NCDHHS Livestream Fireside Chat and Tele-Town Hall: Navigating mental wellness, aging, caregiving and the impacts of COVID-19

RALEIGH — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services will host a live fireside chat and tele-town hall on Wednesday, Jan. 25, from 6 to 7 p.m. to discuss the following:

• Mental Wellness: ways to protect your mental health, identify mental health disorders and encourage people to seek support services
• Aging Adults: mental illness and COVID-19 resources and services that may be especially useful to aging adults, including those who are homebound, and ways to support older adults and caregivers
• Latest COVID-19 Information: connections between COVID-19 and mental wellness, details on updated COVID-19 vaccines for most people 6 months and older, new telemedicine treatments and upcoming changes to free federally funded vaccines

Event participants include:

• Dr. Elizabeth Tilson, North Carolina's State Health Director and NCDHHS' chief medical officer
• Victor Armstrong, MSW, chief diversity officer, RI International
• Heather Burkhardt, MSW, executive director, North Carolina Coalition on Aging

Conversations around mental wellness can be lifesaving and take many forms within different communities and cultures. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 50% of Americans will experience a mental health condition in their lifetime. The impacts of COVID-19 continue to affect both mental and physical wellness in youth as well as adults.

An updated dose of the COVID-19 vaccine is available for most people ages 6 months and older to strengthen protection against variants, severe illness and long-term complications from the virus. However, the risks of severe illness and COVID-19-related hospitalization continue to be greater among people 50 and older who are not up to date on COVID-19 vaccines.

As COVID-19 cases rise and fall and seasonal illnesses like RSV and the flu continue to circulate, it is important for everyone to stay up to date on COVID-19 vaccines, get a flu shot and take precautions to protect themselves and vulnerable members of their community.

The fireside chat will stream live from the NCDHHS Facebook, Twitter and YouTube accounts, where viewers can submit questions. The event also includes a tele-town hall, which invites people by phone to listen in and submit questions. People can also dial into the event by calling (855)-756-7520 Ext. 90975#.

NCDHHS fireside chats and tele-town halls are part of the state’s ongoing public efforts to reduce COVID-19, ensure equitable access to timely information, resources and COVID-19 vaccines and eliminate health disparities.