jonathanslaw asked:

Michael Carey, the father of 13-year-old autistic Jonathan Carey who was killed while in the care of two workers of a state-run residential facility, urges the New York State Governor and legislators to reform the Mental Health Care System. The video includes news clips that demonstrate the systemic problems that exist. For more information, please visit www.jonathanslaw.org and http

DOCTOROFMINDMD asked:

Psychiatric care still has common myths associated with it. Public misconceptions about mental health care are still common.

Whenever a mental health professional starts his or her practice, they usually do mental health billing on their own. This can be a good thing at first because learning more about the business they are in allows them to grow as professionals. However, after they have seen how mental health billing works, they have to take into consideration one important aspect: is it to their advantage to keep doing mental health billing themselves?

The answer is no. By continuing to do their own billing, mental health professionals will only spend more money than using other services, they will waste precious time that can be put to better use and, on the long run, they will also lose patients. So, what are their alternatives?

Well, they could hire people to do mental health billing for them or they could use a mental health billing service.

Hiring staff to do mental health billing is the first option. However, this alternative is only effective on the long run. First of all, the staff must be accommodated and if your practice does not have enough room, this could result in extra expenses for you. Secondly, if you choose to hire inexperienced people, you will pay them less, but you will invest more money in their training. Moreover, you will be also investing time in your new staff and before they have reached a level of experience you are comfortable with, you would have spent a considerable amount of money, not to mention you would have wasted a lot of precious time. On the other hand, you could hire an expert to do mental health billing for you. In this case, the wage you would have to pay him or her is far greater than minimum wage. Furthermore, if you decide to hire your own people to do mental health billing for you, you will also have to comply with employees/ employer laws and again spend money and time on their payrolls.

Using a mental health billing service is the other alternative. This is a far better choice. First of all, by a using health billing service, you can control the amount of money you spend on billing. Payments can be made either per service, as percentage or per claim. Second of all, you receive the insurance money a lot faster. Most of the times, mental health professionals refuse to work with insured patients because of the paperwork involved. By using a mental health billing service, everything is done on the computer, using flexible software. This way, the mental health professional receives his or her money in a timely fashion and, subsequently, increases the number of the patients by receiving more insured clients. Last but not least, if they choose to use a mental health billing service, they will have an experienced person working for them. No training will be required and no time will be wasted on trying to achieve a desired level of expertise.

Mental health professionals must know how to make the bet use of their time and money if they want a successful business. Using their own staff may be more comfortable for them, but business is not about comfort, it is about moving ahead. In this case, a mental health billing service is the best choice for every mental health professional’s practice.

For more resources about mental health billing or even about Mental health billing service please review this website http://www.mymedicalbillingservice.com



By: Groshan Fabiola

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ICFJournalists asked:

ICFJ participant Mahmoud Tamimi investigates the state of Egypt’s mental health facilities for Egypt TV. This was apart of the International Center for Journalists’ Virtual Newsroom project that trained 40 Egyptian journalists in investigative reporting skills through a unique hands-on/online mentoring program. The focus was to train journalists how to produce and disseminate investigative reports through computer- assisted reporting, and by linking to one another through a virtual newsroom …

“Much Madness is divinest Sense — to a discerning Eye – much Sense – the Starkest Madness” (Emily Dickinson)

Mental health continues to fascinate people. With every technological and scientific innovation, doctors are finally able to understand the workings of the brain. It is safe to presume that human’s interest with mental health stems from the problems of insanity or madness. Since time immemorial, insanity has afflicted people. Healers tried every possible way to address this neurological problem; some use procedures considered utterly inhuman based on today’s standards.

During the early times, mentally incapacitated individuals were placed in asylums, contained in barricaded rooms, and even abandoned into the wilderness. Madness was perceived to be the workings of demons and form of punishment from god. Maybe out of fear and incomprehension, people separate themselves from those who are mad- the lunatics, hysterics and insane. They are afraid that such mental condition is contagious and possible interaction with the “abnormal” will make them one too. Up until the 19th century, the mentally ill are not treated or cured. They are isolated from society, driven to live in conditions unimaginable. Even the families of these individuals are not able to understand their condition. Wary of how the society will accept the fact that their relative maybe mad, they chose to disregard the problem rather than seek medical solutions to address it.

Even the advent of medication and treatment did not provide consolation to the sufferings of the mentally ill. It seems that the social stigma will forever be attached to their character. There are lots of horror stories surrounding asylums that torture their patients in an attempt to smoothen their twisted minds. Though some are heresy, the probability that such incidences happen is quite high.

It is reassuring to know that new approaches to the treatment of mental have developed through the years. From the less humane procedures of the early years, the medical world is now using psychological therapy alongside small medicine doses to treat mental conditions. The entire vocabulary has also changed. From simply pertaining to them as lunatics, mad, demented and hysterics, we were introduced to terms like bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive behavior, schizophrenia, dementia, Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Mental illness is also rarely used; the general term now is mental disorder which means something that is curable (can be ordered, tidied, fixed).

Seeing mental illnesses in the light of superstition have been replaced with a more scientific approach to mental health. More than often, doctors hypothesize that mental illnesses are brought about by the unbalance existence of particular brain receptors, coupled by environmental stressors. The biomedical structure of the brain and the existing social condition is thought to play an important part in the development of mental disorders. Trauma and fear is also seen to cause mental disorder, example of which is traumatic brain injury and post-partum depression.

Medications intended to address mental disorders can be classified as: antidepressants, beta-blockers, anxiolytics, mood stabilizers, antipsychotic and stimulants. Each of these drugs is used specifically to treat or provide relief against a specific mental condition. Antidepressants are used in the treatment of depression, and anxiety disorders. Beta-blockers are a major subcategory of antidepressants. Anxiolytics, on the other hand, are indicated for the treatment of insomnia and other anxiety disorders. The mood stabilizers are given to patients suffering from bipolar condition, particularly mania. The antipsychotic are for those with schizophrenia. Lastly the stimulants are for those with Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Taking any of the following medications require careful supervision and guidance from physicians and specialist. Patients are not allowed to take any drugs that affect the brain without first consulting medical experts.

For more information about various medications, check http://www.getcheapdrugs.com/.



By: rae phillips

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