WHAT HEALTH PROVIDERS AND ORGANIZATIONS

NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WELLNESS

Why Is Wellness Important?

Individuals with severe mental illness (SMI) served by the public 

mental health system die, on average, years earlier than the general 

population, with heart disease being the prime culprit.i

That’s why the federal government spearheaded an initiative to 

decrease the risk factors leading to premature death among this 

population.

Through its Wellness Initiative, the Substance Abuse and Mental 

Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is working toward a 

future in which people with behavioral health conditions receive 

effective treatment, services, supports, and resources that are 

based on the expectation of recovery.

Source: Adapted from Swarbrick, M. (2006). A Wellness Approach. 

Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 29(4), 311–314.

The following factors contribute to the increased risk for heart 

disease and other preventable conditions among individuals with 

behavioral health conditions:

• Poverty, social isolation, and trauma: Nearly 32 percent 

of people with behavioral health conditions live below the 

poverty line.ii Many also experience social isolation and 

trauma, which can lead to higher levels of stress.

• Lack of access to quality health care: A high percentage of people with behavioral health conditions are 

unemployed, and many lack health insurance coverage.iii

• Psychopharmaceutical effects: Many of the medications that treat the SMI population have been known to cause 

weight gain, as well as high blood pressure and high cholesterol, all of which increase the risk factors for heart 

disease.iv, v, vi

• Substance use: Heavy and binge drinking is associated with numerous health issues, including damage to liver 

cells, inflammation of the pancreas, various cancers, high blood pressure, and psychological disorders.vii
• Tobacco: Seventy-five percent of people with behavioral health 

conditions smoke cigarettes (compared to 23 percent of the 

general population).viii Half of all deaths from smoking occur 

among people with mental or substance use disorders.ix

• Obesity: Obesity is frequently accompanied by diagnosed 

depression, and the two can trigger and influence each other.x

How Is SAMHSA’s Wellness Initiative Helping?

INITIATIVE OBJECTIVES:

• Increase public awareness about the preventable premature 

death of people with behavioral health conditions due to heart 

disease, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, lung disease, and 

other contributing factors including trauma, social isolation, 

unemployment, poverty, and inadequate health care.

• Provide educational resources, tools, and technical assistance 

that are guided by the Eight Dimensions of Wellness and 

motivate people to make healthier lifestyle choices (e.g., 

smoking freedom, nutritious foods, exercise, social connections, 

spirituality, creative and intellectual endeavors).

• Mobilize health care providers, peer providers, individuals, 

family members, community- and faith-based organizations, 

government agencies, and institutions (e.g., homeless shelters, 

jails, hospitals, rehabilitation facilities) to pursue and support 

wellness as an essential part of recovery from mental and/or 

substance use disorders and trauma.

• Ensure that SAMHSA’s outreach strategies, messages, resources, 

and program tools are person directed, strengths based, trauma 

informed, and culturally relevant.

How Can Providers and Organizations Promote 

Wellness?

Behavioral health and primary care providers caring for individuals 

with behavioral health conditions can collaborate in order to work 

toward optimal wellness. They can also partner with community 

organizations to work one-on-one with people with behavioral health 

conditions and help them take steps to improve their wellness.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

http://www.hhs.gov

SAMHSA-HRSA Center for Integrated Health Solutions

http://www.integration.samhsa.gov/

healthfinder®

http://www.healthfinder.gov

Million Hearts®

http://www.millionhearts.hhs.gov

STAR Center

http://www.consumerstar.org

National Empowerment Center 

1–800–POWER2U (1–800–769–3728)

http://www.power2u.org

National Wellness Institute

http://www.nationalwellness.org

Peerlink National Technical Assistance Program

http://www.peerlinktac.org

Training and education on peer support and services 

is very important for primary care physicians and 

other medical personnel. This education will help 

ensure that behavioral health care is provided 

effectively within systems of care.

ENDNOTES

i Parks, J., Svendsen, D., Singer, P., & Foti, M. E. (Eds.). (2006). Morbidity and mortality in people with serious mental illness. Alexandria, VA: National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors 

(NASMHPD) Medical Directors Council. 

ii Erickson, W., & Lee, C. (2008). 2007 Disability Status Report: United States. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Disability Demographics and Statistics.

iii Ibid.

iv Parks, J., Radke, A. Q., & Mazade, N. A. (Eds.). (2008). Measurement of health status for people with serious mental illness. Alexandria, VA: NASMHPD Medical Directors Council. 

v Lieberman, J. A., Stroup, T. S., McEvoy, J. P., et al. (2005). Effectiveness of antipsychotic drugs in patients with chronic schizophrenia. New England Journal of Medicine, 353(12), 1209–1223. Retrieved 

from http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa051688

vi American Diabetes Association. (2004). Consensus development conference on antipsychotic drugs and obesity and diabetes. Diabetes Care, 27(2), 596–601.

vii Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). Frequently asked questions. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm#healthProb

viii Parks, J., et al. (Eds.). (2006).

ix National Alliance on Mental Illness. (n.d.). Smoking and mental illness. Retrieved from http://www.nami.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Hearts_and_Minds/Smoking_Cessation/Smoking_and_Mental_

Illness.htm

x American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Mind/body health: Obesity. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/

2016 SMA-16-4951