Mental health is on Dawn Garzon Maaks’ mind as she prepares to become president of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners on July 1.
Garzon Maaks, a clinical professor at the Washington State University College of Nursing in Vancouver, knows that heading the 9,000-member professional association will give her a nationwide podium, and she plans to use it.
“People are becoming more and more aware that we’re having a mental health crisis in this country,” she said recently.
Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among young people ages 10 to 34, topped only by death from unintentional injury, such as car accidents.
“We recognized in the 1970s and 80s that we had to address automobile accidents, so we redesigned our roads and cars and put laws in place to require seatbelts,” Garzon Maaks said. “We changed people’s behavior, and now we have fewer people dying from car accidents in 2018 than we did in 1998.”
It’s time to bring that same comprehensive approach to mental health and suicide prevention, she believes.
She also plans to use the next year talking about the long-term, negative effects of childhood trauma and abuse, and hopes to raise the profile of nurses in public discussions of health care and mental health.
Garzon Maaks has been working in pediatric primary care for nearly 25 years, for much of that time specializing in pediatric mental health. She’s worked concurrently in nursing education for 20 years.
Pediatric nurse practitioners provide both primary care and specialty care. Their patients could be an infant born prematurely who has complex health issues, or an 8-year-old who’s hospitalized with a serious illness. A 12-year-old who needs a sports physical and wellness information, or a 16-year-old who’s battling anxiety and depression.
“The beauty of what we do as pediatric-focused APRNs is provide that developmentally grounded perspective to the care of children and families, in whatever setting they need regardless of what types of health care they need,” Garzon Maaks said.
As president of the organization that’s known as NAPNAP, “I really look forward to the opportunity to advocate for child health and wellness,” she said.
–Story by Addy Hatch
