Southeastern mental health cutbacks

For some time now, Southeastern Center for Mental Health has been struggling financially. One local provider has seen the impact on his patients and caregivers alike.

ACI Support is a mental health provider for the tri-county area. They receive referrals from Southeastern Mental Health. They said since Southeastern’s financial problems, they have seen patients who depend on mental health and disability services being downright neglected.

Melissa Morris, an ACI support specialist said, “There are chronically ill individuals who can function perfectly well day to day, as long as they have therapy, psychiatrist, and as long as they have access to their medication and have someone to check in on them.”

Morris said many developmentally disabled and mental health patients aren’t getting the help they need, because of Southeastern’s recent budget cuts.

Mental health providers like ACI Support are feeling the Repercussions. Many employees have dedicated years of service to their patients. Randall Evans of ACI has seen the slide as well. “When you stop the service, then you just regress most of the time. And I hear from family members who have had to quit their jobs in order to take care of their family members.”

Typically, caregivers spend 20 to 30 hours a week with their patients, but since the cutbacks, those hours have dwindled.

There are nearly 100 mental health agencies in New Hanover, Pender, and Brunswick counties. At ACI alone, 13 developmentally disabled clients have lost services since July, and 50 more additional clients are at risk of losing services come November 1st. Nearly 100 clients will see a reduction in services.

And don’t forget the employees who are being laid off. 50 ACI employees have had to file for unemployment. 35 others have had their hours drastically reduced.

It’s the fear of losing employees, and clients losing services that keep Melissa Morris up at night. “My office is being affected the most, I worry that there will be lay offs, I worry that there will be pay cuts, and we are so close knit here, that it’s like losing family members.”

To continue to provide adequate service, ACI is paying a doctor out of their own pocket to come in for two hours a week, to help clients with their prescriptions.