By supporting the recommendations on competency restoration and diversion made by the Governor’s Work Group, Governor Mike DeWine has taken a major step toward improving mental health accessible for Ohioans. According to reports, the strategies are intended to increase treatment alternatives around the state and relieve the strain on the state’s psychiatric facilities, which are almost at capacity.
The overflow of people connected to the criminal justice system is causing Ohio’s regional psychiatric institutions to run at roughly 96% capacity. According to Governor DeWine, “At the heart of these recommendations is our desire to help all Ohioans in need of mental health supports to access the right care, in the right place, at the right time.” This covers those who are in desperate need of crisis support for their mental health but have not committed any crimes. “This makes it practically impossible for anyone to use this valuable community resource without first committing a crime,” said Director LeeAnne Cornyn, via Governor of Ohio Mike DeWine. There has to be a change.
Improved assistance for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is one important step already underway that will guarantee a thorough response to Ohioans facing a mental health emergency. The implementation of “navigation teams” to assist people in navigating the criminal justice and mental health systems is another change being made to streamline their operations.
In order to alleviate the regional psychiatric hospitals, Director Cornyn stressed the need to “increase access to care for non-criminally-involved patients.” According to theGovernor of Ohio Mike DeWine, strategies being pursued involve increasing hospital bed availability, recruiting and sustaining top-tier mental healthcare and criminal justice professionals, and broadening cross-training among these professionals. In addition, the state is making sure that inmates with mental and drug use issues have regular access to the drugs they require and that the mental health requirements of people entering the criminal justice system are assessed early.
Ohio is also spending money to physically expand its mental health institutions. For example, a plan has been put up to construct a second new hospital in the Miami Valley area that will add more than 200 patient beds, while a new behavioral health hospital in Central Ohio has already added 30 beds. These extensions represent a concrete step in tackling the mental health issue in the state.
Experts in psychology, criminal justice, and mental health were part of the work group, which collaborated with locals, community organizations, and state agencies to develop the suggestions. In order to guarantee that a thorough and inclusive set of guidelines was created to enhance mental health access and care in Ohio, the group’s efforts involved months of meetings, discussions with experts, listening sessions throughout the state, and gatherings of current and former patients from psychiatric hospitals involved with the criminal justice system.
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