January 16, 2025 Vol. 25, No. 35
In This Issue FOUR SEASONS
Remembering Neal McCaleb
See pages 2, 5, and 10
FRIDAY, JANUARY 17 Partly Cloudy High 64° Low 29°
SATURDAY, JANUARY 18 Partly Cloudy High 37° Low 14°
SUNDAY, JANUARY 19 Partly Cloudy High 22° Low 12°
Getting help to those with mental illness
Police & private groups tackling issue By Rose Drebes According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 23.1% of adults in the United States live with a mental illness. To address that, the Edmond community is partnering with stakeholders to reduce the stigma around the topic of mental health and to expand the resources for those living with a mental illness, thus improving the quality of life for every resident, Police Chief J.D. Younger said. In 2021, the City of Edmond engaged Healthy Minds Policy Initiative (Healthy Minds) to conduct a mental health system assessment of the community. “The Edmond Community Behavioral Health Assessment and implementation has been one of the most impactful community initiatives I’ve had the pleasure of being involved with,” the chief said. In 2019, Edmond Police Officers provided in-custody transports for 679 people experiencing a mental health crisis, Younger said. In 2023, Edmond Police Officers provided in-custody transports for 277 people experiencing a mental health crisis. “Through a combination of legislative improvements, increased community resources, and intentionality, 60% fewer people had to experience police involvement in their mental health crisis,” he said. “In Edmond, our community promotes prevention, early detection and treatment for all aspects of health including mental health. ”NorthCare is one of the city’s community partners, hoping to improve the mental health of residents of Edmond and surrounding areas. Director of Crisis Services Bryan Hiel said the organization helps what tends to be a forgotten, if not a purposely ignored service and population.
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Police Chief J.D. Younger “We do not tend to feel comfortable around those that are different than us and the qualifier for what we do is being different (abnormal) from everyone else,” he said. Hiel said individuals with mental health issues die on an average of 23 years earlier than the general population. In any given year, one out of every five people are diagnosed with depression and prescribed an anti-depressant. “That is just depression, 20% of the US population,” Hiel said. “Those numbers do not include substance abuse, cognitive disorders, other mood disorders or trauma. In 2022, 49,449 people died by suicide in the United States. continued on Page 4