Upcoming Conferences

National Conference Focused on Fighting Stigma to Take Place Feb. 18-20, 2015

The 7^th International Together Against Stigma conference will be held at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco Feb. 18-20, 2015; there will be a pre-conference institute on Feb. 17. The theme of the conference is “Together Against Stigma: Each Mind Matters.” The conference is organized in partnership with the California Institute for Behavioral Health Solutions, the California Mental Health Services Authority, the World Psychiatric Association Scientific Section on Stigma and Mental Health, and the County Behavioral Health Directors Association of California. For more information, click here.

National Dialogues on Behavioral Health Conference in New Orleans, Nov. 2-5                                 

 A national conference titled “Opportunities in Behavioral Health Crisis Services: What Is the New Frontier?” will take place at the Renaissance Arts Hotel in New Orleans Nov. 2-5, 2014. On Nov. 2, there will be a pre-conference workshop entitled “Implementing Trauma-Informed Approaches across Service Systems.” The conference organizers write: “What happens when a person experiences a behavioral health crisis? Unfortunately, inappropriate involvement with law enforcement and hospitalization is often the result. The question is: What should happen?” The conference will focus on “issues and models related to services for persons experiencing a behavioral health crisis.” The conference is co-sponsored by the National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors and the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education. For more information and to register, click here.

 

Engage in Social Media at Alternatives 2014, Including a Pre-Conference Workshop on Twitter!

Be part of the conversation by sharing your Alternatives 2014 conference experience on Twitter and Facebook! You can Tweet quotes and highlights during sessions, and post photos and short videos! Post to Twitter with our hashtag #AltCon14. (All Tweets are the opinions of individuals and do not constitute endorsement or recommendation by SAMHSA.) And if you’re new to social media, you can learn to use Twitter by attending a pre-conference workshop on “Using Twitter to Learn, Share and Connect: Introductory Hands-On Orientation,” taught by Leah Harris and Tanya Naranjo! (Thanks, Leah and Tanya!) The session will take place in the Multicultural Room (Grand Sierra C) on Wednesday, Oct. 22, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Here is the workshop description: “Do you want to use Twitter but find it intimidating to get started? What are hashtags and how are they used? What is ‘live Tweeting’ and how does one do that? In this hands-on introductory session, you will discover how to use Twitter to learn, share, and connect. Please plan to bring your smartphone, tablet, or laptop with the Twitter application downloaded, and an account created. To sign up with Twitter, click here.”

"The Value of Peer and Family Support"

In order to increase awareness and help educate Americans about mental health, SAMHSA/CMHS Director Paolo del Vecchio, M.S.W., is releasing a series of blogs that discuss important issues for the behavioral health community and the nation. Mr. del Vecchio's latest post focuses on "The Value of Peer and Family Support":

 

There are many studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of peer support. For example, research has demonstrated that peer support helps improve the mental health of veterans, makes people reduces hospital visits for those with co-occurring disorders, and increases coping skills of families with a family member who has a mental illness. Because of studies like these, SAMHSA, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and over 40 states consider peer and family support an evidence-based practice.

Beyond the numbers, stories from real people who have had their lives changed for the better show how critical it can be. Here’s what one man in recovery named Jeff had to say:

In my adult life, I’ve had about nine serious suicide attempts, and I’ve been hospitalized 15 times (two of which were long-term stays). It wasn’t until the mid-80s that I found really positive treatment after I became involved with a peer support group. I learned a lot from my fellow consumers about medications and therapy that could improve the treatment I’d had….I want to share my story in hopes of giving others with psychiatric disabilities the knowledge that they are not alone and there is hope for the future.

SAMHSA supports the development of peer and family support efforts through National Technical Assistance Centers, Consumer and Family Network Grants, Recovery Community Services Program, and the Alternatives Conference, which is a place where individuals with serious mental illnesses from all over the nation can meet, exchange information and ideas, and provide and receive technical assistance. Peer support services usually operate in conjunction with clinical services which amplify the benefit of treatment by engaging peers in services they might otherwise not accept, offering ongoing support and psychosocial rehabilitation, and encouraging peers to stay in treatment and services by sharing their stories of recovery.

Many peer support services require that they be part of a treatment plan authorized by a “licensed practitioner of the healing arts” such as a psychiatrist, psychologist, or physician in order to be reimbursed by Medicaid under Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rules. Peer support services are a valuable adjunct to traditional care that are known to contribute to improved outcomes in employment, education, housing stability, satisfaction, self-esteem, medication adherence, and decrease in the need for more costly services, such as hospitalizations. Peer-provided services help to foster recovery, increase treatment and service engagement, reduce acute care use, and improve quality of life.

 

Click on the following link to read more from Mr. del Vecchio's latest blog post: http://blog.samhsa.gov/2014/05/26/the-value-of-peer-and-family-support/#.U4YRXi_gWYV. Please feel free to share this – along with the others in the series that will be published during May - with your networks and help continue the conversation.

The Deadline for Alternatives 2011 Workshop and Institute Proposals Has Been Extended!

The deadline to submit proposals to present workshops and institutes at Alternatives 2011 has been extended! The new deadline is June 14, 2011!

Everyone is invited to consider becoming a presenter at Alternatives 2011. First-time presenters are especially welcome! Learning from each other is a clear example of self-help, mutual support and the principles of recovery in action!

The Call for Papers is available for download or online submission at http://www.alternatives2011.org!

Reposted at darkestcloset.blogspot.com