Campus Mental Health Services – Close the Gap and Build the Road to Success
Sumaiya N Khan
Executive Summary
Mental health issues among college students are rising. However, accessibility, awareness and acceptance pose constraints towards getting the much needed care. Many factors incorporate into these constraints thus policies should be put into place overcome the barriers and closing the gap to help students find their way to success.
Statement of Issue
Students face as lot of challenges as they are exposed to a different culture and campus lifestyle associated with colleges and universities. This may give rise to various mental health issues among the students. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illnesses, a research study
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First of all, all campuses should be required to provide basic mental health services to its students. Secondly, there must be certain awareness programs made accessible not only within the campus but also in the community. In doing so, not only the students but also their friends and families will become aware of issues that may lead to mental health problems and would become better equipped to help and identify traits related to such issues. Third, the health service centers of all campuses should be equipped with intervention programs to enhance routine screening, not merely for the detection of mental illnesses but also to help prevent students dropping out and continuing with their education. Fourth, strict policies about students’ right to education should be enforced such that discrimination and punishment are not imposed to affected students. Having a mental health issue is a disability and discriminating against these students is very much in violation of the Americans with Disability Act. Therefore, despite the liability concerns, services should be offered to those who need …show more content…
With all the existing financial tension regarding funding for the current medical services, receiving the proper financial aid would be difficult but not impossible. In such instances, campuses should strive to find alternative funding sources. Furthermore, retaining the students should be top priority as the intuitions may also be able draw from the students’ tuitions to fund the mental health services in campuses. That being said, it is a strategy that may pay for itself.
References & Sources
1. L, D., Judge. (2014). Campus Mental Health Issues. Retrieved from http://www.bazelon.org/Where-We-Stand/Community-Integration/Campus-Mental-Health.aspx
2. The Top Mental Health Challenges Facing Students. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.bestcolleges.com/resources/top-5-mental-health-problems-facing-college-students/
3. Shandrow, K. L. (2016). Introducing Mood 24/7, a new tool that helps you track your mood from day to day using your mobile phone. Try it today! Discrimination Against Students with Mental Health Issues On the Rise. Retrieved from
I think we should really value the mental health of our children in the society if we want to develop this great Nation. The psychological well-being of our children affects us both directly and indirectly whether we accept this fact or not. It is very important that we ensure that our beloved children have the capabilities to adapt to the stresses, working productively both in school and also contribute to the developments in the community. Problems associated with mental illness or health are very common in this society especially in the institutions of learning be it high schools, colleges or even universities. Some health problems associated with mental health include depressions, bipolar disorders, anxiety disorders and at time schizophrenia. It is therefore of vital importance to encourage and promote the improvement of mental health among our children.
In the past, people with mental health problems were doomed to isolation and contempt of other, “normal” people (Cameron, D. and Fraser, 2001). Often, people with a mental illness were subjects to discrimination and humiliation from the part of other people who did not have such problems. The ...
This is supported by Lunau (2012) in The Mental Health Crisis on Campus, “At college or university, they could be away from friends and family who know them best — people who might better recognize the warning signs of mental illness, like social withdrawal, increasing anxiety, a growing inability to cope, or other changes in behaviour.” This new experience and bing surrounded by new people forces into new social interactions.
bout four in ten managers believe it is a “significant risk” to recruit people with mental health conditions to a job dealing with the public or clients, while nearly one in four are unable to name a single mental illness. Promoting mental health; preventing and managing mental ill health, the economic burden of mental disorders, WHO global action program (mhGAP). Mental health problems affect many working people but they often escape notice because these disorders tend to be hidden on the job. They don’t involve their personal lives with their work environment.
With numbers, so low in mental health services, and many people who are diagnosed with a mental illness are college aged, we are seeing how important it is that our campus needs to improve (Jones, 2013, p 6). Furthermore, students with serious mental health disturbances, who do not receive care, can pose a potential risk to themselves and sometimes others. Studies have shown mental illnesses left untreated can lead to self-harm, and other forms of violence (Skegg, 2005, 1471; Stuart. 2003, 122). With young ages of onset, colleges try to prepare to help, but with long waitlists, students are unable to receive the help they need. Each semester, the OSU Student Counseling Center has a waiting list that is over fifty students long (Norman, 2016).
The 'Secondary' of the 'Secondary "College Depression: causes, duration, and coping. " Psychological Reports 77 (3): 858. The "Statistics About College Depression | World of Psychology. " Psych Central - Trusted mental health, depression, bipolar, ADHD and psychology information.
Unacceptable Illness Racism and discrimination are serious issues in our modern world. Yet, a major part of society contradicts itself by another type of discrimination, in which they deliberately show discrimination towards people with mental illness. In other words, a large part of society looks down at mentally disabled people and thinks very little of them causing various damages in the process. Furthermore, the desolation some people cause on mentally ill individuals is boundless, in which they can cause mentally ill people to develop issues that could even last a lifetime.
These include high-risk professions such as the armed forces, or high-trauma-inducing ones such as nursing in the more extreme terms, and international student status, adolescence oriented issues, and other such points in the more common ones (Jones & Johnson 2000; Zhou et al. 2008). A great degree of emphasis is laid on mental health and wellbeing in the adolescent or young adulthood years, since these are the formative years of an individual's life, and tend to determine how they would turn out as adults (Hunt & Eisenberg 2010; Viner et al. 2012). Thus, just like childhood, stress can cause a great deal of mental health damage to adolescents, while a positive environment and treatment from others can offer a positive impact. While there certainly are other factors involved, mental health and wellbeing in higher education institutes have become essential for this very reason.
I met this student while co-facilitating a Counseling 20 course. During class, I noticed that the student had a difficult time communicating, therefore several weeks after building rapport with the student he disclosed his mental health condition. In addition, it was very challenging for the student to communicate his thoughts in a legible manner. Furthermore, in their class, the student took an assessment called the Strong Interest Inventory, which helps individuals identify
Mental Health in Urban Schools When it comes to the issue of mental health, urban schools have a lot of untapped strengths and assets, which reside within the students and their families, the school staff and the community resources. Urban schools are ripe for exploration, as we understand the importance of promoting a healthy emotional development and also because of the critical issues faced by students during the school year. Some of the students misbehave, some go through physical or sexual abuse, some of them are emotionally upset and others have difficulty getting along with their peers or adjusting to the school requirements. The central question behind any mental health approach should be – How can the schools engage these challenges?
Many college students, worldwide, face mental health issues because the pressures of college . Various responsbilities as a college student is the cause of this on going affair. Such as loan payments, passing courses, securing finicial stablity for every semester, social issues and determining their whole future before even living half of their lives. 55% of US college students drop out due to the stress. This is not minor issues at stake for students, falling behind in college is detrimental and a waste of money.
One child’s symptoms may be really hard to manage at school while another child with the same condition may not have as much difficulty” (“Problems at School”). Mental illnesses don’t come in a one size fits all and schools need to be willing to acknowledge this and learn new ways that they can work with their children and parents. Many students don’t feel that they matter because their mental illness consumes them. If teachers and counselors knew that “youth with emotional and behavioral disorders have the worst graduation rate of
"Useful Psychology Information: Importance of Mental Health." Importance of Mental Health. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 May 2014.
This shows that peer health education and interventions should focus its attention on addressing the high and growing prevalence of mental health issues in the college students population (Buchanan, 2012; Hunt et al., 2015; Kirsch et al., 2014). It is emphasized that many students with psychological problems do not seek counseling for their difficulties (Hunt, & Eisenberg 2010). Peer health education will need to work at changing attitudes toward seeking mental health services since it is increasingly negative among college students. (Shatkin & Diamond, 2015). By doing so, peer health education can help bridge the gap between student mental health needs and utilization of services (Kirsch et al.,
Mental health crisis in North American higher education The number of university and college students on campuses that are suffering from anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, and psychosis across North America is rising (Flatt, 2013). This escalation of students’ psychological needs has developed into a mental health crisis. Many mental disorders become evident between the age of 18and 24, which coincides directly with the average age of student enrolment in higher education (Flatt, 2013). It was also found that, the psychological disorders that the students are being treated for, while studying in higher education has increased in its severity. Following accidents and homicides, suicide has become the third leading cause of death among