Selected Podcast
Let's DISH about Mental Health
Alexis Morgan, LISW, talks about the ISH Behavioral Health team, and what they can do for you and your family and she shares a few of the various ways they can take care of your mental health and how important it is that we treat the way we think and feel just like we would any other ailment; not ignore it.
Featured Speaker:
Alexis Morgan, LISW
Alexis is a licensed social worker who has special interests in treating adolescents and adults with anxiety, depression, life adjustments, grief and loss as well as trauma. Trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EDMR) for adults and children, Sandtray, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. Sees patients of all ages. Transcription:
Let's DISH about Mental Health
Gina Schnathorst: Welcome to the Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics ISH Dish Podcast, practical health advice from Iowa Specialty Hospital experts. We want to connect the members of our communities with the latest healthcare information that's understandable, relatable, and useful to your daily life. With me today in the studio, I have Alexis Morgan. How are you?
Alexis Morgan: I'm good. Thank you.
Gina Schnathorst: Perfect. Alexis has a very interesting yet important and critical job. You are a licensed independent social worker. And tell me if I'm speaking out of term, but 2020 really did us in.
Alexis Morgan: Yes, you are correct.
Gina Schnathorst: So, I know that you and your staff have been extremely busy seeing patients and even our staff who have maybe needed assistance. So, I'm not going to hog the mic too long. I am just going to lend it over to you and let you tell everybody who you are, maybe how you got where you are today, and then what you do benefits the people who need it the most.
Alexis Morgan: Okay, sounds good. Well, I have worked here at Iowa Specialty Hospital since 2016. As you said, I'm a therapist here at the hospital. I see patients in the clinic, the Clarion Clinic, but we actually staff every one of our outlying offices. We have therapists at all of them as well.
I got my undergrad at Buena Vista in social work and then got my master's at UNI, and graduated in 2007 and then came, like I said, to Iowa Specialty Hospital in 2016. I see patients ranging from little children all the way up into adulthood through the elderly population and have, over the years, gained different trainings to be able to serve the different needs that come in our door.
Gina Schnathorst: I am curious, I have a couple questions already. First of all, people always want to know how did you become a therapist. Like, what was that all about?
Alexis Morgan: Oh, my gosh. So, I'll give you a condensed answer to that. But I think that we all have a different story that leads us to being a therapist, but there's always that cliché statement that comes with it that, at a young age, I just knew I wanted to help people. And for me, specifically, I knew that I wanted nothing to do with being a nurse because I don't do needles, I don't do blood. And I always say that if I'm seeing a patient in the ER or in the clinic, they pull me put of my safe spot that I know does not involve blood or needles. And I always make sure I ask the questions, "What am I going to see?" Because I don't have the stomach for it.
But honestly, it came through life experiences for myself. As most of us can say, not everything in life is easy. And, so through some of my tough spots in life, I gained this understanding that I really felt like I was put on this earth to serve others. And this is where it fell for me. This is the best fit.
Gina Schnathorst: it is wonderful, because the world needs people like you. And thank goodness you're here because, I mean, it is a huge need, not only in our area, which we know that it is, but everywhere. How many staff members do we currently have?
Alexis Morgan: So, that's an interesting thing. I was hoping I would have the opportunity to go back and reference your first statement about 2020, you know, did us in. It couldn't be more true. And I think the growth in our staff reflects that. So, probably prior to 2020, you know, I don't have the exact numbers, but I would say maybe we were a team of five, six therapists, and now we are at 17.
Gina Schnathorst: Oh, wow.
Alexis Morgan: And so, interestingly enough, none of us are sitting on our hands. At that, we are full.
Gina Schnathorst: It's interesting that you should say that because, as the marketing leader for our system, I have often found myself asking the question, "Really?" It seems like there was just this hiring and hiring and hiring of mental health providers, and I thought, "Are we tapped out yet?" Apparently not.
Alexis Morgan: There honestly is no such thing there. There will not be such a thing. Because I will tell you, I'm proud to say that we bring in patients from-- I have patients that come hour and hour and a half. I mean, the need is not going to go anywhere. And to be honest, I just don't think we could have too many. I mean, honestly, yes, there's this, we're rural, but because we are staffed in Des Moines, we're staffed in Garner Hampton, like all of our different locations and spread out. Honestly, what our issue is now isn't that we could be tapped out. It's space. Do we have enough offices for the patients to come and see a therapist. It really is where we're at. It's not that we aren't going to be able to get these therapists full.
Gina Schnathorst: I feel like years ago there was a stigma about seeing a mental health provider. Is that how you refer to yourselves as mental health providers for the most part?
Alexis Morgan: Yes, there's lots of different ways to say it.
Gina Schnathorst: There seems a lot of terms floating around out there. I just want to make sure I get it right.
Alexis Morgan: You know, even as a team, we debate sometimes about, "Well, what are we called? Are we the behavioral health team? Are we the mental health team? What are we?" just recently, we kind of put the tag on us of behavioral health and even that can come with its own like, "Well, I don't have behavior issues, so why are you calling it behavioral health?" So, there's not really a great label.
Gina Schnathorst: Which leads me back to-- there used to be, or maybe there still is, I'm sure in some capacity, stigmas behind seeing mental health providers. You know, I follow Mel Robbins' podcast. And I was listening to one recently and she said, "If you broke your arm, you would go to the ED and be seen. So when our head is broken, our brain or whatever, why do we not go and get that fixed as well?"
Alexis Morgan: I will tell you, unfortunately, the stigma is definitely still there. Although, I would say that we're seeing an improvement. Word is getting out more that those kinds of conversations, like we actually do presentations with our students in our area, that's part of our presentation. You know, like, "Stand up if you would go to the doctor if you broke your leg today." And obviously, all the students stand up. And then, you say, "Okay. Stand up if you would tell your mom that you are feeling really depressed and need to go to the doctor," and nobody stands up. So, definitely, it's still a thing. But I would say that the conversation is out there. And telehealth has definitely helped with that. Because somebody can say, "I'm scared to walk into their clinic doors, even though maybe nobody will know what I'm there for. But I am willing to sit at home and talk to a therapist behind a computer screen." And so, that has definitely helped.
Gina Schnathorst: And so, you take both of those appointments, is that still a choice?
Alexis Morgan: Yes. It is.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. Yeah. Perfect.
Alexis Morgan: I don't know what will happen. My understanding is that because we're still considered like in a state of emergency from COVID, that that's still covered. I don't know. One of my elder therapists that was on our team who has seen it all said he really felt like once the horse was out of the stall, there was no putting it back. So, he really feels like telehealth is out. It's been embraced, it's been utilized, and he feels comfortable that it's not going to get put back away and not be used.
Gina Schnathorst: I sure hope not because I think it's another great avenue for people to be seen for anything that maybe they weren't going to before. All right. Well, let's switch gears a little bit. Tell us what it is that you actually do or what you can be seen for, anyone on your team, if somebody is curious.
Alexis Morgan: Yeah. So, honestly, I'm actually pretty careful about answering that because I want people to know that anyone can see us. We can think we just have a mild case of anxiety, but "Well, other people have it worse than me." No, everybody's body can benefit from seeing a therapist at some point in their life.
I always tell people we all deal at varying parts of our life with depression, anxiety, struggles with relationships, whatever that may be. It just impacts us to varying levels based on our life story. So if somebody has had a lot of that type of those struggles from childhood, they might really need to access therapy or medication a lot sooner than somebody who maybe has a really good support system. It's very individual. But the reality is, the most important message that I'd like to get out there, is that it is open for anybody, anybody who's having literally any struggle in their life, anything that they're needing an outside person to really be able to voice that to and work through it.
Gina Schnathorst: So, how does that work with children? Meaning anybody under the age of 18, I'm assuming that would need a consenting adult.
Alexis Morgan: Correct.
Gina Schnathorst: That's a parental referral. How does that work? Are the rules a little different?
Alexis Morgan: Just parental consent is really the only thing. Because you brought up children, I do want to say something really cool about Iowa Specialty Hospital, is that we are putting therapists in our school systems. And so, that's very unique. I know that I always kind of give the caveat when we're presenting this opportunity to schools. I say that, "Iowa Specialty Hospital is offering this with no charge." Like literally, you just need to give us four walls and the space and this opportunity, where maybe in Des Moines for example, they might have a therapist in their building, but they're requiring them to contribute to that therapist's salary.
So, it's just a unique opportunity. And honestly, it's been such a wonderful thing because now these students who are needing to access therapy, let's say parents work an hour away, and can't leave work and miss half a day of work to get their child to therapy, they don't even have to leave the school building. They just walk down the hall and maybe only have to miss now 45 minutes of instruction versus whatever time it would've been for them to leave the clinic and all of that.
Gina Schnathorst: So again, would this be something that the parent would recommend or talk to the guidance counselor? Or there are some cases where maybe somebody in the school sees some behavioral issues and recommends. Does it go both ways?
Alexis Morgan: It goes both, yep. So if a parent was like, "Hey, I'm having these issues at home. I understand they're doing great at school, but I'm having these concerns at home," they can call in themself. They could say it to a teacher and the teacher could make the referral. We are very, very flexible in how that happens. There doesn't have to be some big like formal referral from another provider or anything like that. Anybody can express that.
Gina Schnathorst: Wonderful. So if somebody wanted to-- you know, they're feeling down and out or they just need to talk to somebody, what's their first step?
Alexis Morgan: So, the first step would be to call into our clinic. And I would actually recommend that they just call into the main number, if I'm understanding our system correctly, call into the main number and ask for Jenna Krumm, that's our scheduler and then, you're in the best hands. Then, she's going to take care of you and get the process rolling.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. And then, she can just schedule for any location, right?
Alexis Morgan: Bingo. That's what I was just going to say, is the reason why I'm being very specific in who they would ask for is because she literally would take care of it regardless of what location.
Gina Schnathorst: Sure. Perfect. Any other specific things that you want to talk about or let people know that you and your team are available to do?
Alexis Morgan: Not necessarily. I think one thing I will throw out there is that because we're such a big team, we have a lot of different specialties under each of our individual belts. One of them that I would say that I always like to toot our horn about is that quite a few of our therapists are trained in EMDR therapy, and that's a pretty unique therapy style that is extremely effective and not something you can find everywhere. And I would say, at least half, if not more than half of our staff right now have that.
Gina Schnathorst: I'm going to take a stab at this.
Alexis Morgan: Okay.
Gina Schnathorst: I want to say that that's kind of where you relive a moment, or just to get back into where you were when this maybe trauma happened or something. Am I close?
Alexis Morgan: Yeah, you actually are. So honestly, EMDR therapy can be effective for anybody, regardless. Yes, it was in its initial creatings made for trauma work, but since has really been found to be effective for anything, whether that be anxiety, depression, lots of different things because really the premise of EMDR is that you and I included, we all carry around negative beliefs about ourself, whether or not that's, "I'm not good enough," or "I am worthless," or "I don't deserve good things," whatever that may be. And that's the premise behind EMDR, is you're helping a person work through those negative beliefs, whether they're attached to a big trauma or whether they're just attached to a multitude of experiences through their life.
Gina Schnathorst: I would think that that would be life-changing.
Alexis Morgan: It is.
Gina Schnathorst: If you were able to view yourself in a more positive manner, I think everything would just fall into place, a little bit better anyway.
Alexis Morgan: It's fascinating work.
Gina Schnathorst: Yeah. Very cool. And whereof just a few that do that?
Alexis Morgan: I would say it's over half of us that are trained in that. I don't know. I'm not a hundred percent sure with some of the newer ones we've brought on if they're trained in it or not. But I would say that a good share of us are.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. And then, you obviously are making those determinations at an initial appointment and trying to figure out--
Alexis Morgan: Yes. And that's why we have one scheduler right now. Because even though Jenna isn't a therapist herself, but she knows the questions to ask and can make sure that they're getting on the right waitlist. And that's the unfortunate part of it, that there is a waitlist. Despite having a lot of therapists, there is a waitlist and there is one wherever you call, unfortunately. I wish we could be an exception to that and not have one, but sadly we do.
Gina Schnathorst: I know bed availability is always a big thing too for people that maybe need to be admitted for issues that they're having. And that is not unique to us in any way, shape or form. That's everywhere.
Alexis Morgan: Absolutely.
Gina Schnathorst: Let's talk a little bit, before we end things, about the Crisis Hotline.
Alexis Morgan: Okay.
Gina Schnathorst: How does that work and who is it for?
Alexis Morgan: Okay. So, the Crisis Hotline is for anyone. It's a number that we make sure is available to anyone. So, for example, if somebody were to call in and they can't get in to see us right away, that's a number that's shared with them just to make sure that they know that there's something out there for them as they wait. Obviously, we also always encourage them to keep open communication with us while they're on the waitlist. If they need to access our ER, our emergency department, or if they need to come into our clinic, we all try to really work together as a team to make sure that somebody, even if they are sitting on a waitlist, feel that they're being taken care of while they're waiting.
Gina Schnathorst: Sure. Okay. And that number, 800-273-TALK. So, very easy to remember, 800-273-TALK. And this is on our website under our behavioral health section. It says if you are experiencing a personal, emotional or mental health crisis, you may call the National Suicide Prevention Line, and that again is 800-273-8255.
Alexis Morgan: Perfect.
Gina Schnathorst: Very good. Anything else to close out?
Alexis Morgan: I don't think so. Like I said, if anybody is feeling like they need to access our care in any capacity, please reach out. I should also add that we not only have our therapists, but we have psychiatric nurse practitioners on our team who manage medication. So, I always share with patients the benefit of that, because it's not every day that you can have your therapist and your med provider working together hand in hand where, you know, I'm down the hall maybe from their medication provider versus a phone call to a clinic trying to build a relationship with them and understanding, rather we just get to have that and work together as a team.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. So if anybody wants to be seen, they again can call really any of our main numbers.
Alexis Morgan: Any main number.
Gina Schnathorst: We, unfortunately, have a lot of them, but there is a number here, 515-532-9339. And then, ask for Jenna Krumm.
Alexis Morgan: Jenna Krumm, yes.
Gina Schnathorst: And she will definitely get you to the right place.
Alexis Morgan: Yes.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay, perfect. Well, thank you so much for your time.
Alexis Morgan: Yes. Thank you.
Gina Schnathorst: Again, if anybody needs any mental health services, give the number a call or definitely we have all this information out on our website, iowaspecialtyhospital.com. Thanks for joining us today.
Alexis Morgan: Thank you, Gina.
Gina Schnathorst: Thank you for listening to Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics ISH Dish Podcast. For more information on the topics we discussed today, visit us on the web at iowaspecialtyhospital.com. There you could read a transcript of today's episode or previously aired episodes, as well as get the latest news from Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics, and explore all of the services that we offer. For the ISH Dish Podcast, I'm Gina. Thanks for tuning in.
Let's DISH about Mental Health
Gina Schnathorst: Welcome to the Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics ISH Dish Podcast, practical health advice from Iowa Specialty Hospital experts. We want to connect the members of our communities with the latest healthcare information that's understandable, relatable, and useful to your daily life. With me today in the studio, I have Alexis Morgan. How are you?
Alexis Morgan: I'm good. Thank you.
Gina Schnathorst: Perfect. Alexis has a very interesting yet important and critical job. You are a licensed independent social worker. And tell me if I'm speaking out of term, but 2020 really did us in.
Alexis Morgan: Yes, you are correct.
Gina Schnathorst: So, I know that you and your staff have been extremely busy seeing patients and even our staff who have maybe needed assistance. So, I'm not going to hog the mic too long. I am just going to lend it over to you and let you tell everybody who you are, maybe how you got where you are today, and then what you do benefits the people who need it the most.
Alexis Morgan: Okay, sounds good. Well, I have worked here at Iowa Specialty Hospital since 2016. As you said, I'm a therapist here at the hospital. I see patients in the clinic, the Clarion Clinic, but we actually staff every one of our outlying offices. We have therapists at all of them as well.
I got my undergrad at Buena Vista in social work and then got my master's at UNI, and graduated in 2007 and then came, like I said, to Iowa Specialty Hospital in 2016. I see patients ranging from little children all the way up into adulthood through the elderly population and have, over the years, gained different trainings to be able to serve the different needs that come in our door.
Gina Schnathorst: I am curious, I have a couple questions already. First of all, people always want to know how did you become a therapist. Like, what was that all about?
Alexis Morgan: Oh, my gosh. So, I'll give you a condensed answer to that. But I think that we all have a different story that leads us to being a therapist, but there's always that cliché statement that comes with it that, at a young age, I just knew I wanted to help people. And for me, specifically, I knew that I wanted nothing to do with being a nurse because I don't do needles, I don't do blood. And I always say that if I'm seeing a patient in the ER or in the clinic, they pull me put of my safe spot that I know does not involve blood or needles. And I always make sure I ask the questions, "What am I going to see?" Because I don't have the stomach for it.
But honestly, it came through life experiences for myself. As most of us can say, not everything in life is easy. And, so through some of my tough spots in life, I gained this understanding that I really felt like I was put on this earth to serve others. And this is where it fell for me. This is the best fit.
Gina Schnathorst: it is wonderful, because the world needs people like you. And thank goodness you're here because, I mean, it is a huge need, not only in our area, which we know that it is, but everywhere. How many staff members do we currently have?
Alexis Morgan: So, that's an interesting thing. I was hoping I would have the opportunity to go back and reference your first statement about 2020, you know, did us in. It couldn't be more true. And I think the growth in our staff reflects that. So, probably prior to 2020, you know, I don't have the exact numbers, but I would say maybe we were a team of five, six therapists, and now we are at 17.
Gina Schnathorst: Oh, wow.
Alexis Morgan: And so, interestingly enough, none of us are sitting on our hands. At that, we are full.
Gina Schnathorst: It's interesting that you should say that because, as the marketing leader for our system, I have often found myself asking the question, "Really?" It seems like there was just this hiring and hiring and hiring of mental health providers, and I thought, "Are we tapped out yet?" Apparently not.
Alexis Morgan: There honestly is no such thing there. There will not be such a thing. Because I will tell you, I'm proud to say that we bring in patients from-- I have patients that come hour and hour and a half. I mean, the need is not going to go anywhere. And to be honest, I just don't think we could have too many. I mean, honestly, yes, there's this, we're rural, but because we are staffed in Des Moines, we're staffed in Garner Hampton, like all of our different locations and spread out. Honestly, what our issue is now isn't that we could be tapped out. It's space. Do we have enough offices for the patients to come and see a therapist. It really is where we're at. It's not that we aren't going to be able to get these therapists full.
Gina Schnathorst: I feel like years ago there was a stigma about seeing a mental health provider. Is that how you refer to yourselves as mental health providers for the most part?
Alexis Morgan: Yes, there's lots of different ways to say it.
Gina Schnathorst: There seems a lot of terms floating around out there. I just want to make sure I get it right.
Alexis Morgan: You know, even as a team, we debate sometimes about, "Well, what are we called? Are we the behavioral health team? Are we the mental health team? What are we?" just recently, we kind of put the tag on us of behavioral health and even that can come with its own like, "Well, I don't have behavior issues, so why are you calling it behavioral health?" So, there's not really a great label.
Gina Schnathorst: Which leads me back to-- there used to be, or maybe there still is, I'm sure in some capacity, stigmas behind seeing mental health providers. You know, I follow Mel Robbins' podcast. And I was listening to one recently and she said, "If you broke your arm, you would go to the ED and be seen. So when our head is broken, our brain or whatever, why do we not go and get that fixed as well?"
Alexis Morgan: I will tell you, unfortunately, the stigma is definitely still there. Although, I would say that we're seeing an improvement. Word is getting out more that those kinds of conversations, like we actually do presentations with our students in our area, that's part of our presentation. You know, like, "Stand up if you would go to the doctor if you broke your leg today." And obviously, all the students stand up. And then, you say, "Okay. Stand up if you would tell your mom that you are feeling really depressed and need to go to the doctor," and nobody stands up. So, definitely, it's still a thing. But I would say that the conversation is out there. And telehealth has definitely helped with that. Because somebody can say, "I'm scared to walk into their clinic doors, even though maybe nobody will know what I'm there for. But I am willing to sit at home and talk to a therapist behind a computer screen." And so, that has definitely helped.
Gina Schnathorst: And so, you take both of those appointments, is that still a choice?
Alexis Morgan: Yes. It is.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. Yeah. Perfect.
Alexis Morgan: I don't know what will happen. My understanding is that because we're still considered like in a state of emergency from COVID, that that's still covered. I don't know. One of my elder therapists that was on our team who has seen it all said he really felt like once the horse was out of the stall, there was no putting it back. So, he really feels like telehealth is out. It's been embraced, it's been utilized, and he feels comfortable that it's not going to get put back away and not be used.
Gina Schnathorst: I sure hope not because I think it's another great avenue for people to be seen for anything that maybe they weren't going to before. All right. Well, let's switch gears a little bit. Tell us what it is that you actually do or what you can be seen for, anyone on your team, if somebody is curious.
Alexis Morgan: Yeah. So, honestly, I'm actually pretty careful about answering that because I want people to know that anyone can see us. We can think we just have a mild case of anxiety, but "Well, other people have it worse than me." No, everybody's body can benefit from seeing a therapist at some point in their life.
I always tell people we all deal at varying parts of our life with depression, anxiety, struggles with relationships, whatever that may be. It just impacts us to varying levels based on our life story. So if somebody has had a lot of that type of those struggles from childhood, they might really need to access therapy or medication a lot sooner than somebody who maybe has a really good support system. It's very individual. But the reality is, the most important message that I'd like to get out there, is that it is open for anybody, anybody who's having literally any struggle in their life, anything that they're needing an outside person to really be able to voice that to and work through it.
Gina Schnathorst: So, how does that work with children? Meaning anybody under the age of 18, I'm assuming that would need a consenting adult.
Alexis Morgan: Correct.
Gina Schnathorst: That's a parental referral. How does that work? Are the rules a little different?
Alexis Morgan: Just parental consent is really the only thing. Because you brought up children, I do want to say something really cool about Iowa Specialty Hospital, is that we are putting therapists in our school systems. And so, that's very unique. I know that I always kind of give the caveat when we're presenting this opportunity to schools. I say that, "Iowa Specialty Hospital is offering this with no charge." Like literally, you just need to give us four walls and the space and this opportunity, where maybe in Des Moines for example, they might have a therapist in their building, but they're requiring them to contribute to that therapist's salary.
So, it's just a unique opportunity. And honestly, it's been such a wonderful thing because now these students who are needing to access therapy, let's say parents work an hour away, and can't leave work and miss half a day of work to get their child to therapy, they don't even have to leave the school building. They just walk down the hall and maybe only have to miss now 45 minutes of instruction versus whatever time it would've been for them to leave the clinic and all of that.
Gina Schnathorst: So again, would this be something that the parent would recommend or talk to the guidance counselor? Or there are some cases where maybe somebody in the school sees some behavioral issues and recommends. Does it go both ways?
Alexis Morgan: It goes both, yep. So if a parent was like, "Hey, I'm having these issues at home. I understand they're doing great at school, but I'm having these concerns at home," they can call in themself. They could say it to a teacher and the teacher could make the referral. We are very, very flexible in how that happens. There doesn't have to be some big like formal referral from another provider or anything like that. Anybody can express that.
Gina Schnathorst: Wonderful. So if somebody wanted to-- you know, they're feeling down and out or they just need to talk to somebody, what's their first step?
Alexis Morgan: So, the first step would be to call into our clinic. And I would actually recommend that they just call into the main number, if I'm understanding our system correctly, call into the main number and ask for Jenna Krumm, that's our scheduler and then, you're in the best hands. Then, she's going to take care of you and get the process rolling.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. And then, she can just schedule for any location, right?
Alexis Morgan: Bingo. That's what I was just going to say, is the reason why I'm being very specific in who they would ask for is because she literally would take care of it regardless of what location.
Gina Schnathorst: Sure. Perfect. Any other specific things that you want to talk about or let people know that you and your team are available to do?
Alexis Morgan: Not necessarily. I think one thing I will throw out there is that because we're such a big team, we have a lot of different specialties under each of our individual belts. One of them that I would say that I always like to toot our horn about is that quite a few of our therapists are trained in EMDR therapy, and that's a pretty unique therapy style that is extremely effective and not something you can find everywhere. And I would say, at least half, if not more than half of our staff right now have that.
Gina Schnathorst: I'm going to take a stab at this.
Alexis Morgan: Okay.
Gina Schnathorst: I want to say that that's kind of where you relive a moment, or just to get back into where you were when this maybe trauma happened or something. Am I close?
Alexis Morgan: Yeah, you actually are. So honestly, EMDR therapy can be effective for anybody, regardless. Yes, it was in its initial creatings made for trauma work, but since has really been found to be effective for anything, whether that be anxiety, depression, lots of different things because really the premise of EMDR is that you and I included, we all carry around negative beliefs about ourself, whether or not that's, "I'm not good enough," or "I am worthless," or "I don't deserve good things," whatever that may be. And that's the premise behind EMDR, is you're helping a person work through those negative beliefs, whether they're attached to a big trauma or whether they're just attached to a multitude of experiences through their life.
Gina Schnathorst: I would think that that would be life-changing.
Alexis Morgan: It is.
Gina Schnathorst: If you were able to view yourself in a more positive manner, I think everything would just fall into place, a little bit better anyway.
Alexis Morgan: It's fascinating work.
Gina Schnathorst: Yeah. Very cool. And whereof just a few that do that?
Alexis Morgan: I would say it's over half of us that are trained in that. I don't know. I'm not a hundred percent sure with some of the newer ones we've brought on if they're trained in it or not. But I would say that a good share of us are.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. And then, you obviously are making those determinations at an initial appointment and trying to figure out--
Alexis Morgan: Yes. And that's why we have one scheduler right now. Because even though Jenna isn't a therapist herself, but she knows the questions to ask and can make sure that they're getting on the right waitlist. And that's the unfortunate part of it, that there is a waitlist. Despite having a lot of therapists, there is a waitlist and there is one wherever you call, unfortunately. I wish we could be an exception to that and not have one, but sadly we do.
Gina Schnathorst: I know bed availability is always a big thing too for people that maybe need to be admitted for issues that they're having. And that is not unique to us in any way, shape or form. That's everywhere.
Alexis Morgan: Absolutely.
Gina Schnathorst: Let's talk a little bit, before we end things, about the Crisis Hotline.
Alexis Morgan: Okay.
Gina Schnathorst: How does that work and who is it for?
Alexis Morgan: Okay. So, the Crisis Hotline is for anyone. It's a number that we make sure is available to anyone. So, for example, if somebody were to call in and they can't get in to see us right away, that's a number that's shared with them just to make sure that they know that there's something out there for them as they wait. Obviously, we also always encourage them to keep open communication with us while they're on the waitlist. If they need to access our ER, our emergency department, or if they need to come into our clinic, we all try to really work together as a team to make sure that somebody, even if they are sitting on a waitlist, feel that they're being taken care of while they're waiting.
Gina Schnathorst: Sure. Okay. And that number, 800-273-TALK. So, very easy to remember, 800-273-TALK. And this is on our website under our behavioral health section. It says if you are experiencing a personal, emotional or mental health crisis, you may call the National Suicide Prevention Line, and that again is 800-273-8255.
Alexis Morgan: Perfect.
Gina Schnathorst: Very good. Anything else to close out?
Alexis Morgan: I don't think so. Like I said, if anybody is feeling like they need to access our care in any capacity, please reach out. I should also add that we not only have our therapists, but we have psychiatric nurse practitioners on our team who manage medication. So, I always share with patients the benefit of that, because it's not every day that you can have your therapist and your med provider working together hand in hand where, you know, I'm down the hall maybe from their medication provider versus a phone call to a clinic trying to build a relationship with them and understanding, rather we just get to have that and work together as a team.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay. So if anybody wants to be seen, they again can call really any of our main numbers.
Alexis Morgan: Any main number.
Gina Schnathorst: We, unfortunately, have a lot of them, but there is a number here, 515-532-9339. And then, ask for Jenna Krumm.
Alexis Morgan: Jenna Krumm, yes.
Gina Schnathorst: And she will definitely get you to the right place.
Alexis Morgan: Yes.
Gina Schnathorst: Okay, perfect. Well, thank you so much for your time.
Alexis Morgan: Yes. Thank you.
Gina Schnathorst: Again, if anybody needs any mental health services, give the number a call or definitely we have all this information out on our website, iowaspecialtyhospital.com. Thanks for joining us today.
Alexis Morgan: Thank you, Gina.
Gina Schnathorst: Thank you for listening to Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics ISH Dish Podcast. For more information on the topics we discussed today, visit us on the web at iowaspecialtyhospital.com. There you could read a transcript of today's episode or previously aired episodes, as well as get the latest news from Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics, and explore all of the services that we offer. For the ISH Dish Podcast, I'm Gina. Thanks for tuning in.