By Ingrid Padgett, Communications and Program Strategist,Yale Program for Recovery and Community Health
Through a six-year cooperative agreement with HHS/SAMHSA, the Yale Program for Recovery and Community Health led the New England Mental Health Technology Transfer Center (New England MHTTC). The Center served as one of 10 regional entities funded by SAMHSA to support the dissemination of evidenced-based and recovery-oriented behavioral health practices across the nation. Thanks to this partnership, curated resources designed to address mental health priorities across the lifespan are now archived and available free of charge at the Yale PRCH website.
This new resource library offers training and technical assistance resources supporting the behavioral health workforce. The curated products also feature print-based and multimedia tools designed to improve mental health literacy among broader audiences, in ways that are clear, concise, and offer practical guidance on ways to to reduce stigma.
While health literacy encompasses a broad spectrum of health-related issues, its significance in mental health cannot be overstated. Recent data on depression and anxiety rates in the U.S. clearly show the urgency we all face in addressing the mental health and well-being across the lifespan. According to the Gallup National Health and Well-Being Index—which provides an in-depth view of Americans' well-being and offers insights into their attitudes and behaviors at the national, state and community levels—indicates that the percentage of U.S. adults who report having been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lifetime has reached 29.0%, nearly 10 percentage points higher than in 2015. Additionally, the percentage of Americans who currently have or are being treated for depression has also increased, to 17.8%, up about seven points over the same period. Both rates are the highest recorded by Gallup since it began measuring depression using the current form of data collection in 2015 (Gallup, 2023).
Recovery-oriented practices are those practices that promote each person’s/family’s vision of recovery as they define it. For some, this may involve clinical recovery and the reduction or resolution of mental health symptoms and challenges. For others, recovery may mean reclaiming valued social roles, building meaningful relationships, participating in the of their community, or maintaining control over important decisions that impact their lives and experience in care (New England MHTTC, n/d). The Yale PRCH archive offers resources in specific areas of expertise including:
Person and family-centered care planning
Shared decision-making
Peer support and lived experience leadership
Equity-minded, recovery-oriented systems transformation
Diverse strategies to promote community inclusion and citizenship among people living with serious mental illnesses, and
Compassionate school mental health practices that consider the mental health and well-being of everyone in the school community
Improving the landscape of resources and the clarity of mental health information is foundational. However, there must also be concerted efforts to create a national culture of open and empathetic dialogue around mental health. People need to feel comfortable discussing their mental health concerns without fear of judgment or discrimination. This starts by equipping individuals and communities with the knowledge and tools they need to have compassionate conversations, recognize warning signs, and to seek help when needed.
The Yale PRCH resources are also grounded in the content and process of the program's Guiding Principles on Resilience and Recovery. Consistent with these principles, they offer an equity minded approach to recovery-oriented care. Accordingly, they recognize and point to the fact that even the most progressive treatment systems exist within a social context where people of color and other historically marginalized groups often experience—both individually and collectively—an additional layer of trauma that has devastating consequences on their health and well-being. This underpinning ensures an acknowledgement of the unique wellness needs of these individuals and groups and offer practical guidance on ways to better engage, uplift, serve, and partner with ALL communities in consistent and sustainable ways. Access recovery-oriented, equity-focused mental health resources from Yale PRCH, developed in partnership with Harvard University Department of Psychiatry, C4 Innovations, and the Center for Educational Improvement to raise awareness, reduce stigma, and create a structure with resources for all the stages of care, from prevention through long-term recovery.Â
References
Witters, D. (2023). U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs. Gallup, Inc. Well-being Blog.
Gallup, Inc. (2024). How Does the Gallup National Health and Well-Being Index Work?
New England Mental Health Technology Transfer Center. (n.d.). "Our Focus: Recovery-Oriented Supports and Systems of Care."
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