What is Advocacy?

To be an advocate is to be more than a cheerleader for a particular cause. For Mental Health Virginia, it means:

• Educating the community and policy makers that mental health is part of everyone’s health
• Offering supporting programs and resources to those who need it most
• Changing the perceptions that surround individuals affected by mental illness
• Supporting a fully funded continuum of care in each community, with less reliance on emergency rooms and hospitalization.