Expanded enrollment, enhanced training and community outreach aim to stem crisis
Nearly 1 in 4 American adults lives with a mental illness, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Demand for mental health services is outpacing the supply of providers, while more than half the U.S. population lives in an area with a shortage of mental health professionals.
As a result of these healthcare deserts with scant resources, many individuals seeking help are not getting assistance or at best face long delays due to long waits. In fact, the percentage of need for mental health professionals that is being met in Florida is only 21%, according to Kaiser Family Foundation research.
Marieb College of Health & Human Services at Florida Gulf Coast University is helping address this crisis through several initiatives. These efforts include: expanding enrollment and faculty to train more students to become licensed clinical mental health counselors, licensed clinical social workers and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners; providing more supervised experience earlier in students’ education through FGCU’s Community Counseling & Education Center; and taking students to underserved communities in Southwest Florida that lack sufficient access to mental health services.
Southwest Florida is a “mental health desert,” according to Sherdene Brown-Simpson, Ph.D., LMHC, director of Marieb College’s clinical mental health counseling program. The community has a critical need due to a high percentage of people struggling with mental health issues, she says.
“When you look at the number of people versus the services, there is a need to increase providers in this area,” says Brown-Simpson. “That is something we are really working to address in our program. How can we increase the number of licensed mental health counselors? This is an opportune time to really look at how can we impact the community.”
Comprehensive training
Marieb College’s accredited, standards-based graduate programs prepare students to take on society’s big issues and improve quality of life for individuals and communities. With strong demand for clinical mental health counselors, clinical social workers and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners in every community, FGCU students have the opportunity to make a widespread impact.
Their coursework includes human development, legal and ethical issues, career development, appraisal methods, counseling theories, group and individual counseling, practicum and research, counseling special populations and clinical practice.
Marieb College prepares graduate students with a high degree of counseling competence, technological skills and hundreds of hours of supervised field experience addressing issues like college and career readiness, social-emotional learning, academic achievement, depression, cyberbullying and substance abuse. Practical learning and internships take place in local schools and agencies throughout Southwest Florida and in FGCU’s on-campus Community Counseling & Education Center. This intense preparation creates a bridge between classroom learning and real world application.
Because FGCU students are so comprehensively prepared, 100% are employed within three months of earning their counseling degree.
Soaring demand for services
These committed, compassionate professionals join a workforce straining under heavy caseloads. Demand for licensed mental health professionals has skyrocketed in recent years, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. More people are reporting feelings of anxiety and depression and experiencing substance use problems. Opioid-related deaths sharply accelerated during the pandemic and with increases in illicit fentanyl. In Florida, the number of drug overdose deaths per 100,000 people more than doubled from 2011 to 2021, with 76% of those deaths due to opioids.
“There’s an increased need for students to understand how to provide counseling for substance use disorder, which is increasing across the country,” Brown-Simpson says. “We’re also seeing that there is a need to address issues of trauma and trauma-informed care. If you have mental health disorders that go untreated, that could be very difficult for people to truly embrace a positive quality of life.”
Such emergent mental health issues underscore the importance of Marieb College’s holistic approach to teaching counseling and providing internship opportunities that ensure graduates become well-rounded practitioners in, social services, government agencies, hospitals, community organizations and private practice.
Some of FGCU’s mental health counseling interns are currently bringing their counseling skills to children in several underserved Southwest Florida communities where Marieb College is partnering with local organizations to fill gaps in mental health services. Meanwhile, on campus, the Community Counseling & Education Center also provides students with experience while helping improve the lives of individuals, couples and families affected by depression, anxiety, trauma, relationship and family functioning, and parenting challenges. The center offers low-cost mental and behavioral health services for all ages regardless of socioeconomic status. Call 239-745-4777 for more information.
In these ways and more, FGCU’s Marieb College is a growing oasis for solutions amid a mental health desert.
Learn more about FGCU’s Marieb College of Health & Human Services at fgcu.edu/marieb.
FGCU
10501 FGCU Boulevard South
Fort Myers, FL 33965
(239) 590-1000 | fgcu.edu/marieb