Dr. Bruce Schwartz, the president of the American Psychiatric Association, writes in a letter to the editor of the Washington Post (11/17) in response to an article from November 12 with the headline “ERs could help curb suicides.” Dr. Schwartz says, “Screening can be an effective way to identify patients with mental-health problems, but it is unlikely to halt the suicide epidemic in this country.” Additionally, “emergency rooms have become the de facto and only mental-health resource for many Americans, even those who have insurance.” Schwartz argues “the article correctly pointed out that once in the emergency room, mental-health patients can wait 24 hours or longer to see a health-care professional and days or weeks for a psychiatric bed,” however, in order to “truly stem the suicide epidemic,” Schwartz says, “we need to devote resources to mental-health care” and “mandate that insurers provide true parity in their plans.”
Related Links:
— “Can ERs help fight the suicide epidemic?, The Washington Post, November 17, 2019