A Difference in a Name - How Does it Matter?

As a person with a serious and persistent mental illness, intellectual challenges and who struggles with substance abuse (I have to clarify that I am truly addicted to caffeine), my perspective may be a little bit different than many other people's viewpoint.

Some of my peers have taken offense to the supposedly "proposed" administrative name change from the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Administration to the Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Administration - some of it because they felt it was a "done deal" and they were not truly given a chance to give their perspectives.

I picked up an acronym lately that I like - GGMG. It stands for Get/Give perspective then Give/Get perspective. (Which ever order is most appropriate for the situation). From there, Merge perspectives then Go!

I would like to give my perspective on this. A name can provide essential definition and focus to something like an organization, a business or a department.

I get my services, not from our public mental health system, but from Henry Ford Health System - Behavioral Health Services. I do not take offense to the term 'behavioral' when it is matched up with the word 'health'. I believe the services I receive from Henry Ford Health System are provided for me in a manner that contributes to my Well-Being (Health) as well as my Well-Doing (Behavior).

I have developed a personal mission based off of this notion.

To BE/DO well and good
in order to
BE/DO well and good.

You need to be more well in order to do more good and doing good helps keep you well.

I can see Behavioral Health as a bridge to Holistic Health - which brings the mental into the physical and the physical into the mental. This is applicable to all people regardless of categorical status. This is part of the Keys to Total Health (which is the name of our Recovery conference in Oakland County).

We serve people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Adults with Serious Mental Illness, Children with Severe Emotional Disturbance and people who have Substance Abuse and Addiction challenges. All of the people we serve have an essential concern about their intellectual and developmental abilities. I like the idea of including Abilities rather than having a focus on Disabilities.

My proposal for a new name would be the Administra​tion of Behavioral Health Inclusive of Intellectu​al and Developmen​tal Abilities.

I know this is not the language we commonly use, but I wanted to put it out there. I am finding out that 'speaking up' is one of my 'developing abilities'. I'm not sure my perspective is one to be 'merged', but I felt it should be heard.

Mark A. Jones