Conference Aims To Help Young People Cope With Mental Illness

About 160 individuals from 80 organizations recently attended a conference in Rancho Mirage to discuss methods for helping 16- to 25-year-olds cope with mental illness, HealthyCal reports.

Conference Details

Kraig Johnson of Oasis Community Services organized the conference to encourage mental health groups in Eastern Riverside County to collaborate and network.

He said that the conference is "an opportunity for service providers to determine what services are available to their kids and create a forum for introductions and collaboration so they can talk about how they can better serve their clients."

Local law enforcement officers also attended the conference because they often deal with violence in the home that can trigger depression and suicidal thoughts in young people.

In addition, attendees discussed strategies for reducing the stigma of mental illnesses.

Debbie Kahng of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention told attendees, "If we can stop using the word 'committed' suicide, and replace it with died by suicide ... that alone breaks the stigma."

ACA Could Boost Mental Health Care Access, Some Say

During the conference, John Benoit -- county supervisor -- said the Affordable Care Act could help younger individuals because it will require insurers to cover mental health care services.

"Some of these programs can be reimbursed by a person's insurance," Benoit said, adding, "We expect the number of those cases will rise under the ACA. That may be optimistic, but we're hopeful" (Potter, HealthyCal, 8/27).