Stigma of mental illness waning, SUN boss says
ThisWeek Community NewspapersJun 20, 2018
"Every commute is 15 minutes?" he said. "That's just amazing."
Folske was the guest speaker and host for the
SUN Behavioral purchased the former
"We've got folks who are going through just about everything," Folske said during his remarks to members of the business organization.
SUN Behavioral accepts voluntary and involuntary patients, he said. The former accept that they need help, while the latter mostly don't and getting treatment for them requires showing that they represent a danger to themselves or others in a court of law.
"The challenge with all this stuff is proving it," Folske said. "It's really difficult to get someone to stay here ... A lot of our admissions are 'volun-told' by their families."
Folske said he believes the stigma attached to mental illness is finally dying down. People no longer think of psychiatric hospitals as the grim place portrayed in the 1975 film "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," he said.
"I have been very blessed to be a part of a movement in the country, really, of doing away with that stigma," Folske said. "I don't even know if we have a straitjacket here. That's not what care looks like anymore."
"A place like SUN Behavioral is so essential," said
The average inpatient stay at SUN Behavioral Columbus is eight days, with a maximum of about 20, depending upon the person's insurance, Folske said. He stressed that SUN Behavioral is a for-profit company, but said personnel can help potential patients explore insurance options, and the
"We are all one hard day away from being a patient," Folske said. "Sometimes I think they're a lot more courageous than we are because they asked for help.
"Unfortunately, some people's rock bottom is deeper, darker and scarier than others."
@KevinParksTW1