Question One
West Virginia is among the states that have dedicated an insignificant amount of its budget to mental health services. According to a report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA] (2018), West Virginia spends about $88604446 annually on mental health. The number of clients served by the mental health services in West Virginia is still low. In 2018, only 21.7% per 1000 members in the community received mental health care (SAMHSA, 2018). Besides, the state hospitals continue to serve a few patients.
Question Two
Although a significant percentage of West Virginia residents do not receive mental health coverage, there is a network of community mental health care organizations. They include Appalachian Community Health, Community Care, Community Services, Inc., Shenandoah Community Health, Harmony Mental Health, and Community Care of West Virginia (SAMHSA, 2018). These centers offer mental health care to individuals with conditions such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and severe depression. Individuals from low-income backgrounds can apply for Medicaid. Besides, West Virginia has mental health programs for adults and children, which receive $2449049 annually (SAMHSA, 2018). These programs ensure that healthcare practitioners and professional counselors are linked to patients with special needs. The objectives of these centers are to support families and patients through training and certification, address the issue of mental health, and host local and state meetings and conferences about twice a month. Here, the participants learn about emerging trends in mental health care. These organizations provide newsletters that inform the members of the West Virginia community on the ways that they can improve the relationship ties with patients who have mental illnesses.
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Question Three
West Virginia’s healthcare facilities are subdivided into five categories, namely general acute care, critical access, rehabilitation, long-term acute care, and psychiatric. According to a recent survey, West Virginia has 8351 and 7758 inpatient licensed and staffed beds (Tarr, 2016). This number is adequate since there has been no instance in which the beds were all preoccupied. Admittedly, the number of inpatient beds determines the average lengths of hospital stay. For West Virginia State, the number of inpatient days has significantly reduced since 2014, while the inpatient discharges have increased (Tarr, 2016). This observation implies that the state delivers effective patient care. Indeed, West Virginia is on the path to achieving its mission, which is to deliver a financially viable healthcare system.
Question Four
The majority of the incarcerated individuals in West Virginia do not receive mental health care services. Only 27 inmates received mental health care services in 2017 (SAMHSA, 2018). This number is insignificant compared to the individuals incarcerated in the state prisons every year. Besides, some of the inmates spend jail time in solitary confinement, which can worsen their mental health. West Virginia has not implemented any policies that tackle the mental health problems that inmates who have lengthy sentences incur. According to the West Virginia Code, when a psychiatric or psychological examination ascertains that an inmate has a mental health condition, then he or she needs to be transferred to a facility that will provide him or her with adequate care ( WV Code § 15A-4-19 (2018) ). Nevertheless, most of the correctional facilities in the state are ill-equipped to treat the prisoners. As a result, inmates with mental health conditions are likely to commit verbal or physical assault against other inmates or correctional staff. This problem originates from the fact that the prison systems in West Virginia receive inadequate funds from the government. Thus, they are unable to meet the mental health needs of the prisoners. When incarcerated individuals do not receive mental health care, they are likely to commit crimes upon their release from the system.
References
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA]. (2018). West Virginia 2018 Mental Health National Outcome Measures (NOMS): SAMHSA uniform reporting. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration . Retrieved from https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/cbhsq-reports/WestVirginia-2018.pdf
Tarr. (2016). West Virginia Health Care Authority: 2016 Annual report. West Virginia Health Care Authority . Retrieved from https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/cbhsq-reports/WestVirginia-2018.pdf https://hca.wv.gov/data/Reports/Documents/AnnualRP2016/Annual_RP2016.pdf
WV Code § 15A-4-19 (2018). Justia US Law . Retrieved from https://law.justia.com/codes/west-virginia/2018/chapter-15a/article-4/section-15a-4-19/
