Alexandria, VA — Mental Health America (MHA), the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and to promote overall mental health of all Americans, is excited to share that it has partnered with the Anthem Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc., and that the Foundation has awarded MHA a $100,000 grant for it’s Screening to Supports (S2S) program.
“MHA is thrilled to be collaborating with Anthem Foundation on such an important program,” said Paul Gionfriddo, president and CEO, Mental Health America. “It is because of their generous contribution that will we be able to provide S2S services to even more people in need and continue our efforts to address mental illness Before Stage 4.”
Understanding your mental health and learning about where you are in your mental health is essential in ensuring you stay mentally healthy. One of the quickest and easiest ways to determine whether you are experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition is to take an anonymous screen. MHA launched its Online Screening Program in 2014 and has collected almost 5 million screens to date. This translates to up to 3,000 screenings per day. Screens are specific for depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), alcohol and substance use, early psychosis, work health, as well as screenings that are youth-focused and parent-focused. The vast majorities of these screeners are under the age of twenty-five, screen positive for the condition for which they screen, yet have not ever been diagnosed with a mental health condition.
S2S is an interactive online space for individuals to find tools they can use after screening to better their mental health. S2S provides customized results, drawing from resources in each of four domains: information and resources (“Learn”); information about and referrals to care, services, and supports (“Treatment and Help”); do-it-yourself tools (“DIY”); and online engagement with peers (“Connect”).
“Thanks to Anthem Foundation, MHA can continue to explore ways to respond to the needs of screeners by adding public education and treatment information, concluded Gionfriddo. “Our goal is to get every American screened and aware of their mental health as a way to promote recovery and reduce the time of untreated mental health problems.”
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Mental Health America (MHA) - founded in 1909 - is the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and to promoting the overall mental health of all Americans. Our work is driven by our commitment to promote mental health as a critical part of overall wellness, including prevention services for all; early identification and intervention for those at risk; integrated care, services, and supports for those who need it; with recovery as the goal.