TITLE
Title
PROCLAIM MAY 2024 AS MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH
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SPONSOR
Sponsor
Commissioner Mary Beth Murphy
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RESOLUTION
Resolution
WHEREAS, mental health is the overall wellness of how you think, regulate your feelings and behave; and
WHEREAS, sometimes people experience significant irregularities in managing thoughts, feelings and behaviors which can cause distress or disrupt a person's ability to function; and may indicate a more complex underlying mental health disorder; and
WHEREAS, nearly one in five adults and one in five adolescents in the United States live with a mental illness; and
WHEREAS, mental health impacts a person’s emotional, social, environmental, financial and overall well-being, with notable disparities among racially and ethnically diverse communities; and
WHEREAS, suicide is now the second leading cause of death for 15-to-24-year-olds, with teenagers experiencing a 17.3% increase in the use of anxiety medications since 2010; and
WHEREAS, during calendar year 2023 the Guilford County Behavioral Health Center served more than 1,176 youth ranging in age from 6 to 15; there were more than 10,359 visits to the Behavioral Health Urgent Care; and more than 9,863 visits to the adult Behavioral Health Outpatient clinic; and
WHEREAS, one third of the United States population lives in a county designated as a mental health professional shortage area, including many North Carolinians; and
WHEREAS, an estimated 44% of residents detained in jails are living with a mental illness, often with co-occurring substance use disorders, and 70%?of youth in the juvenile justice system have a diagnosable mental health condition; and
WHEREAS, Guilford County is pleased to provide EMT support to the City of Greensboro’s Behavioral Health Response Team (BHRT), a unit of GPD specially trained to handle incidents involving someone with mental illness and those in crisis with care and expertise, ensuring such persons receive appropriate response...
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