Calling Males to the Counseling Profession

Calling Males to the Counseling Profession

Men are all but missing in the mental health profession reports the New York Times. Need Therapy? A Good Man Is Hard to Find (New York Times, 05/21/2011) reports that “men earn only one in five of all master’s degrees awarded in psychology, down from half in the 1970s. They account for less than 10 percent of social workers under the age of 34, according to a recent survey. And their numbers have dwindled among professional counselors — to 10 percent of the American Counseling Association’s membership today from 30 percent in 1982 — and appear to be declining among marriage and family therapists.”

The dearth of male therapists is a barrier for some men who’d like to receive counseling but would prefer to go to a man. Here’s another need to diversify the health care workforce.

Highlighted Clip for Wednesday, May 25, 2011:

"Need Therapy? A Good Man Is Hard to Find"
By BENEDICT CAREY
Researchers began tracking the “feminization” of mental health care more than a generation ago, when women started to outnumber men in fields like psychology and counseling. Today the takeover is almost complete.

First-Aid Course for the Mentally Ill? Just a First Step!

First-Aid Course for the Mentally Ill?  Just a First Step!

A January 17 Washington Post article, “Shooting in Tucson sparks interest in 'mental health first aid' courses,” by Rachel Saslow, cites the Washington-based National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare’s (NCCBH) position that “learning how to identify and help people with mental illnesses should be a first aid skill as common as CPR.”  NCCBH also point to the fact that we are too quick to blame mental illness for such senseless acts as the Tucson massacre.   Although the mentally ill are statistically no more violent than the non-mentally ill, there are other factors to consider before we all sign up for a first aid course targeted to the mentally ill.  While most people would certainly agree, especially those with relatives and friends who suffer from mental illness that a more pro-active, compassionate and skilled approach to dealing with the mentally ill is necessary, there has to also be a shift in our culture, and especially among law enforcement officials, towards prevention.  Let’s not continue to wait until people are harmed before we respond.  For more on the course in Washington, DC, go to www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org.

Highlighted Clip for Monday, January 18, 2011:

Shooting in Tucson sparks interest in 'mental health first aid' courses

Rachel Saslow

Learning how to identify and help people with mental illnesses should be a first aid skill as common as CPR…