Category: In the Press

A recent story in the Washington Post talks about how faith groups in Washington DC are coming together to be a political force on homelessness issues in the city. Our winter shelter is mentioned as alternative to the large, general shelter options offered by the city. Check it out!

We know you’ve probably already read the latest issue of Washington Psychiatrist and seen our article, but in case you haven’t, it’s on pages 9-12: Assisted Outpatient Treatment for Homeless Individuals with Severe and Persistent Mental Illness: An Interdisciplinary Conversation

Gunther and Dr. Michael Morse, one of our consulting psychiatrists, teamed up with two of our board members, Kathryn Cohen and Reverend John Graham, to each write about the need for assisted outpatient treatment (AOT). Kathryn, who works as an attorney for Treatment Advocacy Center, wrote about the need for AOT from a policy standpoint. Reverend Graham tied his experiences interacting with our guests to the Bible, and Dr. Morse talked about medical ethics and how AOT is an ethical way of helping those with mental illness.

We hope you’ll read all of these great perspectives!

Last November, Virginia state senator Creigh Deeds was brutally attacked by his son, who suffered from severe mental illness, before his son took his own life.

A year later, Creigh is talking about what life has been like since the attack. Please read it. It is a powerful story that speaks of a father’s pain and the need for better mental health care in this country.

Read it here.

USA Today has been publishing a series of stories on the treatment of mental illness and homelessness in America and its personal, societal, and monetary costs. Rick Jervis, a reporter for USA Today, visited DC to accompany Gunther on street outreach and learn more about the connection between untreated mental illness and homelessness.

We encourage you all to read this article and learn more.

Where have all the patients gone? 

Representative Tim Murphy opened yesterday’s House subcommittee hearing on the shortage of psychiatric beds with this question. A panel of experts, including GMC’s own Gunther Stern, spoke for over two hours about the lack of adequate mental health care and the impact it has on families, taxpayers’ dollars, and our society.

This hearing, held by The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, is part of the Committee’s ongoing oversight of Federal spending on research and treatments for mental illness. The hearing, as described in the hearing’s memo,  examined “the strain that this shortage exerts on the seriously mentally ill throughout our communities in the form of homelessness as well as increased contact with law enforcement and the criminal justice system, more generally.”

Keep reading for a few excerpts from panelists’ testimonies.

Read more…