Mental Health is a public health issue. That’s our main message. As a society, as a community, we need to give as much emphasis to our mental health as we do to our physical health. A public health model includes promoting positive health, preventing illness, and providing quality, accessible care and treatment when we are ill.
For our physical health, this means that we have education and campaigns in the community to make healthy living easier and accepted. It has become commonplace to see messages about eating healthy food and exercising regularly. This is physical health promotion at work. It is also common to see messages about wearing seatbelts, to hear about the importance of vaccinations, and to see laws that prevent illness or injury – like smoking laws or speed limits. This is prevention at work for your physical health. Care and treatment is also easy to understand: in addition to seeking medical help from doctors and nurses, we have all likely seen programs in place for people who have a specific illness (e.g. diabetes management programs).
What does this model look like for mental health? That is what the Rice County Mental Health Collective is all about. Here’s an image that can help illustrate our model:
Take a look around our site – explore the various tabs at the top of the page – and begin to discover the ways that mental health is happening all around you. Want to contribute to the conversation? Have ideas for more that could be happening in our community? Contact us and get involved!