NAMI Will County
• Mental illnesses are biologically based brain disorders. They cannot be overcome through "will power" and are not related to a person's "character" or intelligence.
• It is estimated that mental illness affects 1 in 5 families in America.
• The economic cost of untreated mental illness is more than 100 billion dollars each year in the United States.
• Early identification and treatment is of vital importance; By ensuring access to the treatment and recovery supports that are proven effective, recovery is accelerated and the further harm related to the course of illness is minimized.
[National Alliance on Mental Illness, “What is Mental Illness: Mental Illness Facts” 1996-2008.]
• 20% of children and adolescents in the United States suffer from a mental illness. Tragically, in any given year, only 1 in 5 children with a mental illness receives mental health services – up to 80% fail to receive critically needed treatment. (Surgeon General’s Conference on Children’s Mental Health, 2000)
• An alarming 65% of boys and 75% of girls in juvenile detention have at least one psychiatric diagnosis. (Teplin, L. Archives of General Psychiatry, Vol. 59, December 2002) These youth have all too often fallen through the cracks in the health care, education and child welfare systems.
• Tragically, suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among 15 to 24 year olds and is responsible for more deaths in this age group than all other illnesses combined. Over 90% of children and adolescents who commit suicide have a mental disorder. (Institute of Medicine 2002 and Surgeon General 1999)
• By the year 2020 – childhood neuropsychiatric disorders will rise proportionately by over 50% to become one of the five most common causes of morbidity, mortality and disability among children. (WHO, 2001)
[Prepared by Darcy Gruttadaro, J.D.
Director, NAMI Child & Adolescent Action Center
February 2003]
Please visit our website:
www.nami.org/sites/NAMI-WC
Charity Website: http://www.nami.org/sites/NAMI-WC
