- A mental health summit at St. Luke's welcomed health care workers, legislators and community members
- The panel addressed issues treating mental health problems and how to work toward fixing the crisis
- Doctors say it starts with funding
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A group of health care providers and community leaders on Friday sounded the alarm about the need for more mental health resources in the Lehigh Valley.
The summit was held by St. Luke’s University Health Network and the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania.
“The prevalence of mental health disorders has just been shooting through the roof," Star Community Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Alycia Walty said.
Walty's organization offers health care to people who are uninsured or underinsured in Allentown, Easton and Bethlehem.
“I think mental health is really siloed and a lot of different areas, and so legislation has one view, politics as another and the actual providers, that are kind of boots on the ground, is a third view. I think it's really important to bring everybody together to make sure that those solutions are collaborative, that the right hand knows what the left hand is doing and the right hand knows what the left hand needs.”Star Community Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Alycia Walty
“I think mental health is really siloed and a lot of different areas, and so legislation has one view, politics as another and the actual providers, that are kind of boots on the ground, is a third view,” Walty said.
“I think it's really important to bring everybody together to make sure that those solutions are collaborative, that the right hand knows what the left hand is doing and the right hand knows what the left hand needs.”
COVID 'Brought it to light'
Walty was among panelists who spoke at St. Luke’s University Health Network Sacred Heart campus in Allentown about her first-hand experience with patients dealing with mental health issues.
She was joined on stage by Dr. Jim James, chairman of Psychiatry for St. Luke’s University Health Network; Wayne Mugrauer, president of St. Luke’s Penn Foundation; and George Hartwick, Chairman of CCAP Human Services Committee who is also a Dauphin County commissioner.
The group discussed the increase of mental health issues and needs, how the pandemic made the situation worse, and where more funding is needed.
"I think the hospitals, the providers, community health providers are also really struggling to meet the needs of the community.”Star Community Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Alycia Walty
"Certainly the COVID pandemic has brought it to light people that never struggled with mental illness and have now suffered through it," James said.
"People have become more aware of it. Stigma has been reduced because of that, in part, and I think there's been more push toward helping, but I still see not a lot has moved as far as what resources are actually available."
To execute a vision
James said he believes that addressing the mental health crisis starts with funding saying resources are grossly underfunded right now.
"We need to look at ways to get money out to the people that are most effective at utilizing it, having a collaborative conversation, looking at the experts and the multi-disciplinary approach that's essential to mental health services."Dr. Jim James, chairman of Psychiatry for St. Luke’s University Health Network;
"We need to look at ways to get money out to the people that are most effective at utilizing it, having a collaborative conversation, looking at the experts and the multi-disciplinary approach that's essential to mental health services," James said.
"And hearing from them to how we can best allocate those monies and then get everybody who has the power of the purse to open up that to make the difference, so that we can actually put it to good work.”
Community leaders and representatives of legislative offices were in the audience and able to ask questions.
The panelists spoke of holes in the health care system and funding gaps that make it hard to treat people with mental health problems.
“I think there are several issues with accessing capacity on the behavioral health side," Walty said.
"And I think the hospitals, the providers, community health providers are also really struggling to meet the needs of the community.”
James said the community can get involved in solving some of the issues simply by sharing the message that more mental health resources and funding is needed, and talking about the problem to further take away the stigma.
