one in five kids, that’s 20 percent of children, by the age of 14 will have a diagnosis of a mental health condition.”
Currently, mental health conditions have few options for care. “There’s a big fear of mental health. It’s a cultural fear,” said Dr. Salman.
The most common mental health conditions for children under 18 are anxiety and depression. “Most of the treatments is behavioral therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, which has been scientifically proven to make a difference,” explained Dr. Salman.
Golisano Children’s Hospital and Lee Health are working in partnership with the community to improve access to mental health care which could mean more outpatient facilities and more health care specialists. “Right now when a child or a young adult has an overdose of a medication, a cry for help, we send them to the emergency room to be admitted to the hospital. Usually, they need 24 hours to get cleared medically. Then we have to find them a facility,” said Dr. Salman.
Last year, about 24 percent of children had to leave the area to get treatment due to a lack of beds in Southwest Florida. “For over five years, the number of children who had to be Baker Acted, which means people thought they were a danger to themselves, has increased almost 300 percent in our region,” said Dr. Salman.
Studies show it can take years to diagnose a mental health condition. “The brain is just an organ, and like any organ in your body it can get sick, and when it’s sick it needs to be healed,” said Dr. Salman.
Healing, health experts hope can start here.