Economy swamps suburban hospitals with depression, substance abuse

A suburban man who had lost his job and was losing his home was contemplating suicide.

Driving along, he thought of swerving into oncoming traffic and ending it all.

Resisting the urge, he drove instead to Alexian Brothers Behavioral Health Hospital in Hoffman Estates, where he was admitted and treated, said Brett Hall, director of intake at Alexian.

More and more, mental health professionals say, people are coming in at the end of their rope due to the economy. Hospitals are seeing more cases of substance abuse, depression and suicidal thoughts.

Yet increasingly, some patients can't be admitted because there's no room for them. One Alexian patient had to wait 36 hours in the emergency department, said Kelly Clancy, Alexian's vice president of external affairs.

Community hospitals in the suburbs typically have 10 to 20 beds for psychiatric patients, and when they fill up or get an especially difficult case, they often refer patients to Alexian and Linden Oaks Hospital in Naperville, the two biggest and most specialized psychiatric hospitals in the area, with 137 and 110 beds respectively.

But both hospitals have seen a surge in patients, and both have filled up at times, forcing them to refer patients elsewhere.

Alexian treats more mental health inpatients than any other facility in the state. But this year, Alexian could not accommodate 1,100 patients needing inpatient treatment because it was full, an increase of almost 30 percent. In recent months, it's gotten worse. An Alexian social worker recently had to call 19 other facilities before finding one to accept a patient.

Hall said no patient is turned away without being assessed and offered a referral to another facility, but said a patients may leave while waiting for service if they are not deemed an immediate threat to themselves or others. If they are at risk, they'll get a bed in the emergency room, if necessary, he said.

In June, a mental health patient in New York died unattended after waiting almost 24 hours in a hospital waiting room, generating outrage, but little change.

In Illinois, Gov. Rod Blagojevich cut funding for mental health services this year due to a nearly $2 billion budget deficit. Mental health advocates are trying to get him to restore some $79 million, but state officials say tax revenues are falling fast.

"It's a dangerous collision course," said Janet Stover, executive director of the Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Services. "There's not enough money and more people needing the service."

Even before the latest cuts, mental health services had been steadily reduced in the suburbs.

Several years ago, Waukegan's Victory Memorial Hospital and Highland Park Hospital eliminated substance abuse programs. This year, the Lake County Health Department cut back substance abuse treatment and mental health agencies in Kane County have reduced staff.

In McHenry County, Centegra Behavioral Health is also cutting back on adolescent services.

Other prominent hospitals have reduced the number of psychiatric beds because they generally lose money, in part because some patients are unemployed or uninsured.

Overall, almost 8 percent of the population suffered a severe mental illness last year, according to Mental Health America of Illinois.

Now, more working people don't know how they'll pay their bills, while retirees who lost their life's savings feel their dreams have been ended, said Dr. David Lott, medical director of the chemical dependency program at Linden Oaks.

The problem also affects children and adolescents, because as parents argue, stress out, or work more, some youngsters withdraw and take up unhealthy behaviors like drug use or obsessive behavior.

At the same time, some patients already getting mental health services are cutting back on treatment or medication to save money, or because they're worried about losing their jobs due to missing a day of work or not producing enough.

There is no immediate solution in sight, but if people can't be admitted to a hospital, they can still get outpatient or day-patient services, Clancy said. "We're getting a lot more demand, and capacity going down," she said. "We need the public and legislators to understand this is getting to a critical mass."

Warning signs of mental illness

· No longer takes pleasure in activities one used to enjoy

· Isolates self from others

· Moodiness or personality change

· Change in school or work performance

· Change in eating or sleeping habits

· Abuse of alcohol, medications or illegal drugs

· Secretive behavior such as gambling or sex addictions

· Repeated absences or disappearances

· Obsessive habits like shopping or time on the computer

· Prolonged depression or apathy

· Strange or grandiose ideas

· Excessive anger or violent behavior

Source: Health care professionals and the American Psychiatric Association