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By Julie Whittaker

Mental health advocate

May is Mental Health Awareness month, and we would like to take this time to educate the community, introduce the Partners Behavioral Health Management’s Davie Community Collaborative, and extend an invitation for active discussions on challenges and solutions for mental health needs in Davie County.

Partners BHM is the Local Management Entity/Managed Care Organization (LME/MCO) serving Davie. The mission of the collaborative is evaluate gaps in services and to improve outcomes toward a common goal to empower families, children, and individuals to promote optimal mental health and overall wellbeing.

Typically, people seek a physician or specialist for physical needs. If we have a cardiac issue, it’s common to see a cardiologist.

Our mental health impacts our entire body, so it’s important to acknowledge mental health needs as quickly as  physical ailments. The community collaborative members want to make sure people have knowledge of and can utilize resources available to appropriately treat any mental health issues or concerns.

Mental Health is often associated with stigmas and negative connotations; we would like to change that. What better way to start than at the local level. The collaborative encourages transparent conversations that lead to positive outcomes, which will assist in minimizing delays to accessing appropriate resources.

As part of the initial outreach, we would like to invite you to attend our Mental Health and Domestic Violence Resource Fair on Tuesday, May 9, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at the Government Building off Farmington Road. We welcome community members and vendors. Contact Crystal Robertson 336-406-2831, crystal.robertson@uhcins.com or Brandi Patti 336-751-6150, bpatti@daviecountync.gov for more information.