Vha Mental Health Care Very Recently, Beginning
Very recently, beginning in 1995 the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) began a series of progressive reforms. The reform has included a substantive list of functional and fundamental changes, including everything from facility improvements to eligibility requirement expansion. The VHA has also adopted a list of changes that includes staffing and response time for mental health screenings for returning soldiers. These changes look good on paper as the VHA has stressed a rapid response time for initial screening that is a VHA policy standard, i.e. 14 days from the initial request for a mental health screening an individual is supposed to be evaluated. Given the nature of the last decade of war and the growing awareness of the mental health challenges that are being faced by countless returning soldiers this would seem a good thing, yet the actual reporting and records system is often delaying these initial screenings significantly, as is staffing issues. According to one reporter even though the VHA reported that 95% of all returning soldiers were being seen in that time frame further inquiry noted that this is simply not the case and the numbers are actually misleading. Upon further investigation the number was actually 49 percent and the average time for the rest of the soldiers was actually 50 days (Mcclatchy, 2012). This number is not in the least acceptable as studies have shown that screening delays in mental health situations create a reduction in the desire of the patient to continue with treatment. According to Mcclatchy (2012) the problem is a poor tracking and records keeping system and staffing shortages that challenge agencies to see patients in a timely manner. This is despite staffing increases of 46 percent between 2005 and 2010.
Consultancy and Diversity in Mental Health Care Facilities
Koff (1988) discusses a problem-solving process in consultation as consisting of four components, rather than stages. These are problem identification, problem analysis, intervention, and evaluation.
UK Mental Health Policy Mental Healthcare Service
The essay discusses the role of social workers and healthcare professionals in delivering an effective healthcare program for the ethnic minority in the UK. The essay reveals that the minority groups suffering from a mental disorder in the UK do not receive an equal medical treatment with British people. These issues generally affect ethnic minority such as Black, Asian, Chinese, Irish and other ethic minorities.