I agree with Dr. Alan Salerian, the psychiatrist you quoted when he said, “we must open our eyes to the perils of untreated mental illness.”

Intervening in another person’s life in order to get treatment for his/her mental illness is easier said than done. Actually it is very, very difficult and sometimes near impossible because of the stigma involved, issues of confidentiality and, of course, the terribly antiquated mental health laws! There is presently however, a movement intended to reduce and eliminate barriers that keep the mentally ill from receiving the help they so desperately need.

I am thinking in particular of the nonprofit Treatment Advocacy Center (TAC). Its sole purpose is to identify and eliminate these barriers. You can find its Web site by simply typing in the “Treatment Advocacy Center” on the search item of the Internet

Doretta “Sally” Van Tassel,

Lawrence