Chronic Mental Illness

Mental illnesses are chronic diseases that persist for a long time. According to the definition of the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics, a chronic disease is one lasting 3 months or more.

Mental illness is largely a chronic disease, a reality that poses many challenges to people with mental illness and the effectiveness of treatment. Moreover, it is important to understand how chronic disease dynamics impacts such issues as cost and eligibility for care and delivery of service.

What are the cost and Treatment Eligibility Issues in mental illness?

The chronic nature of mental illness can also profoundly affect patient eligibility for health care services. Unlike patients with chronic physical disorders, who continuously present with symptoms that prompt them to seek health care, the symptoms of those with mental disorders tend to be cyclical. The waxing and waning clinical course of mental illness, therefore, along with the extended time period between evaluations, often means that these patients do not seek or receive proper treatment for extended periods.

What is the importance of Service Delivery for patients with mental illness?

The chronic nature of mental illness has led to the development of a dedicated support system focused on long-term services that are better aligned with the needs of the patient. Several types of community-based mental health treatments are available for patients with chronic mental illness. Funding for these psychiatric rehabilitation services is often available from state Medicaid for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other serious mental disorders.

Such chronic care programs may provide a variety of services for patients, including support and training with:

• daily living skills
• social relationships
• work-related skills
• recreation
• approaches to problem solving