Nowhere to Go: Young People with Severe Autism Languish in Hospitals


The following is a short excerpt from the article: Nationally, the number of people with an autism diagnosis who were seen in hospital ERs nearly doubled from 81,628 in 2009 to 159,517 five years later, according to the latest available data from the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The number admitted also soared, from 13,903 in 2009 to 26,811 in 2014.

That same year, California’s state health planning and development department recorded acute-care hospital stays of at least a month for 60 cases of patients with an autism diagnosis. The longest were 211 and 333 days.
The problem parallels the issue known as psychiatric boarding, which has been an increasing concern in recent years for a range of mental illnesses. Both trace to the shortcomings of deinstitutionalization, the national movement that aimed to close large public facilities and provide care through community settings. But the resources to support that dwindled long ago, and then came the Great Recession of 2008, when local, state and federal budget woes forced sharp cuts in developmental and mental health services.
To read the full article click on the link below:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How Our Brains are Wired for Belief

Image
The following is a short excerpt from the article:  Some of the nation’s leading journalists gathered in Key West, Fla., in May 2008 for the Pew Forum’s biannual    Faith Angle Conference  on religion, politics and public life. Recent advances in neuroscience and brain-imaging technology have offered researchers a look into the physiology of religious experiences. In observing Buddhist monks as they meditate, Franciscan nuns as they pray and Pentecostals as they speak in tongues, Dr. Andrew Newberg, a radiologist at the University of Pennsylvania, has found that measurable brain activity matches up with the religious experiences described by worshipers. The social, political and religious implications of these and other findings are just beginning to permeate the broader culture, according to  New York Times  columnist David Brooks, who has been tracking new developments in the field. To read the full article click on the link below: http://www.pewforum.org/2008/05/05/how-o
Read more

This is Why Diamonds Aren't Rare or Valuable

Image
The following is a short excerpt from the article:  Colour, cut, carat and clarity. These are the four markers which have come to characterise the world’s most famous gemstone. These dazzling nuggets of crystallised carbon conjure ideas of wealth, luxury and love. Diamonds are a girl’s best friend. Diamonds are forever. And diamonds are the world’s biggest con. To read the full article click on the link below: http://vt.co/lifestyle/diamonds-arent-rare-valuable/?utm_source=vt&utm_medium=features
Read more