If you have been reading my column the past few years, you are probably well aware of the mental health provider shortage in Nevada.
Provider shortages in any field are problematic for a myriad of reasons, the main one being access. Without access, it is extremely difficult to receive timely care.
A program called BeHERENV was created to address this issue. I had the opportunity to sit down with the executive director of BeHERENV, Sara Hunt, who is a licensed clinical psychologist. She is also an associate professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioral health at UNLV’s Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine.
Hunt’s work focuses on addressing the mental and behavioral health workforce shortage in Nevada. With her team, she has established BeHERENV, an initiative to recruit, educate and retain people in mental and behavioral health careers.
Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Sheldon Jacobs: Why is mental health important to you?
Sara Hunt: Mental health is an essential part of everyone’s health and well-being. It is so interconnected to the way we show up in the world — from our thoughts, feelings and actions to our physical health, our relationships and how we make sense of what is happening around us.
What is BeHERENV and why is the initiative important to our state?
BeHERENV’s vision is to expand a quality behavioral health workforce prepared to meet the diverse needs of Nevadans. Our mission is to support the recruitment, retention and ongoing support of Nevada’s behavioral health workforce.
How do you see the impact of BeHERENV in the years to come?
In Nevada we often talk about our national ranking of 51st when it comes to the prevalence of mental health concerns compared to the ability to access mental health services. Part of what contributes to that low ranking is the shortage of behavioral health professionals. About 90 to 95 percent of Nevadans live in a designated mental health professionals shortage area — that includes most of Las Vegas.
BeHERENV has a chance to make a real impact on better access to behavioral healthcare by strengthening the pipeline to grow our own behavioral health workforce.
Some of the ways we do that are through our recruitment efforts by engaging K-12 students and adult learners across Nevada with information about careers and education pathways in behavioral health; collaborating with programs across the Nevada System of Higher Education institutions to promote quality training; and connecting with the new and existing workforce to support retention in communities across the state.
How can the community support BeHERENV?
The BeHERENV, BeINSPIRED Speaker’s Bureau is an opportunity for behavioral health professionals to volunteer to be on a registry of available speakers to talk with young students and adult learners about their careers, education journeys, lived experiences and other requested topics. Another way is through a donation. Any level of financial support helps make programs like youth summer camps, workforce development events, outreach initiatives and student resources (e.g., scholarships) possible, expanding awareness of behavioral health careers and helping future providers succeed and remain in the field.
To learn more visit beherenv.org.
Sheldon Jacobs, Psy.D., LMFT, is a licensed mental health professional based in Las Vegas. Contact him at drjacobs10@hotmail.com.
