PROVO -- Imagine being a high school principal, an LDS bishop or Relief Society president or the leader of a volunteer group. One day someone -- a 12-year-old Girl Scout, a starter on the football team or the volunteer who works full-time and has a family -- sits down in an office, shuts the door and says he or she has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

The surprised leader might offer sympathy. He might say there's help available, and people live with this every day. She might give the girl a hug and offer to drive her to the doctor's office. They might, for lack of anything better, say it's going to be OK.

Organizers of a meeting on mental health issues are hoping to provide these same leaders with more detailed responses about where to get help, what resources are available in the county and what the reality of mental health issues are.

"We know everybody usually turns to somebody to say, 'We need help with this; what do you know of?' " said Janet Frank, spokeswoman for Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo.

The hospital, along with BYU, United Way of Utah County and the National Association of Mental Illness, is holding the meeting, which runs from 6 to 9 p.m. today at the Harmon Conference Center at BYU. It's the first of its kind, Frank said, and brought about because a targeted group at the hospital that studies mental health felt more information was needed community-wide.

This meeting is aimed toward those most likely to become confidants, including religious leaders, school counselors, nurses and principals, physicians and directors of nonprofit organizations. They also invited mayors and city council members as a way to publicize the available services.

So far, it's generating some interest to get a much-needed discussion going on this subject. Frank said many people have pre-registered for the meeting, including responding to a survey about how much of an issue this is for them.

"The vast majority of them have put 'strongly agree' that people need to know about this stuff," Frank said.

Doran Williams, the associate director of Wasatch Mental Health, said nationwide studies have shown that one in seven people suffer from some form of mental disorder, be that ADD, major depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or one of numerous others. Wasatch Mental Health serves about 6,000 people a year of differing income levels, ages and backgrounds.

"That's one thing, that mental health does not discriminate against either age or gender or race," he said.

Besides sharing the available resources that people might already know about, speakers will discuss what to do when a person with a mental illness needs help outside of normal business hours and options that people might not have considered, such as mental health court.

They also have invited a police officer to take part in a panel discussion at the end of the evening to discuss what happens when people call the police. Frank said people have said they worry about calling the police because they don't know what to expect, even when a mentally ill person is dangerous and there is not another option.

"We're trying to provide a list of possible resources out there," she said.

One of those resources is United Way's 211 line; people can dial that from anywhere in Utah and get referrals to different help options in the area. Communications manager Brenna Cox said they average about 400 calls a week from people looking for more information. It isn't a crisis management hotline, but it is a good way to find help, she said.

People also get the same information from 211 that the audience will get at tonight's meeting. This event is not for the general public, Frank said, although in the future it may be opened up to a wider audience. The meeting will be broadcast on Provo's cable channel.

• Heidi Toth can be reached at (801) 344-2556 or htoth@heraldextra.com.