New podcast 'Lost Patients' takes a deep look at mental illness in WA

Mar. 5—If you compare recent news stories about mental health with articles from 40, even 50 years ago, it's shocking how similar they are.

They talk about people with serious mental illnesses caught in cycles of homelessness, arrests and stays in psychiatric institutions. Here in Seattle, there are articles from the early 80s that describe the "revolving door" between Harborview Medical Center, Western State Hospital and homelessness service agencies downtown — a line that sounds eerily similar to context used frequently in articles today.

How, after so many decades, are we still in this position? Why are we still failing so many people?

In a new podcast called "Lost Patients," launching next Tuesday, journalists from The Seattle Times and KUOW investigate why mental health care in Washington is the way it is, and what we might do to improve it.

Listen to the trailer here:

The 6-part series, hosted and reported by Will James at KUOW with Seattle Times investigative reporter Sydney Brownstone and former Seattle Times Mental Health Project reporter Esmy Jimenez, examines the difficulties of treating serious mental illness through the lens of Seattle's past, present and future.

"We think we can tell you what happened to psychiatric care in this country," James says. "Why so many people who need this care the most end up lost."

Episodes explore what it's like to experience psychosis, the impact of controversial psychiatric treatments in the 1970s, and the ethical tension between preserving a person's liberty and ensuring their safety.

The podcast features revelatory new reporting and investigations, as well as deeper dives into stories featured recently by The Seattle Times, such as the fate of a man who spent nearly a year at Western State Hospital only to be discharged into homelessness.

"Lost Patients" is distributed by the NPR Network and will be available on all major podcast platforms.

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