• 
• Social Work Month 2012
  • Social Work Month 2012 Toolkit Homepage
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  • Questions: socialworkmonth@naswdc.org

  Social Work Month 2011
  Social Workers Change Futures - Targeted outreach and promotional ideas, including tips for securing endorsements, hosting events, publishing articles and marketing your private practice.

  Social Work Month 2010
  Social Workers Inspire Community Action - Visual guides to three social work public education websites, profiles of inspiring social workers, and tips for promoting the profession.

  Social Work Month 2009
  Social Work: Purpose and Possibility - Information and tools for social work student recruitment, sample consumer radio PSAs, and specific tips for working with the media.

Mental and Behavioral Health Treatment Home

Talking Points

Situation

• Most families in the United States are affected by mental illness in some capacity.

• Nearly half the U.S. population will sometime in their lifetime experience a mental health or behavioral disorder which limits their social functioning.

• According to the Surgeon General, 28 to 30 percent of the population has either a mental disorder or addictive disorder in any given year.

• Although the annual prevalence of mental disorders in children and adolescents is not as well documented as that for adults, about 20 percent of children are estimated to have mental disorders with at least mild functional impairment.

• Alcohol and other drug problems affect all segments of the population: men and women, adults and children, employed and unemployed, people of all levels of education, of every racial and ethnic group, in every part of the country.

• While mental illness and severe emotional stress affect millions of Americans every year, far too often, many problems go untreated. 

• Adolescents and adults in the mental health system often have histories of early trauma, abuse and neglect. Inadequate prenatal care, lack of appropriate nutrition, difficult birth and high levels of stress in the mother all can affect a developing fetus.

• Mental health issues can arise from normal life events.  Both positive events, such as marriage and child rearing, and negative events, such as a job loss and the death of a loved one, can have profound effects on a person’s mental health.

• There can be many barriers to treatment for those seeking help: access, finances, stigma, fear of discrimination, and denial.  Yet, individuals who receive appropriate mental and behavioral health treatment can lead satisfying, productive lives.

Costs

• The costs pertaining to mental health conditions are staggering and are illustrated through statistics, role disability, financial burden of diseases, and the face of human suffering and disability. The indirect costs of mental illness include lost productivity at the workplace, school and home.

• According to the National Institute of Mental Health, total medical expenditures in the United States in 2003 totaled $1.6 trillion. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) estimated total expenditures for mental health care to be $100 billion or 6.2 percent in 2003.  

Services

• Successful mental health treatment assists the individual in returning to their optimal level of functioning. 
• Fully integrated, comprehensive services should be made available for all who experience mental illness, particularly those with chronic and severe illness.

• Psychotherapy is a common form of mental health intervention. In some cases of mental illness, medication is required to supplement therapy.  While social workers, psychologists, counselors and psychiatrists are licensed to provide mental health services, psychiatrists are the primary prescribers of psychotropic medications.

• Professionally trained social workers are available on the frontlines, behind the scenes, and across the continuum of services for those seeking recovery.  They are employed in a wide range of mental and behavioral health roles, including clinicians, administrators, advocates, case managers, consultants, researchers, policymakers, educators and supervisors.

• Clinical social workers are frequently the largest providers of mental health services in rural communities.

• Using a holistic approach to treatment, clinical social workers focus on the client's relationship to his or her environment. By looking at a person’s whole life and environment, social workers are better able to address issues that may limit mental health progress.

• Alliances between mental health professionals and primary care physicians are critical in reducing the stigma of mental health treatment, and to improving patient access to services.

Impact

• Social workers in behavioral health represent the largest specialty section within the frontline social work labor force. (NASW Center for Workforce Studies, 2006).

• Social workers are the largest group of clinically trained mental health providers in the United States according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2006).

• According to an independent 2010 Consumer Reports study, respondents rated psychotherapy services provided by psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social workers and licensed counselors the same.