In Honor of Mental Health Awareness Month

This May, Proximate Learning celebrates the 76th Mental Health Awareness Month (MHAM) and emphasizes that mental health is public health. According to Mental Health America’s 2024 State of Mental Health in America Report, 23.08% of U.S. adults experienced a mental illness, and 20% of our nation’s youth experienced at least one major depressive episode in the past year. Despite the prevalence of mental health conditions, the barriers to mental health and substance use treatment are vast.

Mental Health Stigma and Inequities

So why might we see such staggering statistics? Historically, the traditional medical model has treated mental and physical health separately. This has contributed to the stigmatization of people with mental illnesses, leading to delayed treatment (Stuart, 2005; CDC, 2023), decreased care quality (Mulfinger et. al, 2024), and poorer physical health outcomes (Shefer et al, 2014). Stigma also affects many other social determinants of health, from underemployment and unemployment to discrimination, compounding the mental, social, and physical impacts (Ahad et. al, 2023). It can also overlap with other types of stigma, including those based on gender, race, or income. Mental health stigma occurs across the social ecological model from individuals to systems. This stigma can manifest in a multitude of ways, such as self-stigma with negative self-talk and blame, interpersonal stigma with attitudes expressed by family, individuals, or healthcare providers, and lastly, structural stigma with laws and policies.

Strategies for Mental Health Equity

Despite the state of mental health in America, there are evidence-based strategies for improving outcomes. 

1. Using People First Language: For example, the labeling language (e.g., referring to an individual as “an addict”)  that is often used when referring to people with mental health conditions often reduces people to their diagnoses and further stigmatizes the condition. Instead, using people-first language (“a person who uses drugs”) helps reduce stigma, promote dignity, and shift public perception by emphasizing the individual over their condition. One study found that using people-first language in media and healthcare settings significantly reduced stigmatizing attitudes toward people with mental illness compared to identity-first or labeling language (Corrigan et al., 2014). Another study found that people-first language increased the willingness of respondents to interact socially with individuals experiencing mental illness by up to 20% (Phelan et al., 2015). Proximate Learning can provide training and technical assistance materials to strengthen your organization’s communications around mental health and other stigmatized conditions.

2. Strengthening Clinical & Technological Infrastructure: Over the last seven decades, Mental Health Awareness month has brought attention to various legal, ethical, and social issues affecting the mental health of Americans.)  As a result of MHA’s efforts, the Commission on Mental Illness and Mental Health was created and funded by Congress, which catalyzed change in building mental health service infrastructure through passing the “Community Mental Health Centers Act” (CMHC), permitting community mental health centers to receive construction grants. More recently, the CMHC Act accelerated the implementation of telehealth, a video technology that can bridge the gap between clinicians and patients who may not have access to mental health services (MHA, 2025; NIMH, n.d.). Proximate Learning supports strengthening clinical and technological infrastructure by embedding learning within the system it aims to improve. It enhances local capacity, supports technology adoption, and fosters sustainable, context-appropriate growth in healthcare delivery systems.

3. Integrating and Coordinating Care: Stigma also occurs at the systems level, where mental health services are under-resourced, underfunded, and less prioritized. Mental health coordination and integration in healthcare involve combining mental health services with primary and physical healthcare to provide comprehensive, seamless care. This approach ensures that patients receive timely mental health screening, diagnosis, and treatment alongside their physical health needs. Collaboration among healthcare providers creates more personalized and consistent care plans tailored to each individual's needs. As a result, it improves access to care, reduces stigma, and leads to better overall mental health outcomes. For example, a 2016 meta-analysis published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that collaborative care for depression and anxiety led to a significant improvement in clinical outcomes, with patients experiencing a 20–30% greater reduction in symptoms than those receiving standard care alone (Archer et al., 2016). Proximate Learning is here to build organizational cultures of collaboration through implementing assessments, culture-building strategies, and continuous quality improvement and evaluation. 

4. Continuing to Work Towards Mental Health Parity: Mental Health Parity is the principle that mental health conditions should receive the same insurance coverage as physical health conditions. For decades, mental health care was widely underfunded and often excluded or limited by insurance plans, perpetuating stigma and restricting access to necessary services. The movement toward parity gained momentum in the 1990s, culminating in the passage of the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996, which mandated equal annual and lifetime limits on mental health benefits compared to medical benefits for large employers. However, this law had significant loopholes, prompting further legislative efforts. The landmark Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) of 2008 expanded these protections, requiring parity in financial requirements and treatment limitations. Mental health parity laws have laid a strong foundation, but enforcement, expanding access, improving quality, and integrating services are critical next steps. Continued advocacy, policy refinement, and resource allocation will be essential to level the playing field for mental health care. Proximate Learning consultants are skilled in program evaluation and help your practice understand where quality of care can be improved and strategies for expanding access to care. In collaboration with our partners, we can help you modernize data systems to improve resource allocation and make evidence-based decisions in policy reform. 

5. Developing a Well-Equipped and Resilient Workforce: Developing a well-equipped and resilient mental health workforce involves providing ongoing training on evidence-based practices and cultural competence. Supporting the mental health and well-being of providers through burnout prevention and peer support programs is essential. Expanding workforce diversity and incorporating paraprofessionals can improve access and responsiveness to community needs. Fostering collaboration within multidisciplinary teams and leveraging technology enhances care coordination and workforce effectiveness. Proximate Learning specializes in creating customized workforce development solutions that meet your organization's needs today while strategically planning for the needs of tomorrow. 

Initiatives like Mental Health Awareness Month have paved the way for raising awareness of the progress and steps needed to improve outcomes.  Continue having open and honest conversations around mental well-being, advocating for preventative resources and education of the public, and ensuring mental health is a key priority for your organization. To achieve mental health equity, we must reduce stigma and increase access and quality of care through social, political, and infrastructure change. 

References

Ahad AA, Sanchez-Gonzalez M, Junquera P. Understanding and Addressing Mental Health Stigma Across Cultures for Improving Psychiatric Care: A Narrative Review. Cureus. 2023;15(5):e39549. Published 2023 May 26. doi:10.7759/cureus.39549

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Mental health stigma. https://www.cdc.gov/mental-health/stigma/index.html

Mental Health America. (2025, April 29). Our History | Mental Health America. https://mhanational.org/our-history/

Mulfinger, N., Müller, S., Böge, I., Sloane, D., Heinz, A., & Schomerus, G. (2024). The impact of mental illness stigma on treatment outcomes: A systematic review. Psychiatry Research, 333, 115123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2024.115123

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (nd). What is telemental health? (n.d.). https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/what-is-telemental-health

Shefer, G., Henderson, C., Howard, L. M., Murray, J., & Thornicroft, G. (2014). Diagnostic overshadowing and other challenges involved in the diagnostic process of patients with mental illness: A qualitative study. BMC Psychiatry, 14(1), 153. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-14-153

Stuart, H. (2005). Fighting the stigma caused by mental disorders: Past perspectives, present activities, and future directions. World Psychiatry, 4(3), 185–188. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1414752/