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MPR News Staff

Mental health remains top public health issue at U of M

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The 'How Are You?' campaign
The Minnesota Student association made a video encouraging people to have open conversations about mental health. It can start with a question as simple as 'How are you?'
Minnesota Student Association via YouTube

"Mental health continues to be the number one public health issue on campus," according to a student health survey conducted by Boynton Health Service of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.

The results were released in December, and the survey found that "in 2015, 33 percent of students reported a mental health diagnosis in their lifetime, up from 25 percent in 2007."

To reduce the stigma around mental illness, and encourage students to take advantage of the mental health services available on campus, the Minnesota Student Association released a video this month titled "How Are You?"

The "How Are You?" campaign is about starting the conversation: "When people remain silent, they can't get the care they need for the mental health problems that nearly 1 in 3 U of M students face," the video says.

Joelle Stangler, student body president at the U of M, and Gary Christenson, chief medical officer at Boynton Health Service, joined MPR News host Tom Weber to talk about mental health on campus.

When asked about the "How Are You?" campaign, Stangler said: "If you're a good born-and-raised Minnesota, you'll just say: 'Good, how are you?' And then you're done."

The video urges people to go deeper. "The goal of reclaiming the question is to allow people to admit when they're not doing well," Stangler said. "We obviously don't think a simple question is going to solve everything, but we think in order to get people access to the resources, we need to feel more comfortable having that conversation."

Christenson said the U has seen an increase in requests for mental health services in recent years. The biggest increase has come in requests for one-on-one therapy sessions.

Still, many students are not seeking help when facing significant issues. For those experiencing severe depression, "probably about 50 percent of those students aren't getting any kind of help at all," Christenson said.

For the full discussion on mental health on campus, use the audio player above.