No Health Without Mental Health Presenting the Importance of Mental Health Services on College Campuses
With 1 in 5 college students living with a mental health condition, it is reasonable to see why it is important that college campuses, like Clemson University, try to offer accessible mental health services for their students (NAMI On Campus - Because Mental Health Matters). In a 2012 survey, 62 percent of Clemson students reported that their academic performance had been negatively affected over the course of one year because they had been depressed, stressed, and/or had anxiety (Mental Health: Fast Stats). Because college is a time when students are transitioning to a more independent lifestyle, they are likely to experience a number of emotional responses as they transition from their home to campus life. For some, the adjustment is easier than others.
Not surprisingly, a large portion of students struggle to adapt to college life, and as a result develop some of the most common mental health conditions seen in college students, like depression and anxiety (The State of Mental Health on College Campuses: A Growing Crisis). And although they are the most common, depression and anxiety are not the only mental health conditions that impact college students. Conditions of equal seriousness, although less commonly reported, like eating disorders, substance abuse, and self-injury are continuing to be seen on campuses today (The State of Mental Health on College Campuses: A Growing Crisis). The importance of addressing these mental health conditions, and subsequently ensuring the safety of their students should be a priority for campuses everywhere. Unfortunately, there is still much progress to be made concerning the diversity of mental health services offered by college campuses.
According to the 2014 National Survey of College Counseling Centers, 94% of campus counseling directors reported increasing numbers of students being diagnosed with severe psychological problems (Gallagher and Taylor, 5). It is therefore the purpose of this article to evaluate and compare the changes made to the mental health services that are offered by college campuses in the United States, and to give a specialized look at Clemson’s own mental health service system. It is important to evaluate the progress made on college campuses, to ensure that efforts to improve accessibility and effectiveness of mental health services are continuous.
Shockingly, institutions of higher learning (IHE) like college campuses, are not required by law to have mental health services available to students. It wasn’t until 2004, when there was a growing concern of students’ mental health on college campuses, that Congress passed the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (GLSMA). GLSMA was the first real political act that sought to improve the services offered on college campuses for students with mental health needs. GLSMA resulted in the creation of three new programs aimed at addressing and supporting the mental and behavioral health requirements of young adults. The three programs, Campus Suicide Prevention, State/Tribal Youth Suicide Prevention, and the Technical Assistance Center “have made a significant difference in addressing the issue of suicide, the second leading cause of death among college students and third leading cause of death for young people ages 15-24, across the nation” (The State of Mental Health on College Campuses: A Growing Crisis).
The successes of the original Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act might have led to the Congress's re-authorization of GLSMA in 2011, which aimed to continue the progress of the old act and to work to allocate additional funding to college campuses to grant students with mental health and substance use disorders specialized services (The State of Mental Health on College Campuses: A Growing Crisis). However, despite the benefits of GLSMA on campus funding, it still isn’t legally required that all campuses offer specific services to their students with mental health needs. Part of the reason that services for mental health needs are limited on college campuses is that there is no set of single requirements that mandate what sort of services should be offered. If there was a set list of required services, then campuses could maximize their efficiency and ensure that their health centers are not lacking in a certain field with regards to the mental health. Thereby ensuring that students with specific mental health needs can be met on campus through their health center, and are not left without help.
In a 2011 study done through the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI), a survey was given to 765 college students living with mental health conditions with questions on whether they considered their school’s services to be adequately suiting their needs, and report what services needed to be improved or created to better support them (Gruttadaro and Crudo, 4). When the study was completed, the authors compiled a prioritized list of services that surveyed students indicated were or would be most beneficial to them when offered by their school. Among the list of services and/or supports that students with mental health concerns listed as most needed on campus were methods to discourage students from dropping out, an increase in willingness for students to disclose their illness to the school, an increase in public awareness of mental health resources offered by the school, an updated and informational website, academic accommodation services, more awareness and availability of clinical services and supports, crisis services, and an overall supportive institution (Gruttadaro and Crudo, 8-19).
The next part of this article will look at each of the concerns students with mental health concerns recommended every higher level institution offer, and how these concerns can be addressed , as well as explore whether Clemson’s mental health care system meets any of these recommendations.
Many students, especially students still struggling to adjust to college life, struggle with mental health issues like depression and anxiety. The first recommendation by students taking the NASI survey was prevention of students dropping out of school because of mental health needs. When students can not access services to help find aide or support, they may feel like dropping out is the only way to seek help. The NAMI survey indicated that more than 45 percent of participants dropped out of college because they did not receive accommodations for their mental health needs. In addition, 50 percent of those who dropped out did not access (or have access to) any mental health services and supports (Gruttadaro and Crudo, 8). Surveyed students listed several ways they thought schools could prevent others students from dropping out.
Such suggestions included having approached a health care counselor earlier, receiving academic accommodations from their instructors to better suit their academic needs, more knowledge of the mental health services available, access to peer-led support groups, and greater overall support from their institution, friends, or family (Gruttadaro and Crudo, 8). The success of initiating supports to prevent students from dropping out are likely to reap positive benefits for students and the university as a whole. For example, in the National Survey of College Counseling Centers 2014, 65% of students reported that counseling helped them to stay enrolled at their institutions (Gallagher and Taylor, 7).
Encouragement of disclosure to the university of their mental illness is another suggested improvement for college campuses as listed by the NAMI survey. The survey reported a 50-50 split between students who had or had not reported their mental health condition to the university. Primarily, students who chose not to disclose their mental health condition listed that they were fearful on how they would be perceived by the community and university, there was no opportunity to disclose their condition at all, they did not believe their information would be confidential, and/or that a diagnosis would not impact their academic performance or help them to receive academic accommodations (Gruttadaro and Crudo, 9). To encourage students to disclose their mental health needs to the university to try and improve their academic and social performance, universities should attempt to promote programs on campus that reduce the social stigma surrounding mental health so students feel more comfortable speaking about mental health in an environment where they feel welcomed by all.
Another compiled list of recommendations for improvements to college health services by the NASI survey include an increase in public awareness of mental health resources offered by the school, an updated and informational website, and more awareness and availability of clinical services and supports. A large percentage (79%) of students surveyed by NASI recommended that the most effective way of increasing awareness of mental health is to have mental health training for faculty and staff on campus. Other notable recommendations for increasing awareness of mental health included suicide prevention activities, student organizations or peer-run groups, mental health information during orientation, peer-to-peer support and mentoring, and a student health center (Gruttadaro and Crudo, 10).
Having access to a website where information can be found on specific services and supports offered by the school is also beneficial to students. NASI found 33% of students found out about their school’s mental health services through their website, while the National Survey of College Counseling Centers 2014 found that 96% of mental health centers have a counseling center website, and that all of these centers use the site in order to provide information about center services to students. The use of these websites mostly consists of educational material on psychological issues, while some report using it for additional information on career counseling information or other such purposes (Gallagher and Taylor, 7).
Many websites do provide helpful information, however only 14% of students reported their school’s website as being very helpful in the NASI survey. In addition, students listed their school websites as successful if it offered information about resources available on and off campus and where to find them, allowed students to schedule appointments online, offered an online mental health screening tool, and had a frequently asked questions page (Gruttadaro and Crudo, 11). By adding tools such as these to their websites, college health clinic websites can be very beneficial as a source of information for students looking to gain more knowledge of the types of mental health services their health centers offer.
Crisis services and academic accommodation services are two final suggested services that should be made available on college campuses. NAMI defines a mental health crisis as “any situation in which a person’s behaviors puts them at risk of hurting themselves or others and/or when they are not able to resolve the situation with the skills and resources available” (Mental Health Crisis Planning, 1). It is imperative that campuses offer services to combat mental health crises because of the unpredictability and seriousness of emergency cases. If college health clinics do not offer these services, they potentially leave students without assistance in what is argumentatively, their most desperate of circumstances. Academic accommodations are an additional, and helpful, service that campuses can offer to students with mental health conditions that may impact their school performance negatively. The American Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 and 2008 helped establish amendments that mandated students with mental health conditions have access to academic accommodations for any courses or activities they partake in so they can have equal opportunity to perform (Souma, Rickerson, and Burgstahler, 1).
The National Alliance on Mental Illnesses’ suggested list of services can be compared to Clemson University’s own mental health clinic. The NASI survey is a good reference for colleges because it was taken by actual students with mental health needs. By following their suggestions, campuses can help provide services that are specific to needs of the students. Clemson University’s Mental Health and Counseling services include personal counseling, psychological testing, outreach, and consultation. (Mental Health and Counseling - Counseling and Psychological Services). However, the extent to which these services can help students is limited if the availability of Clemson’s Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) is not recognized by the whole student body. Clemson’s own mental health services are a subdivision of the Redfern Health Center, located on campus. The CAPS program is the “only facility for personal counseling, psychological testing, outreach and consultation” and “operates from a brief-therapy model” (Mental Health and Counseling - Counseling and Psychological Services). Students have access to a number of services like online mental health screening and peer led support groups. All of these services and additional information can be found on the Redfern Health Center Website, which provides an easily accessible way for students to discover more about Clemson’s mental health programs.
In addition, clubs and extracurricular activities are an important way for students to feel included within their community. Clemson has over 100 clubs and activities that offer students a way to communicate with others who share similar interests or concerns. There are even clubs that focus on removing the mental health stigma and promoting making improvements to Clemson’s mental health service system. For example, Active Minds at Clemson University is a club that focuses on “the awareness of university students, faculty, and staff about issues surrounding mental health and symptoms related to mental health disorders” (Active Minds at Clemson University). They bring in speakers, organize fundraisers, and promote awareness within the community about mental health. The cooperation of these clubs and activities with Clemson’s CAPS program ensures that there will be continuous effort to promote improvement of Clemson’s mental health services. This provides the added comfort that mental health service changes at Clemson have been changed with the help of the students who use them, and that they are fully encompassing the entire Clemson community’s needs.
Works Cited
“Active Minds at Clemson University”. Clemson University Student Clubs and Organizations. Web. 22 March 2016.
Gruttadaro, Darcy and Crudo, Dana. “College Students Speak: A Survey Report on Mental Health”. National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI). NAMI: 2012. Print.
Gallagher, Robert P. and Rick Taylor. Sponsor: American College Counseling Association (ACCA). National Survey of College Counseling Centers 2014. Alexandria: The International Association of Counseling Services, Inc., 2014. Print.
“Mental Health: Fast Stats”. Clemson University Healthy Campus. Web. 22 March 2016.
“Mental Health and Counseling - Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS)”. Clemson Redfern Health Center. Web. Clemson 18 March 2016.
“Mental Health Crisis Planning: Learn to recognize, manage, prevent and plan for your loved one’s mental health crisis”. National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI). Web. 28 March 2016.
“NAMI On Campus - Because Mental Health Matters”. National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). NAMI, n.d. Web. 18 March 2016.
Souma, Alfred, Rickerson, Nancy, and Burgstahler, Sheryl. Academic Accommodations for Students with Psychiatric Disabilities. University of Washington. 2012. 1-4.
“The State of Mental Health on College Campuses: A Growing Crisis”. American Psychological Association (APA). APA, n.d. Web. 18 March 2016.
Written by Megan DeLorenzo