Focus on solution section only + add more visuals + Expand the section 2-3 pages + an example of how the paper should look like will be provided
Recommendation/Solutions are some of the most important sections in the report, you will want to make sure you are fully developing these sections with evidence-based research and fully exploring the solutions. Each point should be supported by research.
University of South Florida A Study of Mental health awareness and/or access to mental health
services at USF
A Recommendation for Increased Awareness and Mental Services
1
Table of Contents
ABSTRACT ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 2
INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 3
PROBLEM ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 4
SOLUTION ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 6
IMPLEMENTING THE
SOLUTION………………………………………………………………………8
COST OF SOLUTION………………………………………………………………………………….9
BENEFITS………………………………………………………………………………………………10
CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………………………………..13
REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………………………14
2
Abstract
USF serves nearly 50,000 students as a small community during the years of most growth
and discovery. Studies have shown that the percentage of students diagnosed with mental health
related issues have increased. Meanwhile, the percentage of students treated for these issues have
decreased. “Every 15 minutes someone in the United States commits suicide. Last year 155
people in Hillsborough County died at their own handsâ€Â. (Path, “To the Person in the Bell Jarâ€Â,
Crisis Center). We find that the resources are not always being utilized to their full potential.
Amid the programs in place and resources available, suicides have continued to increase over the
years. There continues to be a stigma in regard to mental health and a need to further educate the
student population on the topic.
3
Introduction
Mental health issues may affect various aspects of students’ lives, minimizing their life
quality, academic achievement, satisfaction with the college experience, and physical health. Mental
health adversely affects relationships with family members and friends. Issues connected with
mental health are likely to have long-term implications for students, implicating their future
professional lives, overall health, and earning capability (Oswalt et al., 2018). Attending college and
school may be a stressful period for many students. Various college students undergo the initial
onset of substance use and mental health problems, especially in the first years of campus life.
Mental health issues are as common in students as they are in the general population. This
may be because going to college parallels challenging periods for many non-traditional and
traditional undergraduate scholars. Oswalt et al. (2018) states that traditional college students
begin their college life after high school and usually are younger and depend on their parents’
financial support. Students are faced with taking on more adult duties without having mastered
adulthood’s cognitive maturity and skills. Many new college students face school life issues,
working, managing social relationships, and having roommates who have foreign beliefs and
cultural systems that are different.
4
Problem
Students are taking on many responsibilities and expectations than ever before. The
juggling of so many responsibilities can lead to anxiety, depression, and stress. “The average age
of our student population is 26-27, and so we have students with lots of responsibilities,†he says.
“They don’t just have part-time jobs, they are working full time in a career. They have a family,
and they are taking courses at night. The stress component is a big factor as students manage all
the balls they have in the air.†(Woolf, “Navigating College Live, USF Magazine). When you
add the ‘Comparison Syndrome’ from social media, it is too much for many to handle leading to
an increase in substance abuse and a lack of confidence. The stigma of mental health issues,
especially among males in addition to a lack of funding stands in the way of the full use of
campus mental health resources and suicide prevention.
Students are under a lot of pressure to succeed in many areas of life at this time of their
life. Personal appearance, relationships, sexuality, managing work expectations, and performing
at a high academic level. These students already see a stigma linked to mental health reflected in
our society. This stigma along with just something else to figure out on campus leads students to
not opt to seek help through USF’s resources. Many off-campus students are managing lives to
include jobs, families, etc. “In terms of level of stress, a higher proportion of off-campus students
reported a tremendous level of stress compared to on-campus students†(White Paper,
“MWELL4SUCCESSâ€Â, USF Health). Additionally, the state has denied requests for additional
funding to expand available resources such as additional mental health counselors to minimize
the wait time for a student to be evaluated and treated.
5
The impacted community are the students at USF among the campuses. The students
most affected on the off-campus students who are balancing life duties and responsibilities in
addition to their academic responsibilities on campus. Additionally, one could assume that many
families of students are affected by the effects of deteriorating mental health such as depression,
withdrawal and most unfortunately, the loss of life.
6
Solution
Given the issue of mental health and how it affects students, it clears the problem needs
to be addressed. Talking about the problem effectively requires a multidimensional approach
involving students, parents, teachers, colleges, and mental health advocacy organizations. Some
of the consequences of student mental health issue are stress, anxiety, sleep difficulties,
depression. All of these consequences will affect the students’ academic performance.
Percentage of How Mental Health Affects
Students’ Academic Performance
Depression, 18%
Stress, 32.9%
Sleep Difficulties,
24.4%
Anxiety, 24.7%
Stress
Anxiety
Sleep Difficulties
Depression
Figure #1
The first approach entails students diagnosed with mental health conditions may consider
counseling. Anyone who has challenges may benefit from talking to someone if they have
family, relationship, and friendship issues. Colleges should provide counseling services for all
students. Also, counseling in the campuses and outside colleges and universities helps students
with issues like loss of interest in somethings that one enjoys and mood swings. Counseling may
help understand the issues and develop strategies to handle their feelings (Auerbach et al., 2016).
7
Also, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy may offer an individual a chance to explore their emotions
in a safe surrounding and understand how to cope with them. Clinicians need to ensure that the
affected students get treated throughout the year. Therefore, developing psychopathologyspecific campus problems, family dynamics, and care systems are essential in conducting clinical
treatments for university and college students.
Secondly, increasing awareness of mental health through training and education.
Education is very crucial and helps people understand mental health. Individuals can
acknowledge their personal difficulties and seek care. Besides, education prevents young people
from stigmatizing those with mental health issues to seek care and recover.
Another solution, in schools, those working on the premises and interacting with students
should be trained on mental health. This is crucial as they can easily identify students who are
struggling and need help and offer support to those with difficulties.
Another solution includes schools should encourage students to participate in sporting
and other co-curriculum activities. These activities promote exercise and interaction among
students, which is one way to reduce stress. Besides, support services in the institutions should
be easily available to all individuals who seek help and support.
Lastly, students should be empowered to speak about mental health issues openly.
Having the conversations creates a safe space for people to discuss their difficulties, and through
this, they can receive peer-to-peer support and counseling. Besides, through these talks, students
actively engage and come with solutions to tackle mental health.
8
Implementing the Solution
The solution will have to be brought about by the community and staff of the campus. A
study at Pace University discovered, “the top recommendation was that the best way to
encourage greater mental health and wellbeing among our students is to build a culture of mental
health and wellbeing†(Krislov, 2020). In order to build a culture of mental health and wellbeing, the community and staff need to come together and spread awareness. The staff and
community need to be trained to look out for mental health triggers and how to help those who
are struggling. Empowering students and teaching them to be resilient through tough times could
make the difference between life and death. A community of mental health and well-being could
also benefit from stress-management resources that give individuals the opportunity to destress
and take some time for their health. This could be as simple as a website or app that could tell
students, as well as staff, where to find support services or support groups that can help learn
skills and tactics to deal with stressors. The sooner everyone starts to put in the work, the faster
the results will come about. Taking action and beginning change sounds intimidating at first, but
it is as simple as taking time to learn about the issue at hand and wanting change. Starting
campaigns and raising awareness can put things and motion and start the solution to the rising
mental health issue.
9
Cost of Solution
The implementation of these solutions can vary depending on school settings and locations.
However, these services are not only, important, but vital to college campuses. With pressing
deadlines, high involvement in other things such as jobs, and the pressure to maintain a social life,
students need mental health resources more readily available to them.
Most college campuses already have some sort of counseling center or services readily
available to its students. The costs can vary depending on down payments, insurance, and so on.
USF students have access to on campus and virtual mental health counseling services as long as
they have paid their student health fees. Some colleges, however, have a pay-as-you-go model
which may interfere with students’ interest in scheduling an appointment. If something is already
paid for ahead of time, a student may be more willing or likely to utilize the service rather than if
they have to pay out of pocket.
College campuses increasing awareness and education of mental health problems may also
vary depending on several factors. Mental health awareness can come in several different forms. It
can be as simple as an ad on Instagram or as complex to a mandatory program for first year college
students to enroll in. Therefore, these programs can range anywhere from $30 for one month of
awareness to thousands of dollars for an entire awareness program to be implemented. Mental
health training for faculty and staff can range from the lower to upper thousands which sometimes
is why college campuses do not have the proper level of trained staff.
Promoting involvement in sports and extra curriculars can be very beneficial to the student
population. Again, this type of marketing can range in price. It can be as little as $30 a month for
Instagram advertisements, or a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars a month to hire a
10
marketing worker or team.
11
Benefits
The benefits of college students receiving counseling directly impacts their quality of life.
Students who receive regular counseling see improved communication and interpersonal skills.
These students will also see an increase in confidence and better decision-making skills. Students
who increase their counseling services, they will see a regular improvement over time. Students
who are able to express their feelings through counseling more often have a great self-acceptance
and self-esteem.
One important role is education. It is imperative that K-12 schools implement programs that
promote counseling, while demonstrating its impact and importance in life. If schools are able to
implement these programs consistently and regularly, there would be a decrease in the stigma
counseling carries. We can see this with the examples of sex education and driving and drinking.
We see that as the schools implemented these programs, the percentage of unwanted pregnancies
and alcohol-related deaths decreased. Although we do not have hard data/evidence as we have not
yet put forth the education component of implementing a pro-counseling program, we can see that
one would benefit from minimizing the stigma. In minimizing the stigma, we could potentially
improve the lives of thousands of college students each year, and in some prevent their deaths.
Additionally, the benefits of being involved in extra-curricular activities is linked to better
mental health. These activities promote a sense of belonging. They provide a connection to a
community. Whether intentional or not, these activities and groups provide students with a group
of people of whom they may lean on for support. In addition to the social benefits, the activities that
promote physical and/or mental activity, have a direct impact on students’ mental health exerted
through the energies emitted through physical and/or mental exercises.
12
Lastly, an increase in counseling, awareness, and social activities will directly impact the
number of suicides committed by college students each year. Students who have a ‘life-line’ are less
likely to feel the hopelessness in those who commit suicide. Suicide prevention is based on
communication and making student aware of the hopeful resources available to them. The key is to
reach students earlier in their suffering. These measures will have a positive impact on the goals to
prevent suicide in college students.
13
Conclusion
Mental health issues are affecting people around the world every day. These issues are
increasing as years progress and it is time for there to be a change. Simple fixes implemented
throughout college campuses can make the difference between life and death. Every student
deserves the access to help and resources in order to make a difference in their well-being. As years
progress, it is the goal to see the number of depressions, anxiety, and other disorders decrease
rather than increase. Students come to college to learn and make better lives for their families, not
take on new burdens and take on mental tolls. Change in the community needs to occur in order to
break this habit and ensure the health for students in years to come.
14
References
Introduction
Oswalt, S. B., Lederer, A. M., Chestnut-Steich, K., Day, C., Halbritter, A., & Ortiz, D. (2018).
Trends in college students’ mental health diagnoses and utilization of services, 2009–
2015. Journal of American College Health, 1–
11. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2018.1515748
Benefits
Iqbal, Y. (2019, February). THE IMPACTS OF CO-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES ON
PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH OF SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN
FATA. Retrieved
from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340742498_THE_IMPACTS_OF_COCURRICULAR_ACTIVITIES_ON_PHYSICAL_AND_MENTAL_HEALTH_OF_SECO
NDARY_SCHOOL_STUDENTS_IN_FATA
Personal & Psychological Counseling. (n.d.). Retrieved November 30, 2020,
from https://www.hvcc.edu/cct/counseling/benefits.html
Abstract and Problems
Florida, U. (n.d.). What We Do. Retrieved November 30, 2020,
from https://www.usf.edu/student-affairs/counseling-center/what-we-do/campusconnnect.aspx
Meszaros, J. (2018, June 11). Suicide Rates Are Rising In Florida, Nation. Retrieved November
30, 2020, from https://wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu/health-news-florida/2018-06-11/suiciderates-are-rising-in-florida-nation%E2%80%AF
Rivera, M. (2015, June 18). Suicide at USF a reminder of increasing issue. Retrieved November
30, 2020, from https://www.crisiscenter.com/usf-suicide-a-reminder-of-increasing-issue/
Woolf, T. (n.d.). Current Features. Retrieved November 30, 2020,
from https://www.usf.edu/magazine/2019-fall/
https://health.usf.edu/-/media/Files/Public-Health/CTR/USF-Mental-Wellbeing-and-InnovationWhite-Paper.ashx?la=en&hash=D6C8F81610724956B3FF91E9366200052CB549A2
Implementing the Solution
Daley, B. (2020, January 6). The mental health crisis on campus and how colleges can fix it. From
theconversation.com: https://theconversation.com/the-mental-health-crisis-on-campus-and-howcolleges-can-fix-it-127875
Krislov, M. (2020, October 1). Supporting The Mental Health of College Students During The Pandemic
And Beyond. From forbes.com:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/marvinkrislov/2020/10/01/supporting-mental-health-for-collegestudents-during-the-pandemic-and-beyond/?sh=113c25006d85
15
Cost of Solutions
Morrow, S. (2020, March 13). Cost of Marketing: What Is the Average Budget? Retrieved
November 30, 2020, from https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/cost-of-marketing-what-isthe-average-budget
Solutions
Auerbach, R., Alonso, J., Axinn, W., Cuijpers, P., Ebert, D., Green, J., . . . Bruffaerts, R. (2016,
August 03). Mental disorders among college students in the World Health Organization
World Mental Health Surveys: Psychological Medicine. Retrieved November 30, 2020,
from https://doi.org/10.1017/s0033291716001665
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