Investing in mental health and substance use awareness,
screening, treatment, and surveillance in St. Louis The advice to "invest in mental health and drug use awareness, screening, treatment, and monitoring" is the main topic of this Conversation Guide. In order to bring this discussion to your community and take action to support mental health in the St. Louis area, we invite you to use the Action Toolkit that comes with this Conversation Guide. The Discussion Guide and the Action Toolkit are also available in a digital format with more materials. BACKGROUND Our behavioural health—which includes issues with mental well-being and drug abuse—is a crucial component of our general health. It affects all aspect of our life, including the way we feel, behave, and think. It may also have an impact on our physical health by making us more susceptible to illness and death. Adults with major mental illness pass away 25 years sooner than the typical American, usually as a result of curable physical illnesses. 1 The effects of behavioural h