Dr. Kaz Nelson: States Should Implement Curriculum for Mental Health

Suicide rates have increased 25% since 1999 and only continue to climb. With such a significant increase health professionals have fueled the need for more research on the issue, but with that comes challenges. "It's happening at a pace where it's hard to even study and understand the factors that go into it," Dr. Kaz Nelson, Department of Psychiatry, told KSTP.

Still, Doctors like Kaz Nelson believe policy needs to change in order to reverse the trend. "Emotional self-management classes in school (to address) what do you do to tolerate distress? How do you regulate emotions skillfully? How do you interact with others in a way that fosters healthy relationships? All of these skills, not everybody has," Nelson said in an interview with KSTP.  "The stakes are very high with this. Even higher than knowing calculus or not."