ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — According to theNational Institute of Mental Health, more than 1 in 5 adults in the United States live with a mental illness. However, a large portion of those people don’t seek help.
That can happen for many reasons, one of the biggest though is cost.
Ellie Mental Health in St. Petersburg is trying to address this issue. The clinic just launched a program that provides free therapy from new therapists in training who need clinical hours treating patients.
“We were able to start this program for uninsured or underinsured who can’t afford sessions and need that free care,” said Katie Planchard, Clinic Director for Ellie Mental Health.
The clinic is focused on making mental healthcare more accessible to people across the community.
“Everybody needs and deserves care at some point in time, and just because you don’t have insurance or for a lot of people honestly they have insurance, but they have a super, super high deductible, so the out-of-pocket cost for them that they would pay is completely out of their range of being able to afford,” said Planchard.
Han Phan is receiving free care at the clinic.
“It’s helped me a lot in managing my stress, managing anxiety. Katie has taught me a lot of techniques to overcome like whenever I feel overwhelmed. So it’s helped me a lot in my interpersonal relationships and relationships with my family and the people around me,” said Phan.
She’s an advocate for people getting the help they need.
“Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it,” said Phan.
Both Planchard and Phan also hope this program will help destigmatize seeking help for your mental health.
“We all need help sometimes. Mental health is part of our overall health and wellness, and we just need to start seeing it as something we all inevitably experience at some point in our life,” said Planchard.
“It doesn’t mean that you’re weak. If anything, you’re stronger for asking for help, and who knows what you might learn from the experience. I learned a lot,” said Phan.
Free therapy will be on a first-come, first-serve basis for a few dozen people. Call 813-508-7866 to answer a few screening questions and apply.
“I will just have a few minutes over the phone with them, collect some info if they are appropriate and get them on the schedule and they can probably be seen within the same week,” said Planchard..
You can apply until June, and the program ends in August.
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