Life in agriculture isn’t always easy, from long hours in a tractor to financial uncertainty, it can lead to unbearable stress quickly. Plus, asking for help in a rural area is hard. Avera’s Farm and Rural Stress Hotline can be a resource for those looking for support or someone to talk to. Karl Oehlke, a physician assistant with Avera Behavioral Health, and a farmer himself, offers insight into why it can be difficult for farmers to seek help while also sharing information about available resources.
How accessible are mental health resources for farmers and ranchers?
Accessibility has significantly improved on both the inpatient and outpatient side but also just because of virtual appointments as well, that certainly does open up the ability for folks to stay closer to home or even be in their own primary care providers office and still access a mental health provider.
Is a specific age group more likely to seek help?
I will say the older generations have told me, folks I’ve never got into the clinic, colleagues that I’ve known or neighbors and friends, that the stigma of mental health historically oftentimes prevents them from getting help. That generation was the generation that was often told pull yourself up by your bootstraps, grit your teeth and get through those types of things.
Younger generations on the other hand have oftentimes told me that guilt gets in the way significantly of them getting help. A lot of them have said with the advances in technology, equipment and automation, their efficiency and productivity, should be so much greater than the older generation. Just because they feel that the advancements that we have now should be making farming and ranching more productive and more efficient.
How would you describe the mental health of farmers and ranchers today versus several years ago?
I would say the severity of mental health is probably the same. It is probably talked about to a greater degree now and the accessibility is much better. I still think we are battling hurdles, mainly stigma, that fear of having someone else find out.
What is Avera's Farm and Rural Stress Hotline?
It’s staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by our trained and licensed assessment providers who then triage that call and coordinate where that producer or family member or anyone really involved in agriculture, would prefer to get help and what kind of help they are looking for. The phone number is 800-691-4336.
Learn more about Avera's Farm and Rural Stress Hotline.
