Brookhaven Hospital: Mental Health Treatment for Behavioral Health Problems, Chemical Dependency, Eating Disorders, Brain Injuries, and Renewal Christian Treatment and Recovery

Monday, November 13, 2006 2:35 PM
posted by C. Raus

Growing Mind Pains

Today, a child with a mild heartache from a highschool romance could be diagnosed with depression, a serious mental disorder confused for a minor difficulty. I've noticed an increasing number of my friends being prescribed sleep medication, and even though I'm not qualified to make the decision, I'm unsure about whether they need it. But in a world primarily influenced by the media, mass appeal, and trends, maybe the increasing commercial spots for such medications intrigue the viewer enough to make them believe they have mental health issues.

How does a parent decide whether their child has a mental issue and needs medication and on what grounds? According to a recent article in the New York Times, even child psychiatrists, doctors, and social workers are in some confusion and routinely hand out different diagnoses and are now routinely giving out more than one at the same time. This may be due in part to different biases and to the fact there are no blood tests or brain scans to diagnose mental disorders. Diagnoses are based on judgments of interviews and checklists of symptoms.

At least six million American children have difficulties that are diagnosed as serious mental disorders, according to government surveys Â? a number that has tripled since the early 1990s. But there is little convincing evidence that the rates of illness have increased in the past few decades. Rather, many experts say it is the frequency of diagnosis that is going up, in part because doctors are more willing to attribute behavior problems to mental illness, and in part because the public is more aware of childhood mental disorders.

Click to read original article.
link to this post

Rolf B. Gainer, Ph.D., Diplomate ABDA, is the Chief Executive Office at Brookhaven Hospital and the Vice President of Rehabilitation Institutes of America. Dr. Gainer has been involved in the design and operation of treatment programs since 1977.

Stephen Harnish, MD is the Medical Director of Brookhaven Hospital. Dr. Harnish is a member of the American Psychiatric Association and is well known in Oklahoma for his informative radio and television appearances.

Aric Thorpe, MHR, is Brookhaven Hospital's Pastoral Liaison Representative. He conducts the quarterly Minister's Lifeline series and provides mental health information to pastors and clergy.

Sarah McGee, BA, serves as the Community Education Provider for Brookhaven Hospital. She provides information on mental health and drug and alcohol treatment to healthcare professionals in Oklahoma and surrounding states.

| Outpatient Services |