In this discussion, complete the following:
Research a current legal and ethical issue in the field that relates to your specific project. Briefly explain your issue. Provide a recommendation on how you will address this issue in your project. Support your initial post with relevant sources.
In responses to your peers, consider their initial posts. Do you agree with their recommendations? Are there things they have not considered? Explain.
Current ethical issues that affect the behavioral health field is the level of impact the
mental health sector of healthcare is facing that leads to lapses in care and delayed treatment. In the United States there are approximately 1.2 psychiatrists per 10,000 individuals, yet federal data suggests that rural counties in the United States do not have a single practicing behavioral health provider (Schneider, 2016). Studies have shown that the average wait time for patients to have their initial outpatient encounter with a behavioral health provider is approximately 25 days (Schneider, 2016). The ethical dilemmas that arise because of these provider shortages and major delays in care and treatment may lead to untreated patients with behavioral issues, which goes against most healthcare organizations' mission and vision statements of providing high quality care and making efforts to improve access to care. In my project recommendation, I hope to expand pediatric health to include a behavioral health department for children, teenagers, and adolescents to improve access to behavioral health services, improving early detection and treatment in pediatric patients, and offering comprehensive services that young patients can access through the MemorialCare website or mobile application. By increasing access for patients with providers that specialize in pediatric mental health conditions, wait times will be less impacted and patients can be seen in a timely manner regarding their mental health without visiting an area hospital for urgent treatment. To make further improvements, patients will be able to seek treatment at the pediatric behavioral health clinic for an initial, outpatient encounter and the goal is to have each appointment scheduled within a 14 - 21 day timeframe to ensure wait times are below national averages.
References:
Schneider, M. R. (2016). Clinical and social contexts of ethical issues in Mental Health Care. Journal of Ethics | American Medical Association. Retrieved from https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/clinical-and-social-contexts-ethical-issues- mental-health-care/2016-0