Editor,
More needs to be done about suicide, the second leading cause of death of our Utah children between the ages of 10-17. My daughter is in every high risk category stated in the Utah Department of health 2006-2010 study. She is a sixteen-year-old female living on the boarder of Weber and Davis County. I write this message tearfully and with frustration as this horrific path to get my daughter help with her thoughts of suicide and a failed attempt, has not been meet with the urgency required. I have insurance with mental health coverage but cannot get an appointment with a child psychiatrist to get my daughter the help she needs. I have contacted behavioral clinics at two hospitals and also private offices and cannot get my daughter an appointment for a month.
She was in the hospital last weekend after taking a handful of pills. I thank God her knowledge of prescriptions is limited, they were antibiotics. I do not understand nor except the lack of qualified providers for such a deadly epidemic in this State. I cannot fathom what a parent without insurance or capacity to pursue every avenue possible must feel. I have never felt this helpless or disappointed in my state’s facilities and lack of effort to comply with what our state needs and what our children need.
I watched a news broadcast addressing the communication between school and home and a possible bill being passed. I respect every effort made, but I am challenging, is awareness enough? What is being done after we are aware? The Utah statistics are published and there for the reading, our local news brings the travesties to our immediate attention and yet no immediate response has been made. The supply does not match the demand, what are our local health providers doing to provide our families with the care they need to live.
Nicole Montoya
West Haven
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