What is modern mental healthcare?

Mental health care in developing countries is basically ancient, it mainly exists for extreme psychiatric cases and is therefore managed like a hospital. However, what confused me to see, was that in most first world countries, it’s the same. Mental health care is heavily regulated, goes through layers and layers of authorities, the methodology needs to be extremely narrow, and supervision with colleagues is an absolute must. 

Oftentimes, government officials who were in charge of the clients funding, would answer my attempts to diversify the methods with heavy suspicion and disapproval. As a matter of fact, their resistance to change was so strong that they have worked heavily against us as health care providers. The needs of the individual are ignored in order to maintain an outdated bureaucratic system. But you are #morethanjustanumber! 

So today, if you want to see a psychologist, you would have to go through heaps of paperwork and requests, everything would be documented, (dis)approved AND your entire private situation will be discussed with everyone in the office; not to mention they know all of your most private information like your address and social security number. Or, if you want to opt out of all of this paperwork, you pay at least $100 out of your pocket per hour, if you’re lucky. That’s insane! How are we still this far behind?

All people want and need is to have a conversation that will give them clarity, hope, and show them how to navigate their struggles. It’s just as simple as that! Have you ever wondered why the field of (life)coaching has bombarded the market recently? It’s because of this massive threshold between the client and the professional and/or the huge financial gap that is forcing people to seek help elsewhere. Many of my clients who had gone to coaches had no significant, if any, change in their issues. A coach cannot replace mental-health professionals that are primarily trained to work with psychological issues. Mental health professionals need to be accessible. 

The new generation, everyone I’ve worked with and for, as well as myself are sick of this ancient approach. We do not need to sit a Freudian bench and be analysed, not all of us want to go through questionnaire after questionnaire only to be sent off into the world with nothing but a diagnosis. The new generation does not need to be schooled anymore when all of the information is easily accessible  under their fingertips. Things need to be changed drastically and the journey begins now! 

If you want a little more insight into how society has changed, read my 2018 article here.  Furthermore, I will write more elaborate articles on what this generation wants, needs and deserves. But for now, here is a summary: