BUTTE — Shodair Children’s Hospital is a statewide healthcare agency that helps Montana kids and families across the state. Shodair has been helping families and children at an outpatient facility in Butte for several years, but now it has moved to a brand new clinic in the Butte hospital.
Shodair treats a variety of health issues in children including helping children who are at risk of death by suicide.
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"It needs to be brought to the table. It’s been put in the closet and under the rug for so long, and it’s that stigma of mental health—it’s real," says Jake Andersen.
Several years ago Andersen’s teenage daughter attempted suicide several times. He says he felt helpless not knowing what he could do or how he could help his child.
"To navigate through it by yourself, dealing with a child that is self-harming, it’s a real scary place to be in," says Andersen.
The Andersen family finally found help for their daughter Brooke at Shodair Children’s Hospital in Helena before an outpatient clinic was established in Butte.
"Montana unfortunately leads in the nation for suicide rates. We’ve been in the top five for decades," says Dr. Thomas Hoffman.
Dr. Hoffman is a forensic pediatric psychiatrist and the chief medical officer at Shodair. He says the new outpatient clinic in the Butte hospital provides care for children struggling with anxiety, depression, ADHD, and provides services like speech therapy.
"Unfortunately I think there’s a lot of stigma in Montana about mental health. But what we want to do is be able to teach people the tools to cope with things that are just really hard," says Dr. Hoffman.
"It’s amazing that we can be closer, especially in a rural state. It’s so nice to have more resources and be able to help our community, especially with the high numbers of suicide rates," says Brianna Vesco, a psychiatric nurse practitioner at the Butte clinic.
From her home in Missoula, Jake Andersen's daughter Brooke Glennon is taking a break from her studies to talk about her experience at Shodair. When she was being treated half a decade ago, she and her family had to drive over an hour to receive care. Glennon applauds the work done at the outpatient clinic in Butte, saying it gives easier access for rural families.
"There is a light at the end of the dark tunnel," says Glennon.
Today, Glennon is a full-time student at the University of Montana. She asks that we all become advocates for mental health issues in order to reduce the stigma surrounding them. Glennon asks families to be aware of the signs of suicidal thoughts.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, most youth who die by suicide show some warning signs including, but not limited to: talking about killing oneself, feeling hopeless, feeling like a burden, or feeling they have no reason to live.
The American Academy of Pediatrics website also says mood changes including depression, anxiety, and agitation may be red flags. Behavior changes can also be red flags and may include: increased substance use, withdrawing from activities, isolating from family and friends, sleeping too much or not enough, giving away prized possessions, and irritability.
Dr. Hoffman says if parents are concerned about their child's mental health, Shodair is here to help and families can call the Butte clinic directly or can ask for a referral from their primary care physician.
"Once mental health isn’t a stigma anymore, it will be open more and I feel like people will be able to reach out for that help," says Glennon.
