10 Key Elements When Supporting the Dually Diagnosed by Lisa Simmons

7. Integrate your behavioral & psychiatric information Once you've collected objective data on the individuals' mental health patterns, it is essential to share this information with your team's psychiatrist. Sending the data (& someone who can explain it in a knowledgeable & straightforward manner) along to the individual's psychiatric consultation will improve the accuracy of their treatment & allow the individual to reach stabilization as quickly as possible, with a minimum of medication(s) and side effects.

8. Develop a network of support around the individual Along with the well-trained staff mentioned above, it is advisable to help the individual develop trusted relationships with a number of other people in their lives. This gives them a variety of options when they are feeling insecure or emotionally charged. It allows them to seek out whoever they feel would best understand their current concern & confide in them, possible avoiding or minimizing a mental health crisis.

9. Always have a back up plan! That being said, in the best-laid support plans, there will be moments of crisis. That, unfortunately, is simply the nature of mental illness. So it is critical to think through as much as possible how crises will be managed before they happen. For instance:

** When this set of circumstances occur -- we will seek inpatient psychiatric care at hospital X.

** If there are legal allegations -- we will follow the individual justice plan developed in cooperation with local law enforcement officials.

** If these symptoms reach this level -- we will increase the individual's access to mental health counseling to this number of visits per week.

** If these symptoms occur -- we will implement the individual's suicide prevention plan.

** If the individual cycles in & out of competency to make life decisions -- we will work with the local court & family members to establish a plan for conservatorship or guardianship with criteria for when and how long it would be necessary.

10. Know when you need help As with any challenging field, there will be moments when you and your team will simply be out of ideas & unsure what to do next. When that moment occurs, don't be afraid to ask for help. Go to other professionals who are experienced with this population & seek out feedback. Frequently a fresh perspective will get your team back on track or at least offer a direction to head while you re-group.

One final note: This is a highly complex population & this article is by no means exhaustive. Please use the information provided here as a place to start & learn all that you can about successful treatment methods from our resources & those of others if you are supporting individuals within this population. We would also like to express our thanks to Robert Simmons, one of our consulting psychologists, who provided the tips contained in today's column.

© 2001 Lisa Simmons

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BIO:

Lisa is the director of the Ideal Lives Project providing practical support for special needs families & professionals. Visit her online at: http://www.ideallives.com or subscribe to her free newsletter at: mailto:ideallives-subscribe@topica.com

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