At SHS, referred students find help for mental health

As a painting major, Patrick Short said he has come to accept that some people misinterpret his artwork as a sign of mental instability.

"As my body of work grows, I am constantly forced to push my subject matter, and when appropriate, include things in my work that I am actually pretty uncomfortable having the world see," said Short, a College of Fine Arts senior, in an email from Dallas.

Some subjects of Short's paintings include his genitals, scenes from his "abusive childhood" and superheroes, images that may alarm teachers after a Virginia Tech senior who created disturbing work killed 32 people in April.

"As an artist, the more you put things in your work that you are scared to put in, the crazier you seem to people who aren't artists," Short said.

Historically, creative professionals have had a greater tendency toward developing mental health issues, and because the visual arts program is so small, professors often observe signs of mental deterioration before it surfaces in students' artwork, said Jeannette Guillemin, an assistant director in the School of Visual Arts at Boston University.

"If someone is doing violent-type paintings, it doesn't necessarily mean they are a violent person," Guillemin said. "It's really their actions that would be more of the concern."

Noticeable changes in behavior include isolation from the class, spotty attendance and failure to talk to others about their work, Guillemin said.

Many young adults also compose dark material because of emotional struggles, said Dr. Margaret Ross, the behavioral medicine director at Student Health Services.

"We tend to think about [Seung-Hui Cho], but we don't think about the denominator," she said, referring to the Virginia Tech senior who killed 32 people last April. "There are millions of people writing dark poetry, and you can't call them all in for a mental health assessment."

However, Ross said if students are a significant threat to themselves or others, she would require them to stay at the behavioral medicine clinic and then go to a hospital.

"Then we are mandated by law to have them further evaluated in a hospital setting to see if ongoing in-patient hospital care is necessary," she said.

After the hospital discharges students SHS continued to check up on them closely.

"There are limits to what we can do in certain situations, but our goal is to work with every student to . . . help them agree to see someone," she said.

Ross said the behavioral medicine staff has a close relationship with faculty and staff at BU's colleges, making it easy for professors to refer a student for counseling.

SHS has been working closely with the Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders and the Albert and Jessie Danielsen Institute - both BU offices that deal with psychological issues, Ross said.

"One of the criticisms of Virginia Tech was that . . . the mental health people knew one thing, the teachers knew something else and the dorm people knew something else, and they never communicated," Ross said.

After students are referred to SHS and they meet with clinicians, they receive 50-minute evaluations that cover past mental health issues, family history and sleep habits. Clinicians make diagnostic assessments and develop treatment plans for inside or outside care based on talk therapy, medication or a combination of the two.

However, following a student evaluation, SHS can no longer discuss the issue with the professor who referred the student because of confidentiality policies. Rare exceptions are made for life-threatening emergencies. Otherwise, parents and faculty can only be notified about a student's mental health if the student grants SHS permission to release medical details.

"There are people who are disturbed and stressed and potentially violent, but most people aren't, and we want to make sure we're not overreacting, but we just want to be sure that we're ready," Ross said.

If a student in question refuses counseling, but becomes a threat in class, a dean may require the student to visit SHS for an evaluation. When there is a concern of violence, the BU Police Department can also make this assessment. However, if the student refuses care and has not acted disruptively, there is nothing the university can do, Ross said.

"It's a very sensitive issue, and it's easily misinterpreted," she said. "Mental health is a difficult business when we have to make these decisions, but it's all in mind of people's safety."