Monday
night Oklahoma 5th District Representative Kendra Horn held a town hall on
mental health but ended up answering a lot of questions about the possible
impeachment of President Trump.
That
evening, she joined panel members she had invited to a town hall on mental
health issues as a way of publicly brainstorming the needs of the communities
within the 5th
District which includes
most of Oklahoma City, Edmond and most of Pottawatomie and Seminole counties to
the southeast of the metro.
The
event was at Northcare Pete White Health and Wellness Center at 4021 S. Walker Ave and their meeting room was full
and with some standing along the walls.
“The panel will discuss efforts to reduce
stigma for treatment, connecting with quality service providers, and pathways
to opportunities for recovery,” said an email from Horn’s office for the event.
The panel included Terri White,
commissioner for the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse
Services; Kayse M. Shrum, D.O., President of OSU Center for Health Sciences;
Kris Steele, executive director of The Education and Employment Ministry,
(TEEM); Carrie Blumert, Oklahoma County commissioner; and, Kaitlynn Wilkinson,
communications specialist for Northcare.
“Mental health is overall health,” said
Horn in her opening remarks. “Mental Health cannot be separated from the rest
of our physical health.”
Terri White with ODMH gave some jarring
numbers about mental health in Oklahoma.
Every year one in every four
Oklahomans struggle with some sort of mental health and addiction problem.
But, only one in three who
needs help will actually access help.
She said that “amazing things
happen” for people who do seek treatment.
“Lives are saved. Lives are
transformed. Parents return to their children. Sisters, mothers, daughters,
friends return to their families. People are productive and working.”
White said that the problem
is that too often those services come only when there is a crisis like an
attempted suicide.
County Commissioner Blumert told of the
various community service proposals that have been included in the MAPS 4
package that voters will decide to accept or reject on December 10.
Programs like Palomar and the
Diversion hub were just a few of the several programs Blumert explained.
At another point in the
panel, Blumert was critical of District Attorneys across the state who continue
to lock up people as though they are healthy people who have decided to commit
criminal behavior.
Blumert said that the DAs are
a part of the problem Oklahoma has in locking up large numbers of people who
actually should be getting treatment for mental illness.
She encouraged those present
to seriously do research and ask questions the next time there is a district
attorney race in Oklahoma, which will be in 2022.
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