The United States is rolling out a reimagined suicide prevention number to address a national mental health crisis. But funding and staffing issues have left some questioning whether it’s ready.
Many who called the Lifeline in recent months disconnected before they got help. About 18 percent of the roughly 1 million phone calls placed to the Lifeline in the first half of this year were abandoned, according to a data analysis by The New York Times.
An earlier Times analysis in March found similar problems, and the transition to a well-publicized three-digit phone number is expected to strain capacity further.This is good stuff, however, there are real #staffing concerns.
The new Lifeline comes at a time of rising mental illness, including what the U.S. surgeon general has called a “devastating” crisis among young people. Suicide was the 12th leading cause of death for Americans of all ages in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the second leading cause among those ages 10 to 14 and 25 to 34. A person died by suicide every 11 minutes in 2020.
This is good stuff, however, there are real #staffing concerns.
Those in the industry have sounded the alarm to be understaffed and prepared for this release but it's fallen on deaf #governmental ears.
Personally, I've looked at mental health opportunities for the #VA who are in dying need to help.
There are over 75 open positions all over the country. But, they require a covid vax on your resume. This is dumb and continues to be dangerous.