Mental Health Top of Mind as U.S. Surgeon General Visits Ohio State
10/18/2022 7:45:32 PM | General
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Dr. Vivek Murthy, United States Surgeon General, spent Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio, visiting and speaking with key individuals about mental health in young adults and specifically student-athletes. The final stop on the Surgeon General’s visit was the Schumaker Center, on the campus of The Ohio State University, speaking with about a dozen Ohio State student-athletes.
Mental health is one of the four main priorities identified by the Office of the Surgeon General. The other three priorities are COVID-19, health misinformation and health worker burnout.
“I am so glad I had a chance to meet with you all today,” Dr. Murthy told the assembled student-athletes. “I was eager to get together. I’ve been thinking about college students, high school students, and people who have recently graduated, and trying to understand what’s happening with mental health in our youth community, and what we can do about it. Most importantly, I wanted to hear from all of you and get some insights on what you think we should do about mental health in our country, and to have some insight on what you are seeing from your peers.”
The Ohio State Department of Athletics is one of the most progressive in terms of mental health resources. It has doubled its sport psychology area, referred to as Sports Psychology and Wellness Services (SPAWS), in recent years to now include four full-time staff members who provide increased access to mental health and performance enhancement services to student-athletes competing in all 36 Buckeye varsity sports. SPAWS is under the direction of lead sports psychologist, James Houle, Ph.D.
“We are grateful and extremely appreciative that the Surgeon General was able to include a stop at Ohio State to visit with our student-athletes,” Houle said. “Dr. Murthy’s investment in student-athlete mental health is an indication of the importance of prioritizing mental health and viewing student-athletes holistically.”
SPAWS offers four different areas of training and consultation:
- Individual therapy to enhance mental health and sport performance in areas that include, but are not limited to, difficulty managing anxiety, homesickness, depression/sadness, interpersonal relationships and dating, lack of motivation and performance slumps.
- Group therapy, weekly, on various topics related to the student-athlete experience with SPAWS staff members facilitating discussion to groups of 5-10 participants.
- Team consultations including presentations on a variety of topics based on requests from the team and team needs.
- Coach and staff trainings once a month to provide continuing education on a wide range of topics, including, but not limited to, best practices for supporting student-athletes’ mental health, self-care for coaches/staff, and fostering competitiveness within a team.
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