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Show Mental Health Plan Proposed for Southeastern Utah BY C. SHARP An apropriation of $144,000 to establish a regional comprehensive com-prehensive mental health center for Carbon, Grand, Emery and San Juan counties coun-ties is being asked by the State Social Services Department. De-partment. Provnded the Legislature apropriates this money next month, operations would begin be-gin in the fiscal year to start next July 1. This would become a pilot project for providing mental health preventative and cor-rective cor-rective services for rural residents elsewhere. Under the program a men- tal health director w7ould be employed to utilize existing hospital, personnel and other oth-er facilities and services. Price-Moab-Monticello A five-bed in-patient treatment treat-ment center would be established es-tablished in the present hospital hos-pital at Price. A similar five to ten-bed center would be operated in the Moab Hospital and emergency services ser-vices would be provided at the Monticello Hospital. The Seventh-day Adven-tist Adven-tist Hospital at Monument Valley would be utilized as an alcoholic treatment center cen-ter for Indians. This operation opera-tion would be supported primarily pri-marily from funds provided by the Indians. Dr. Wilfred Higashi, State Mental Health Division director, dir-ector, said federal funds totaling to-taling $125,000 would be av- ailable for the four-county operation. The counties then would provide $16,000 and $15,000 would be obtained from fees from patients. Expansion Budget Ward C. Holbrook, executive execu-tive director, State Social Services Department, explained ex-plained that the $144,000 is being sought in an "expansion "expan-sion budget." Gov. Calvin- L. Rampton has recommended that except ex-cept in cases of dire need, all appropriations shall be held within a four per cent increase above those for the previous year. Additional sums proposed, therefore, must come as "expansion" "ex-pansion" budgets. Two Centers Sought The Social Services Department De-partment is asking for funds to establish two new r e g i o n al comprehensive mental health centers in fiscal fis-cal 1971. An appropriation of $321,400 for a center for We-'ber We-'ber County as well as the $144,000 for Carbon, Grand, Emery and San Juan counties coun-ties is sought. The two new Centers would be part of a goal of 11 regional centers by 1977 proposed by a task force which reported last week. Provided the Weber and southeastern Utah centers are funded, the appropriation appropria-tion for the State Hospital at Provo would be reduced $300,000, Holbrook said. Already organized is a Regional Re-gional Mental Health Board composed of county commissioners com-missioners of the four southeastern south-eastern counties. Marion Ha-zelton, Ha-zelton, Monticello, member of the San Juan County Commission, is chairman of this board. Keep Them Home Higashi said the State Mental Health Board believes be-lieves that prevention and treatment of mental disorders disor-ders should be done as close to the homes of the patients as possible so as to take advantage ad-vantage of community and family resources. "National drug habit correction cor-rection centers in Lexington, Ky and Ft. Worth, Texas, have not been effective because be-cause these have taken patients pa-tients away from the help of community and family resources," re-sources," he said. Holbrook said in - patient and out-patient facilities for Utah, Juab and Wasatch counties were established in fiscal 18 at the State Hospital, Provo. A Salt Lake Community 'Mental Health Center was established last July 1 at the former Salt Lake General hospital. Funds to perate a 40-bed center there will be asked of the budget session of the Legislature, Holbrook said. Opposes Drug Center Higashi said his division opposes proposed use of tho former Job Corps Center at Price as a drug abuse correction cor-rection center. "This is because we know that drug abuse is a symptom symp-tom of deeper underlying emotional problems which should be treated at a community com-munity mental health center," cen-ter," he said. |