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Reducing Stigma
Behavioral Health Community Wellness and Civil Service: A Partnership
Reducing stigma, ensuring appropriate care, and developing mentally health communities
are a few of the important goals of RUHS-BH. With mental health in the national spotlight
related to shootings and violence, it is more important than ever that the mental health
profession educate and engage communities in discussions that fight stigma and
misinformation about people who have a mental illness. Ultimately, the success of this
effort in Riverside County relies on all leaders in the County taking a stance to fight the
stigma of mental illness and to uplift the dignity of people who have a mental illness
Up2Riverside: RUHS-BH contracts with a marketing firm, Civilian, to implement a Stigma
Discrimination Reduction and Suicide Prevention campaign in Riverside County. The
campaign Includes messaging through television and radio ads as well as print
materials reflective of Riverside County’s diverse cultural populations and targeting all age
spans. The campaign also utilizes digital media to drive individuals to resources, help
lines, and website. The Up2Riverside website offers resources, educational Information,
and digital stories containing testimonials of consumers with lived experiences and
recovery journeys.
The Directing Change Program & Film Contest is part of Each Mind Matters: California’s
Mental Health Movement. The program offers young people the exciting opportunity to
participate in the movement by creating 60-second films about suicide prevention and
mental health that are used to support awareness, education, and advocacy efforts on
these topics. Making these films gives young people the opportunity to critically explore
and develop appropriate messaging about these topics. The participation level of
Riverside County schools and students in this annual event is exceptional, as are the films
they produce.
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