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EDITORIAL: Funds for MSU program holds promise for rural mental health needs

Free Press - 5/30/2023

May 30—Why it matters: A unique investment in MSU's behavioral health program holds promise for improving mental health services in rural Minnesota.

The mental health crisis in rural areas, including in Minnesota, has in most cases worsened in recent decades.

The group Minnesota's Hospitals reports that the state's rural areas have the highest suicide rate of any geographical area in the United States.

The suicide rate in Greater Minnesota was roughly a third higher outside of the seven-county metro area in 2020, the latest year for which county-level breakdowns are available.

That's why a first of its kind program at the Center for Rural Behavioral Health at Minnesota State University will be closely watched by rural areas and states across the country.

The center has secured $1.5 million in one-time money from the Legislature to provide students in behavioral health programs to get an on-campus training experience. And it will provide affordable mental health services to the community.

The center will provide mental health therapy, diagnostic assessments, psychotherapy and potentially chemical health services and medication management and prescriptions down the road.

But it's not just the services that will be provided in Mankato that make the program valuable. Studies show that people who train in rural areas are likely to work in rural areas after they graduate.

Local lawmakers say the unique program will be watched by other college towns across the state and the nation and will be copied if it proves successful. While the state funding is one time, the program will in the future be able to tap into federal programs for ongoing funding.

The need for more mental health workers in rural areas is clear. There have not been enough mental health workers to support outpatient services or inpatient treatment.

The investment by the state is a creative approach that should offer benefits to students, the Mankato area and ultimately rural areas across Minnesota.

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