BEHAVIORAL HEALTH

Why is this important?

How we care for some of our most vulnerable residents- children, adults, and seniors with acute or long-term mental health disorders-refl ects on the health and safety of our community. Until recently, the options for activity, employment, and social relationships were bleak for these residents. Today there are psychotropic medications, treatment interventions, and effective community support systems that enable many of these residents to participate in the life of the community.

What is the measure?

The number of hospitalizations and placements in acute or long-term settings of our citizens with these acute and/or chronic mental health conditions refl ects the effectiveness of the prevention and intervention systems established in our county. Increases or decreases in these numbers alert all the collaborating agencies and services to important changes in the safety and quality of life for people with mental disorders.

How are we doing?

This snapshot indicates that Tuolumne County had a rate higher than the state rate per 10,000 population for acute involuntary hospitalizations, but a lower rate than the state level for permanent conservatorships. The Tuolumne County severe mental illness prevalence rate is similar to the statewide prevalence.

These fi ndings would tend to indicate that Tuolumne County is better than average at helping people stabilize at lower levels of care instead of the highest level requiring out of home care once the people are identifi ed.

However, Tuolumne County does not do as well as the rest of the state in early identifi cation of people needing help with psychiatric problems. This results in more people coming to the attention of caregivers in crisis situations rather than less extreme situations.