Resources

MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM In CRISIS: A professional and personal perspective of critical problems and solutions that are being overlooked
By: Tammy Rohner RN BSN MBA

This book shares the story of our journey to seek a diagnosis and treatment for Emma’s pain syndrome. When local doctor’s kept telling us this was a mental health condition and possibly “faked” for “possible secondary gains of being in the sick role,” we were forced to seek out-of-state medical treatment or continue mental health treatment options including in-patient psychiatric hospitalization and life-long pharmacological cocktails with on-going medical management in Georgia. Basically, meds were being prescribed to manage symptoms as we were told “nothing was medically wrong with her.” Our family suffered over two years until Emma’s pain was successfully treated in Philadelphia, aka “Philly.” And just when we thought our journey was over, we were forced to seek out-of-state treatment again for the underlying condition that likely started this entire journey.

The purpose of this book is to warn other parents of pediatric medical conditions that may be overlooked and misdiagnosed as primarily “psychiatric” in nature, leading to a high probability of treatment errors. It is a story of triumph and the resilience of the human spirit in the face of immense pain and suffering over 7 years. It is a testament to how far a parent will go to seek a cure to end a child’s suffering. It is a desperate attempt to demand the medical community improve treatment options and eliminate misinformation about these very real and life altering conditions.