2001 - Saginaw County

Board of Commissioners April 24, 2001
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this expression of recognition be
spread upon the minutes of the April 24, 2001 meeting as a
permanent record and duly inscribed upon parchment and presented
to them.
Respectfully submitted,
SAGINAW COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
Robert L. Fish, Chair
Eddie F. Foxx, Commissioner (Dist. #6)
The Clerk called on Sandra Lindsey, Mental Health Authority
Director. The Chair asked Commissioner Woods to present the
proclamation, as follows:
PROCLAMATION
WHEREAS, The U.S. Surgeon General states that mental health is
fundamental to health and indispensable to personal well-being,
family and interpersonal relationships, and contributes to
community and society; and,
WHEREAS, Mental illnesses are health conditions characterized by
altercations in thinking, mood, or behavior or some combination
associated with distress and/or impaired functioning; and,
WHEREAS, According to a recent study by the World Health
Organization, the World Bank and Harvard University, mental
disorders account for 4 of the 10 leading causes of disability in
established market economics world wide. These disorders are:
major depression, manic-depressive illness, schizophrenia and
obsessive-compulsive disorder; and,
WHEREAS, More than 19 million adult Americans age 18 and over will
suffer from a depressive illness - major depression, bipolar
disorder or dysthymia each year. Many of them will be
unnecessarily incapacitated for weeks or months because their
illness is untreated; and,
WHEREAS, Preliminary studies suggest that, any given time, at
least one in five children and adolescents may have a behavior,
emotional or mental health problem. At least 1 in 20 or as many
as 3 million young people may have a serious emotional disturbance
that severely disrupts his or her ability to function at home,
school or in the community; and,
WHEREAS, An estimated two-thirds of all young people with mental
problems are not getting the help they need; and,
WHEREAS, A majority of the 30,000 plus Americans who commit
suicide each year are believed to have a mental disorder. Suicide
is the ninth leading cause of death in the United States and the
third leading cause of death among people age 15-24; and,
WHEREAS, Mental disorders are increasingly treatable, with
excellent prospects for remedy, recovery and better overall health
when properly recognized and treated; and,
WHEREAS, Saginaw County Community Mental Health Authority has made
a commitment to community-based systems of mental health care for
all residents; and,
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