Earlier this month I attended the Virginia Association of Community Service Boards annual conference on public policy. I have never paid so much attention or been so engaged in a conference that I remember. Topics included: Key Developments in Current National Topics regarding bahavioral & mental health, Battling the Opiod Crisis one State at a Time, The Next Transformative Steps, Challenges Faced by Behavioral Health Community Service Boards and more.

This year represents a changing of the guard as the new VA Governor appointed a new Commissioner of the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. The new Commissioner was a speaker at the conference.

In the Commonwealth of Virginia (technically Virginia is a Commonwealth not a State), there are 40 Community Service Boards(CSBs) that provide behavioral health and developmental services to our residents.

There is not a mandated uniformity to how each CSB operates, although there are mandated services. Each CSB faces the same challenges yet each also faces challenges unique to their service area. The one thing that stood out as uniform across every CSB was the genuine care and dedication of everyone I met. This gives me hope.

The VA Commissioner recognized the same positives that I did about our CSBs. He also stated the challenges and threats he saw to the service they need to be providing; size, independence, incrementalization, cash flow, complexity and connectedness.

As I listened and took notes, I was jumping out of my skin, knowing that my company has the answer to these challenges. My incredible team has built the solution and is ready to be a part of this change.

We makes these connections possible.

We have built UniWellness to remove barriers to mental health care during these key transitional times in one’s life.

UniWellness builds a virtual bridge that maintains critical connectedness between therapist and patient for those leaving home to go to college, serving our Country, beginning a career, or just taking time to invest in themselves.

Mental Health America ranked all states based on prevalence of mental illness and access to care. These are general terms as there are actually about 15 categories they look at to determine the rankings. My home state, Virginia, currently ranks 40th. This was a pretty big “wow” for me to learn.

My experiences with mental healthcare have been challenging, but I assumed this is unfortunately normal. Suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death for persons age 15-24 in the United States.

Suicide prevention = Mental Healthcare = Physical Healthcare.

And again, my home is ranked 40th in the whole Country as to how we handle mental illness. This is my WHY.

There are many tragedies occurring throughout our Country as a result of the stigma and silence that has long been forced on mental health. There are also many dedicated individuals willing to fight to create change on a daily basis.

This is where my pride in my company and my teammates also gives me hope.

Do you work in the mental health industry? Do you experience challenges connecting people with the services they need?

You work at a college or university, community services board, or outpatient mental health practice or substance use center.  UniWellness may help you serve more people or bridge gaps in connecting?

UniWellness is an already-built platform.  It becomes branded with your logo and customized with features most important to you.  Contact me to learn more and determine if UniWellness could work for you and your patients.

Learn more about Ginger Germini here.