“The single greatest need to positively impact families and communities across the nation is a comprehensive system of care to effectively diagnose and treat psychiatric illnesses,” said Sheppard Pratt President Harsh K. Trivedi, M.D., M.B.A.
With more than 40 million people in the United States living with some form of mental illness, and close to 17 million children experiencing mental health problems, mental health reform is imperative and needs to be addressed now.
“As the nation’s largest non-profit provider of psychiatric services,” Trivedi continued, “I am all too aware of the many gaps in care and substantial hurdles that Americans face to access high quality services for themselves and their loved ones.”
“It's time that we place mental health treatment on the same level as physical health care in this nation.” Trivedi went on to say, “We, as a society, would never deny someone the ability to receive treatment for cancer or heart disease. However, many of our most vulnerable encounter difficulty accessing mental health care on a daily basis as they struggle to make it to see the next day.”
About Sheppard Pratt
Sheppard Pratt is the largest private, nonprofit provider of mental health, substance use, developmental disability, special education, and social services in the country. A nationwide resource, Sheppard Pratt provides services across a comprehensive continuum of care, spanning both hospital- and community-based resources. Since its founding in 1853, Sheppard Pratt has been innovating the field through research, best practice implementation, and a focus on improving the quality of mental health care on a global level. Sheppard Pratt has been consistently recognized as a top national psychiatric hospital by U.S. News & World Report for more than 30 years.