Mental health is essential to whole health; whole health is essential to well being
Health is the foundation for what we can achieve—as individuals, and as a nation. But too often, our systems and policies fail us, leaving many people with insufficient help.
Well Being Trust believes that the core of our problem is a disjointed response to disparate symptoms, rather than an interconnected response to a complex set of factors that together determine our well-being.
Consider:
- One in five Americans suffer from mental health issues in a given year, and most of these people do not receive the care they need.
- Indirect cost of care and loss of productivity, mental health issues cost our society over $400 billion dollars annually. Which would be the same as giving about $1,250 dollars to every man, woman and child in the United States.
- And then there is the cost in human lives. Every day and average of 91 people die of a drug overdose. Every day an average 3,740 teenagers, between the grade of 9-12, attempt suicide. We have seen a 25% increase in suicide the last 15 years.
We must take a whole-person approach to well-being, and address a multitude of factors simultaneously, if we are to truly create a culture of health and wellness. Now is the time.It will take all of us doing our part—reducing mental health stigmas, advancing social support networks, and scaling up evidence-based models for care—to reduce projected increases in despair deaths and promote a society where everyone can achieve their fullest potential.
Mental Health News
Supporting students’ physical health and mental well-being: Renton School District Health Fair serves more than 300
Nearly 300 middle and high school students throughout the Renton School District received free sports physicals and immunizations at the third annual Community Assist Health
Suicide Prevention Awareness Month: Breaking the Silence
View 2025 Suicide Prevention Awareness Month toolkits and new resources • American Hospital Association Suicide Prevention Resources• NAMI’s 2025 Toolkit – Start a Conversation. Be
Strengthening community partnerships: Providence and VOA Alaska collaborate to help youth find a brighter future
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Partial Hospitalization Program at Providence Swedish celebrates two years of expanding access to mental health care
Congratulations to the team at Providence Swedish Ballard Partial Hospitalization Program on two years of providing transformative care. The five-day-a-week intensive outpatient service is dedicated
Mental health care needs Medicaid. Federal cuts would put the nation’s health at risk.
Our nation’s mental health crisis has accelerated in the last decade, and as the single largest payor for mental health services, Medicaid has been a
Dr. Arpan Waghray joins Talk With a Doc podcast
This episode of “Talk with the Docs Wellness Briefs” delves into the importance of mental health with Dr. Arpan Waghray, CEO of Providence’s Well Being