Podcast chronicles struggle to access Kaiser mental health care
The struggle of Kaiser mental health clinicians to improve patient access was featured in the most recent episode of the Last Day podcast. The segment on Kaiser segment starts at the 40-minute mark of the episode, “Are You Feeling Suicidal?”
The podcast producers reached out to us about participating in this season of the Last Day podcast, which was created in partnership with The Jed Foundation, a non-profit committed to strengthening mental health programs for teens and young adults.
The podcast, which as of last June, had generated more than 1.7 million downloads, uses humor and compassion to talk openly about mental health issues. The episode with NUHW clinicians only scratches the surface of the access issues at Kaiser, but it’s still worth a listen.
“I was absolutely thrilled with how the podcast turned out,” said Susan Whitney, a therapist who works at Kaiser’s clinic in Bakersfield and participated in the podcast. “It was one of the best examinations of how patients seeking behavioral health care can fall through the cracks at Kaiser. The response from people who have listened has been really positive.”