Mental healthcare advocates connect residents and lawmakers in Augusta
Mental healthcare advocates gathered in Augusta on Wednesday to connect lawmakers and Mainers dealing with mental health challenges. The annual “Mental Health Peer Support Legislative Education Day.””We want people empowered to come here. It’s the people’s house, and we want them to come here to speak to lawmakers, and have that opportunity,” said Simonne Maline, executive director of Consumer Council System of Maine.Maline has spent years as a mental healthcare provider and advocate. She said when lawmakers draft policy on mental health, it is vital they speak with Mainers who have lived experiences first.”We gather our partners across the state to come together today to amplify those voices to policymakers,” said Maline.Maline has concerns about the direction of mental health services in Maine. She cited two York County peer support centers shutting down recently, as well as two in Aroostook County. She was pleased that Sweetser recently opened one of their peer support centers in Brunswick to serve the Midcoast. Maline said the waitlist for mental healthcare is up to a year long in some parts of the state.”We need people that we can go to and we can trust and know that it’s not just going to be ‘this is your 10 minutes, and this is your medicine.’ It’s quality care, we need quality care,” said April Kerr with Consumer Council Services of Maine.If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, dial 9-8-8.
Mental healthcare advocates gathered in Augusta on Wednesday to connect lawmakers and Mainers dealing with mental health challenges. The annual “Mental Health Peer Support Legislative Education Day.”
“We want people empowered to come here. It’s the people’s house, and we want them to come here to speak to lawmakers, and have that opportunity,” said Simonne Maline, executive director of Consumer Council System of Maine.
Maline has spent years as a mental healthcare provider and advocate. She said when lawmakers draft policy on mental health, it is vital they speak with Mainers who have lived experiences first.
“We gather our partners across the state to come together today to amplify those voices to policymakers,” said Maline.
Maline has concerns about the direction of mental health services in Maine. She cited two York County peer support centers shutting down recently, as well as two in Aroostook County. She was pleased that Sweetser recently opened one of their peer support centers in Brunswick to serve the Midcoast. Maline said the waitlist for mental healthcare is up to a year long in some parts of the state.
“We need people that we can go to and we can trust and know that it’s not just going to be ‘this is your 10 minutes, and this is your medicine.’ It’s quality care, we need quality care,” said April Kerr with Consumer Council Services of Maine.
If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, dial 9-8-8.
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