Articles Tagged: Mental health

Iowa House lawmakers advanced legislation supporters say could provide a financial lifeline to Iowa’s small, rural hospitals that face closure.

Grow Therapy, a New York-based company that helps therapists with the paperwork involved in running a private practice, will be expanding to 22 new states, including Iowa.

Eighteen months after opening in Cedar Rapids, the Linn County Mental Health Access Center is seeing an increase in need for its services. Leaders hope to expand the hours of the center to 24/7 and they’re discussing a Youth Assessment Center.

Program in 18 Iowa counties gives option to calling police

Iowa will receive about $6 million in federal grant dollars to help schools address student well-being as part of the bipartisan gun violence bill signed in June.

Foundation 2 is pursuing a more than $3 million renovation of the historic Witwer Building in downtown Cedar Rapids, largely supported by local and state American Rescue Plan funds, to serve as its new headquarters. The move will consolidate five existing Foundation 2 buildings into one hub for training and services.

When officials with UIHC’s Eating Disorder Program on Sept. 1 called a meeting to announce plans to phase out the inpatient portion, one patient said, “I have never seen that many staff members cry.”

Earlier this year, in December and January, five children died by suicide in Polk County. State officials are seeking federal assistance in studying the pattern, but local mental health advocates say the pandemic’s impact on children across Iowans means providers have a lot of ground to cover in order to meet youth health needs.

The shared mental health liaison will respond to and follow up on mental health crises that officers encounter in Coralville, North Liberty and Johnson County.

Seventy percent of U.S. public schools have seen an increase in the number of students seeking school mental health services.

The Iowa Center for School Mental Health, founded last summer with $20 million in federal pandemic relief money, will be renamed the Scanlan Center for School Mental Health after the gift from the Chicago-based Scanlan Family Foundation.

The phone number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline will be cut to three digits — 988 — starting July 16. Experts in Iowa say the number is an important first step in making mental and behavioral healthcare more accessible, but there are still gaps, especially in the more rural parts of the state.

All services now are open at the 24/7 center in Iowa City. The Gazette spoke with GuideLink’s executive director and medical director to talk about the center’s first year and what’s next.

The Social Justice Committee of St. Ludmila Catholic Church is sponsoring a special panel presentation on mental health. "The Mental Health Crisis: On the Margins“ will take place June 21.

When adopted, the ordinance would apply only to rural Linn County, but supporters said they hope the county’s cities will pas their own bans.