Record suicides ‘a wake-up call’ to challenge current approach to mental health care

Key takeaways:

• The rise in suicide rates underscores the failure of the current mental health care approach.
• Collaboration and empathy are two key solutions to address challenges within the system.

A recently released report from the CDC revealed a grim milestone in mental health — a record-breaking 50,000 suicides in 2022.

This is a 3% increase from the previous year, serving as haunting proof that our current approach to mental health care is failing those who need it most. While the numbers are alarming, it is more concerning to ignore them.

It’s imperative to dissect the existing mental health care continuum in the U.S., acknowledging the stark realities and gaps that contribute to this alarming rise in suicides. The statistics, such as those provided by the CDC, are not just numbers but represent lives lost and a system in dire need of reevaluation.

A critical examination of the mental health care system reveals significant gaps, hindering effective care. Addressing the mental health crisis requires a multifaceted approach, centered on accessibility, the patient and provider relationship, and personalized care.

Accessibility through technological advancements

Accessibility to mental health services remains a hurdle, with more than one-third of the U.S. population facing a shortage of mental health care providers, according to an editorial in Nature Mental Health. In addition, some areas in the system are ill-equipped to address the diverse and complex needs of our population, leaving many feeling overlooked and neglected. As we navigate these challenges, it becomes crucial to highlight potential solutions that can pave the way for a more effective and compassionate mental health care system.

Moreover, embracing innovative technologies can enhance accessibility to mental health services, reaching those who might otherwise be left without support. Telehealth platforms, mental health apps and other digital solutions can democratize mental health care, ensuring that geographical barriers and resource constraints do not impede someone’s journey to healing.

By leveraging technology and telehealth capabilities, patients can communicate directly with their care team between sessions, ensuring consistent, quality care and access to resources at their convenience. When the person on the other end of the communication is familiar with the patient and their history, the interaction is comprehensive and individualized to best support specific therapeutic approaches, interventions or coping strategies.

Empathy at every level of care

As a patient heals, they may need different types of care during the journey. This often means a new provider, which brings up uncertainty as they have to begin the entire process of getting to know and trust someone all over again, in addition to feeling that they will need to once again get someone up to speed on their background. Having the same provider be with the patient during every step of their journey allows for the same level of understanding throughout the care continuum. Patients no longer feel handed off, but instead constantly supported at every level of care.

A strong patient and provider relationship is critical to improving mental health, and many times a provider only has “one shot” during the initial visit to make a connection. This is why having a mental health provider who exhibits empathy from the start is nonnegotiable. Mental health facilities must assess personalities upfront to ensure the patient and provider will be a strong match, and that the provider can adapt approaches that can lead to more positive outcomes.

Today, there are assessments available that can help determine the strength of the therapeutic alliance. This creates a new standard of care for organizations, empowering them to predict who’s likely to be successful and stay for the long term, a benefit to both the patient and the system alike.

Personalizing therapy

Mental health is deeply personal, and the approach to care should be, too, tailored to align with an individual’s specific experiences, circumstances and preferences. Personalized mental health care promotes a more empathetic and deep understanding that can not only increase positive experiences but also foster a stronger connection of trust between the patient and provider.

There is no “one right way” to achieve mental well-being. By combining evidence-based therapies and a compassionate personal touch, patients can have a stronger chance to recover, grow and experience an improved quality of life.

While these changes won’t happen overnight, it is incumbent upon us to begin shifting the narrative surrounding how mental health care is addressed. The record number of suicides in 2022 serves as a wake-up call, an urgent plea for change. The path forward will not be forged by a single organization but rather through a collaborative endeavor of voices, hands and hearts.

References:

• Editorial. Nat Ment Health. 2023;doi:10.1038/s44220-023-00189-8.
• Provisional estimates of suicide by demographic characteristics: United States, 2022. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsrr/vsrr034.pdf. Published November 2023. Accessed Jan. 24, 2024.

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Neha Kumar, LMFT, provides psychotherapy to adults, adolescents and children. She has experience working in a community mental health clinic, drug and alcohol rehabilitation center, and both public and private school settings.