Mentally Ill and Disabled - Essay Example

?Running Head: Mentally Ill and Disabled Mentally Ill and Disabled Mentally Ill and Disabled Introduction Mental illness describes a wide range of emotional and mental conditions. Mental illness or impairment does not take into account other mental conditions such as organic brain damage, mental retardation, and learning disabilities. Mental illness is referred to as psychiatric disability when the condition interferes with a person’s daily activities, for example, working, learning, or communicating. This illness can be present in a person for a long time but the duration, symptoms, type, and intensity are different from one person to another. In some instances, the symptoms come and go irregularly making predictions of the signs difficult. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), between the ages of ten and twenty-four years, mental illnesses lead to nearly all disabilities. Symptoms of mental illnesses are managed through medication or psychotherapy and some can be eliminated. In other people, the illness may make periodic occurrences meaning such people remain under treatment for their entire lives. The most common types of mental illnesses are schizophrenia disorders, mood disorders and anxiety disorders (Tulchinsky & Varavikova, 2009). Mentally Ill and Disabled Young people between the ages of sixteen to twenty four have the highest prevalence to mental illnesses, which is at one in four people. In the oldest age group, between seventy-five and eighty-five years, the prevalence declines to about one in twenty. This implies that young people do not have the abilities of coping with stress as compared to the older and mature people. In addition, some social factors have an effect on mental illness among individuals. These include marital status, education level, and unemployment. Higher levels of education result in better life. This is because the highly educated are more likely to find better paying jobs and this makes their lives comfortable. The largest population of men that is affected by mental disorders is between the ages sixteen and thirty-four. In women, the most affected population is between sixteen and twenty four years of age (Godan et al, 2008). Babies born prematurely, especially those born at less than thirty-two weeks of gestation have higher chances of being hospitalized with delusional and schizophrenia disorders. This can be attributed to the fact that such babies’ brains are not fully developed and as a result, they cannot cope with the world’s stress. Men and women experience the same levels of mental illnesses although the rates are highest in both single men and women. Separated and married people have higher probabilities of developing mental illness than married people. Women have higher probabilities of experiencing anxiety and depression disorders while men are more likely to experience substance abuse disorders. Men have higher chances, more than twice likely to experience substance abuse disorders as compared to women. Alcohol is the most abused as compared to other drugs. The number of men and women who have schizophrenia is even but women experience later onsets, better recovery and fewer times of illnesses (Godan et al, 2008). Race affects the way people have an outlook of life. This means that some people, because of their race are not happy with life and this increase the chances of falling mentally ill. African-Americans, Hispanics and Asia-Americans have higher probabilities of becoming mentally ill than Caucasians. About twenty-five percent of African Americans are uninsured and cannot have access to quality mental healthcare. Stigma associated with mental disorders keeps many African-Americans away from seeking any form of treatment. This implies that the number of African-Americans suffering from mental illnesses is high as compared to Caucasians. African-Americans who seek for treatment have higher chances of terminating it prematurely than their Caucasians counterparts. In addition, African-Americans have higher chances of receiving inappropriate care when looking for mental illness healthcare (Chow, Jaffee & Snowden, 2003). Analysis Mental illnesses affect and change the lives of the patients. Some patients do not seek medical treatment because of the stigma associated with mental illnesses and this makes the lives of such people worse. Cases of suicide and homicides are higher in people with mental disorders. This means that emphasis should be put on the importance of treating any person diagnosed with a mental disorder. Mental illnesses result in death because many young patients, below the age of thirty years, have increased chances of becoming obese, smoking and substance abuse. This is because the mentally ill are not careful with their lives (Godan et al, 2008). Conclusion Several factors influence the likelihood of a person to develop mental illness. Some of the most common factors are age, gender, education, income and race. It has been noted that the number of women and men who suffer from any mental disorder is equal. The main difference is the type of conditions that men and women suffer from. Men are more likely to have substance abuse disorders, while women suffer from depression and anxiety disorders. References Chow, J. C, Jaffee, K, & Snowden, L. (2003). Racial/Ethnic Disparities in the Use of Mental Health Services in Poverty Areas. American Journal of Public Health, 93(5): 792–797. Godan, A; Brajkovic, L; Fortuna, V. & Godan, L. (2008). "Attitudes and stereotypes of supporting fields towards the persons with disabilities." Collegium Antropologicum, 32(3): 783-91. Tulchinsky, T. H., & Varavikova, E. (2009). The New Public Health. New York: Academic Press. Running Head: Community-Based Program for People Living With HIV in the United States Community-Based Program for People Living With HIV in the United States Name Tutor Course Date Community-Based Program for People Living With HIV in the United States Introduction There are about 1.2 million people living with HIV in the United States. About twenty percent of these people are not aware whether they have the virus, which causes AIDS. Although the number of HIV infections in the country has been noted to be high, thanks to better methods of testing, the number of new infections remains stable. About fifty thousand new infections are noted each year despite education that is offered by the government and non-governmental organizations. In 2010, approximately 47,129 people tested positive for the virus in the forty-six states that use confidential name-based HIV infection reports. In the same year, the number of people with full-blown AIDS was at 33,015 while the total number of people who had tested positive for the virus since the epidemic begun was at approximately 1,129,127. There no known cure or vaccine that can prevent HIV but the virus can be regulated with the use of powerful Anti-Retroviral Drugs, which prevent HIV from developing to full-blown AIDS (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012). It is worth noting that most American youths believe that AIDS is treatable because they have not witnessed any deaths from the disease. This can be attributed to the fact that many AIDS patients live healthy lives if they take the right foods and anti-retroviral drugs. This situation makes most youths ignorant of the implications of contracting AIDS. Cases of new infections remain constant because most young people do not observe the measures put in place to curb the spread of the disease (Holland 2008). The Merck Company Foundation Majority of youths in the United States encounter several barriers when trying to access healthcare than their counterparts across the world. This can be attributed to the fact that most of the youths do not have access to insurance, which means that, most of them cannot be treated at facilities that require insurance coverage. In addition, clinical facilities are not situated in areas where the youths would access them with ease. Thirty-two percent of junior and senior high schools across the United States do not have health services and they only provide first aid before a student is transferred to a hospital. This means that most of the students, who make majority of the youths, do not have access to healthcare, which is provided by people, they can trust (Rudy et al, 2010). The Merck Company foundation gave three million US dollars for education among the youths on dangers associated with AIDS in Atlanta, Georgia; Houston, Texas; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This is because about a third of the people living with HIV in the United States are not under any form care. This puts their lives in jeopardy because of the stigma that is associated with the condition. Ensuring that HIV positive people have access to medication at all times, results in reduced viral load, which in turn reduces HIV transmission. The Merck foundation realized the importance of ensuring that all people have access to medication and thus introduced this program (MERCK 2011). Just like in any other incurable disease, HIV patients ought to get support from the government as well as other non-governmental organizations. The involvement of the people in the industry ensures that all the people are well and know their rights and what is accessible at any given time. According to researches, it has been established that solutions for problems are easily accessible when the affected population is involved in searching for the solutions. The Merck Company Foundation program focuses on ensuring that all infected and affected members of the society are involved in coming up with solutions for the epidemic. The youths who are the most vulnerable in the society are provided with education and clinical care that ensures that they lead comfortable and secure lives (MERCK 2011). The main aim of The Merck Company Foundation is to ensure that all communities, societies, and/or families that are most vulnerable to HIV/AIDS receive aid in a bid to ensure that all the people in those areas have access to the best and most qualified healthcare in the US. Quality healthcare comes at a cost and the Merck foundation is committed at funding healthcare providers in order to improve the services provided. It has to be noted that most of the healthcare providers do not take into account that most HIV positive people in the society are dependent on other people because they cannot have the available jobs in the market (MERCK 2011). The intended population of the organization is the youths, uneducated and poor in the society, because once left on their own they cannot have access to quality healthcare. Some of the above-mentioned people do not even know their rights, which mean that they need education on what they can access freely. In addition, people at the greatest risk, especially gay and lesbians of color remain a target of the foundation (MERCK 2011). Although the facility is not open over the weekends or evenings, it provides care to the people because of the fact that, it has several branches spread in the states that it operates in. This implies that patients do not have to travel for long distances in search of its services. Merck funds all the operations, which means that patients do not have to be insured for them to access the services. This provides a safe way for the less fortunate in the society. Relationships between patients and healthcare providers are improved, meaning that the patients trust the health workers more. Reduction of HIV transmission among the people at the greatest risk is the main aim of the foundation (Rudy et al, 2010). Conclusion Provision of quality healthcare is an important aspect in the development of any country. Quality healthcare comes at a cost and Merck foundation is focused on ensuring that it offers financial support to clinical facilities. The sick need the support of all the people in the society. Although HIV/AIDS is manageable, it does not mean that, the infected and affected do not have problems. Stigma associated with the condition, means that many patients opt to stay away from any medication because they do not want to be associated with the condition. Involving the patients in finding solutions means that the best solutions will be found because they know what they want. References Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). "Department of Health and Human Services." HIV in the United States: At A Glance." Retrieved 31 July 2012 from http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/resources/factsheets/us.htm Holland, J., Ramazanoglu, C., Scott, S., Sharpe, S., & Thomson, R. (2008). Sex, gender, and Power: young women’s sexuality in the shadow of AIDS. Sociology of Health and Illness; 12(3): 336-350. MERCK. (2011). “HIV Care Collaborative." A new collaborative effort to improve HIV care in the United States. Retrieved 31 July 2012 from http://www.merckresponsibility.com/priorities-and-performance/access-to-health/community-investment/public-and-private-partnerships/hiv-care-collaborative/home.html Rudy, B. J., Kapogiannis, B. G., Lally, M. A., Gray, G. E., Bekker, L., Krogstad, P., & McGowan, I. (2010).Youth-Specific Considerations in the Development of Pre-exposure Prophylaxis, Microbicide, and Vaccine Research Trials. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, 54(1): 31-42. Running head: English Name Course Tutor Date Homelessness in Boston Recent night surveys on the number of homeless individuals in Boston have revealed that there is an increase in the number of homeless people. Bringle (2010) indicates that Boston city has over the years failed to adopt necessary measure to address the problem of homelessness. There is the need to achieve the twin goals of eliminating individual homelessness and to reduce family homelessness by half. To achieve this, the Boston community will have to adopt core strategies. Among these strategies is prevention, which is the most important strategy in addressing homelessness. Under this strategy, there is the need to establish emergency shelters in order to place the homeless in motels or hotels. In case prevention of homelessness is not possible, there are other strategies such as emergency shelters, establishing affordable houses, and building sustainable permanent houses Discussion Statistical Data on Homelessness in Boston In two decades, Boston has been making considerable efforts with the view of combating homelessness. It has been through coordinated efforts of service providers, government agencies, business leaders and public agencies. The escalation in the number of homeless people started in the 1980s following deterioration in Boston’s economy. Affordable houses decreased and mentally ill residents became deinstitutionalized. The city hospital decided to provide 100 emergency shelters for homeless people in 1983. However, the hospital realized that the facility was insufficient in catering for a growing number of homeless persons and was prompted to develop emergency shelters in various parts of the city. Statistics by Bringle (2010) provide estimates from Boston, which approximate that 40% of the individuals under the shelter system are individuals with disability, substance abuse, physical impairment, HIV/AIDS, dual diagnosis, and physical impairments. The remaining 60% are individuals who have been rendered homeless by economic factors such as loss of jobs or financial difficulties. The aforementioned factors impede independent living and compel the individuals to live in emergency shelters for more than two years (Hombs, 2011). The statistics also indicate that more than 178 homeless individuals have been receiving outreach and healthcare services through the healthcare program for homeless in Boston. Among the individuals receiving these services, 71% have been homeless for three years and above. Using the data from the latest homeless census conducted in the city, estimates from Boston community indicate that there are thousands of chronically homeless individuals. Twenty percent of these individuals underwent enumeration while on the streets while the remaining 80% were in shelters constructed specifically for the homeless. This indicates that this census was performed on a very cold night and there was a possibility for the number of homeless individuals on the streets to have been lower than normal. The latest census also confirmed the findings of previous census, which indicate that the homeless are predominantly single males who are between 25 and 74 years (Hombs, 2011). Outcome goals for the homeless people A plan is necessary for the reduction of homeless families by half in the near future. This plan entails doubling the present production of housing families for the next two years. In order to meet the high cost associated with building houses for the homeless, there will be a need to rely on federal funding. The survey conducted on the number of homeless population in Boston indicated that there was a small rise in the number of homeless children from 1540 to 2288, which indicates that there is slow progress towards eradication of homelessness in Boston. This plan will aim at adding about 5,000 new housing units, which will be for families that are working. These housing units include 1,000 rentals, which can be afforded by the working families. Moreover, in this plan, 1,000 homes will be set aside for foreclosure and the funding from various donors will help the organization to purchase about 500 abandoned and foreclosed homes (Loukaitou-Sideris & Ehrenfeucht, 2009). The goals of this plan will be achieved through funding from the current national stimulus package. Following the release of these funds, Boston community will start the construction of rental properties, which has been a part of the city’s project but has lacked funding. Funding from the federal government and the municipal will be of great importance as the goal of establishing 1000 affordable rental units will be difficult without funding (Loukaitou-Sideris & Ehrenfeucht, 2009). There are several initiatives in the plan, which aim at reducing the tide of foreclosures, which has dragged housing values and made tenants homeless in regions such as Roxbury, Mattapan, east Boston, and Hyde Park. In the light of this, the plan to reduce homelessness will include efforts to persist buying foreclosed homes out rightly and assist in the form of down payment to landlords and families in order to get the foreclosed and abandoned residential properties occupied once more. Moreover, in order to get the foreclosed homes from the possession of banks, there will be the need for provision of financial training and tips to buy property for 15,000 residents (O'Flaherty, 2012). The goal to reduce the number of itinerant families in half is due to the latest census which indicated that whereas Boston had achieved success in the reduction of the population of homeless elders, there were more families which were living on Boston streets and shelters. The mayor of Boston has on numerous occasions ordered housing officials to take the necessary measures to ensure that a significant number of senior citizens who were living on the streets found some form of housing. Through the intervention of nonprofit groups and the City’s housing authority, the city reduced the number of the homeless senior residents. A model program for the established goals and the involved community agencies The model that will achieve the aforementioned goals is established through a number of concrete strategies, actions, and priorities, which aim at achieving certain strategic directions, envisioned in the plan to curb homelessness. The first strategic direction is preventing homelessness, which will ensure that individuals are able to avoid being homeless. The second strategic direction is responding to homelessness, which ensures that homeless individuals will receive responses so that they do not stay homeless for their entire lives. Third, breaking the cycle will aim at individuals who have been homeless at a certain point of their lives to ensure that they do not become homeless again. The strategic directions indicated in the model have performance measures and indicators. Upon reviewing these measures and indicators, one will be able to determine whether the model will have an impact on homelessness in Boston (O'Flaherty, 2012). In preventing homelessness, the model will focus on individuals who are already homeless in a bid to help them secure accommodation. Previous intervention of this nature have revealed that helping individuals at the brink of becoming homeless has had the desired resources as it has prevented a waste of resources in looking for alternative shelters for the afflicted individuals (O'Flaherty, 2012). According to previous models used in Boston to address homelessness, homeless people use emergency services more often that mainstream population. These are services such as crisis accommodation, the justice system, and hospitals. The models have also found out that homeless children have a high risk of being homeless for a long period. Moreover, domestic violence alongside unaffordable housing has been a major cause of homelessness for women. On the same note, family and domestic violence has a major influence on women’s sense of value and self-worth and this eventually undermines their capacity to attain financial independence through being part of the work force hence becoming homeless (Loukaitou-Sideris & Ehrenfeucht, 2009). The model aims at preventing homelessness through certain priorities. Among these priorities is preventing eviction from tenures. The model has provided the necessary measures that will protect tenants from being evicted from the premises even if it implies negotiations with the proprietors. The second priority is providing safe and appropriate accommodation and supporting people who are experiencing family and domestic violence as well as other family problems at important transition points. In order to achieve the aforementioned priorities in the near future, the model has made provisions to enable identification of individuals who are at a risk of eviction in boarding houses, social houses, and private rental markets and help them to get the necessary support. Moreover, the model has provisions, which will enable authorities to support individuals with disability, substance abuse and mental health problems, and people subjected to mortgage stress. Furthermore, the model has provisions to enable relevant authorities to help young people maintain connection with training, education and employment (O'Connell, et al., 2010). In responding to homelessness, the model will incorporate responses crucial in ensuring that vulnerable people find routes from homelessness. This move will involve a variety of priorities. The model will improve identification and response to the issues of homelessness by special and mainstream support services. Delivery of responses for integrated services is also among the priorities stipulated in the model. Moreover, streamlining access to accommodation of crisis and homelessness services and moving homeless people to appropriate support and accommodation are the other priorities (O'Connell, et al., 2010). In breaking the homelessness cycle, the homeless individuals will need support to enable then to secure permanent accommodation. Due to high rates of alcohol, drug use and mental problems facing homeless people, providing them with necessary support will break the cycle. Although the efforts are resource intensive, long term benefits such as self-development and self-care will be achieved. There are many priorities to necessitate breaking of homelessness cycle. Provision of models to support accommodation of particular target groups is one of the priorities. The model will also aim to increase supply and improve conditions for social housing. Promotion of partnerships between various levels of government consumers, business, and sectors that are not for profit is an important priority that will ensure homelessness cycle is broken. Last, the model will cater for improvement of data collection and make a comprehensive use of evidence and data relating to homeless individuals (O'Connell, et al., 2010). In order to achieve the aforementioned priorities, there will be a need for exploration of channels to deliver accommodation to the afflicted individuals, increase supply of social housing and upgrade of the existing social housing. Moreover, the priorities will strengthen the capacity of different government levels, stakeholders, and non-governmental organizations to form fruitful partnerships. This will involve inclusion of homeless individuals for development of accurate responses. Furthermore, it will be necessary to implement an agenda for development of a strategy to collect data and measure outcomes and interventions. The priorities will undertake a research that will lead to achievement of best practices (Hombs, 2011). In order to attain the goal of addressing the problem of homelessness in Boston, various organizations will assist in ensuring that the homeless persons have been assisted. These organizations are shelter providers, city agencies, advocacy groups, local housing authorities, universities, churches and religious organizations. The parties will play huge roles, which are assessing the requirements of the homeless people and the capability of the existing programs to meet the needs of the homeless. These parties will also coordinate services and prioritize needs to enhance effectiveness in delivery of services and putting the available resources into best use. Moreover, the agencies will develop comprehensive plans that will lead to long-term stability and independence that will render homeless people self-sufficient (Kidd, 2012). Advocacy groups, city agencies, and religious organizations will draw their expertise from different sectors of the Boston community such as health, education, mental health, and housing professionals in order to formulate the best approaches to address the problems facing the homeless. These parties will also provide technical assistance to the service providers and foster good working relations between sectors possessing diverse purposes and perspectives. Furthermore, it will be the role of these parties to create a forum, which will necessitate discussion on program and policy alternatives and formulate new initiatives (Loukaitou-Sideris & Ehrenfeucht, 2009). Cost Reduction The numerous benefits of the aforementioned program range from ensuring homelessness are addressed to huge cost savings. Several components of the program will reduce homelessness and the cost that is used for emergency response in dealing with the problems facing the homeless. The savings will be produced following improvements in the manner, which the homeless are resettled. In general, the initiatives incorporated in the plan will ensure that cost is reduced by $200- $300 million. Moreover, $100 million will cut federal spending meant to reduce homelessness in Boston if the key initiatives of the program are followed. Furthermore, by providing the homeless with permanent homes, visits made to emergency sheltered will be reduced alongside the cost associated with catering for the needs of homeless persons while they are in the emergency shelters. Homeless people in Boston cost the community lots of resources, which can be avoided upon the permanent resettlement of the homeless (Kidd, 2012). Potential Funding Sources The federal Department of Housing and development of urban centers is one of the sources for the funds to be used in providing homeless people with permanent shelters. This source is reliable, as it has been giving funds to local authorities to help them address the issue of homelessness. Moreover, the department has been issuing grants for transitional and permanent housing and providing healthcare, mental health and other vital services that are required by homeless families and individuals. The Eastern Bank will be another source of funding due to its role in funding bodies dedicated towards ending and preventing homelessness. Eastern Bank donated grants amounting to $440,000 for the operations of organizations that intended to combat homelessness. Eastern bank has been offering help to drug addicts and has been shifting its focus to homeless persons as a part of its major projects. This has been achieved through job training to affected people who possess relevant skills and programs meant for education of adults (Kidd, 2012). Conclusion In summary, surveys have revealed that there has been an increase in the number of homeless individuals in Boston. These developments have prompted the relevant authorities to formulate models and plans that aim at addressing the problem. Boston community has over the years adopted measures to address the problem of homelessness but these measures have not yielded the required results. Consequently, there has been a need to adopt measures aimed at achieving the twin goals of eliminating individual homeless and reducing the number of homeless families. In order to achieve this, various agencies will collaborate in adoption of core strategies. These strategies include prevention in order to establish emergency shelters so that the homeless can find some form of accommodation. There is a need to adopt a plan that will reduce the number of homeless families in the near future. This plan will entail doubling production of housing families. To meet the high cost of eradicating homelessness, the Boston community will require funding from various sources. Among these sources are organizations such as the Federal Department of housing and development of urban centers and the Eastern Bank. Cost reduction has been put into consideration when formulating the plans for reducing homelessness whereby it is expected that costs that are used to cater for emergency needs of the homeless will be met. In general, millions of dollars will be saved upon the implementation of the aforementioned plans. References Bringle, J. (2010). Homelessness in America Today. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group. Hombs, M. E. (2011). Modern Homelessness: A Reference Handbook. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO. Kidd, S. (2012). Invited Commentary: Seeking a Coherent Strategy in our Response to Homeless and Street-Involved Youth: A Historical Review and Suggested Future Directions . Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 41(5), 533-543. Loukaitou-Sideris, A., & Ehrenfeucht, R. (2009). Sidewalks: Conflict and Negotiation over Public Space. Cambridge: MIT Press. O'Connell, J. J., Oppenheimer, S. C., Judge, C. M., Taube, R. L., Blanchfield, B. B., Swain, S. E., et al. (2010). The Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program: A Public Health Framework. American Journal of Public Health, 100(8), 1400-1408. O'Flaherty, B. (2012). Homelessness, Housing, and Mental Illness. Political Science Quarterly, 127(1), 169-171. Read More