The tragedy at the Washington Navy Yard is another shocking and sobering example of mental illness in our country. One more patient is left unsupervised, without medical and psychiatric assistance to fend for himself. We fear it’s the same old story. A patient with severe mental disorders is probably prescribed medication but decides not to take it anymore. The abrupt cessation of psychotropic medication can lead to disastrous results. One year ago – last October – I sent an elaborate presentation to President Obama about creating a special Children’s Task Force. There were two parts. One part would involve setting up rotating teams of child psychologists and social workers. These teams would visit public school districts in order to interview students and set up short psychological tests. If there are any red flags raised in the process, teachers and parents would be notified. They could then join forces to seek solutions and strategies to deal with any problems. They could discuss the possibility of further testing, possible treatment options or decide to keep an eye on the situation. This would also bring about more awareness of conditions like bullying, behavior disorders, psychological or mental impairment as well as dyslexia and other learning disabilities as well as abuse. Getting a handle on these social, physical, emotional and mental problems help to get youngsters and their families proper attention, care and guidance.
The suspects responsible for the atrocities at Virginia Tech, Columbine, Aurora and Sandy Hook all suffered from forms of mental illness. Now it’s time to change course and find the children at risk for psychological, social and mental problems so we can provide help and guidance for them and their families.
The cost of creating a children’s task force would be minimal because we already have a number of experts working within our communities. We have lost the war on poverty. We have lost the war on drugs. We must not let down our children by failing to adequately protect them. Each generation has been cognizant and concerned about the legacy we leave future generations. We may have messed up our economy, our place in the universe and our environment thinking to ourselves that we have built an unsinkable ship of state. We cannot continue going full throttle, expecting the icebergs to change. We must take care of our children now, before it’s too late. In my next blog post I will explain the other part of my Children’s Task Force. As for the reaction from President Obama, unfortunately his reply had nothing at all to do with this subject matter. I hope that Governor Brown and our state representatives will examine this plan and give it consideration.
