A Shortage for Mental Illness Treatment
The article “Tot Error” written by Hayley Mick talks about Cory Mercier’s mental condition—a combination of Separation Anxiety disorder and Obsessive-Compulsive disorder, as Dr. Minde diagnosed. He is overly anxious and shy when in public or among strangers. He also wants everything in order—like his room and his plate (Mick 2008). Thus, Dr. Minde considered giving Cory a little medication to calm him down. However, other experts believe that it is a risky move since limited research has been done to its effects on a young child’s brain (Mick 2008).
The article also mentions that there have been cases of lack of services for children suffering from mental conditions in Canada. According to Senator Michael Kirby, about two-thirds are not given help (cited in Mick 2008). I suppose that the lack of treatment services for such conditions may make things worse for the whole country in the future. Cody’s condition is not unique since other children or people from the past may have suffered the same mental illness. I was surprised to find out that Canada only had a few facilities for such illnesses, knowing that it is a first world country. How is the government fixing this matter, or have they even looked at it and considered it as a problem? This could hamper the child’s further social development since such mental conditions limits him. I think the government should look into this matter immediately and look for a solution, pronto. Something like this should not be a difficult problem to solve for the government. Perhaps, I would even choose to help these children get help in the near future, if the medical sector is still having difficulty in providing more service personnel for these children by then.
Reading the story of Cody, it made me hope that he would turn out fine after all the medical processes he underwent and will undergo in the future. Given the situation of the medical committee in Canada, I believe the government should start intervening by diverting some funds towards the medical sector. Hopefully, everything will fall into place soon. If the plan backfired, what other ways can the government and its citizens do in order to limit or completely fix the problem?
Reference
Mick, H. (2008, March 11). Tot error. Globe and Mail. Retrieved April 2, 2009, from
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080311.wlanxiety11/BNStory/lifeFamily/home.