Tuesday, October 07, 2003

NAMI Participates in Congressional Symposium
NAMI press release - " From Washington D.C.’s Congressional Symposium to a silent, solitary, candle-lit moment of remembrance in Bird City, Kansas, U.S. citizens are participating in the nation’s observance of Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW), October 5-11. It is an opportunity to advocate with federal and state lawmakers, civic club members, faith-based and social groups – or educate through schools, news media, even sidewalk information tables at a Wal-Mart – for and with people living with mental illnesses. As The Nation’s Voice on Mental Illness, NAMI embraces MIAW and works with partners, professionals and fellow advocates to heighten understanding about serious mental illnesses and achieve access to treatments that work for the 18 million Americans affected by them..."  
  

Troops Get Mandatory Postwar Counseling
AP story reprinted at PsycPORT with a dateline of Fort Stewart (Georgia) - "For U.S. soldiers who fought in Iraq, the war isn't necesarily over once they come home. Memories can linger, so the Army is trying to help troops cope with the aftermath by having them undergo mandatory counseling upon their return. ... All 16,500 soldiers from Fort Stewart's 3rd Infantry who fought in Iraq have undergone mandatory counseling to deal with their feelings about the war and the return home. One of the most surprising things is how many soldiers have set aside the military machismo of the past and sought additional help, attending optional counseling sessions offered by the Army."  
  

Steep Rise in Abuse of Legal Drugs
ABC News story - "SAMHSA estimates 9 million people now abuse prescription drugs, meaning they use them for non-medical, and often recreational, purposes. Three million abusers are kids between the ages of 12 and 17 years old. And the abuse can be deadly: Prescription drugs now play a factor in a quarter of all overdose deaths reported in the United States. U.S. drug officials say this represents a dramatic surge — one that took them by surprise. It has presented a whole new set of challenges, such as a lack of law-enforcement resources to track down shadowy Internet sites and unethical doctors and pharmacists. Another key issue: finding a way to balance any law-enforcement measures with the needs of legitimate online pharmacies that have helped the elderly and others save money and time."  
  

HHS Announces $1.5 Million to Promote Exemplary Mental Health Practices in Communities
SAMHSA press release - "Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced 10 one-year grants totaling $1.5 million to promote the adoption of exemplary mental health practices in communities around the country. These grants are designed to help support consensus building, infrastructure development, and training activities for the delivery of services to children with serious emotional disturbance, adults with serious mental illness and those with co-occurring substance disorders."  
  

Group urges education about mental illness (Louisiana)
Story in The Advocate - "About 70 people gathered Monday on the steps of the State Capitol to talk about erasing the stigma of mental illness and correcting misconceptions about its treatability. 'The population in general is very uneducated about mental illness,' said Adrian Berry, executive director of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Louisiana. Berry was one of several speakers during the event, which marked the start of Louisiana's Mental Illness Awareness Week."  
  

Prison pilot program under way (Pennsylvania)
Daily Local News story - "The Chester County commissioners recently approved a $40,000 consulting contract to improve efforts to divert mentally ill, nonviolent offenders from the criminal justice system. This contract with a Seattle-based consultant is part of a $250,000 state grant the county received last year to develop a pilot program that will help determine the feasibility of establishing similar programs statewide."  
  

Machine provides a virtual glimpse into mental illness
Story in The Oregonian - " The machine is the size of a small suitcase, black, bland, innocuous. But inside lies a glimpse of the pain and confusion of schizophrenia. Portland-area residents Monday were able to try out the machine to help people experience what life is like for those with severe and persistent mental illness. Fitted with goggles and earphones, users enter a virtual world, where hallucinations and voices bombard them from all sides. John Holmes, executive director of The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Multnomah County, which helped bring the machine to Portland for two days of public events to kick off mental illness awareness week, said he hopes those who use the machine will walk away with more empathy of an often misunderstood and stigmatized population."  
  

More state aid urged for mental health system (New Jersey)
October 4 Star-Ledger story - "Mental health advocates yesterday lobbied for increased government funding for psychiatric treatment and programs for needy New Jersey residents, saying there must be a more steady flow of money for the state's mental health system. Speaking at the 4th annual legislative breakfast of the Essex County Mental Health Coalition in West Orange, advocates pointed out the consumer price index has been rising an average of 3 percent in recent years but state funding for mental health programs has gone up only an average of 1.5 percent."  
  

Media coverage of mental health criticised (UK)
Story in The Scotsman - "One of Britain’s leading psychiatrists yesterday condemned the media for its "negative" coverage of mental health issues. Dr Mike Shooter, the President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, told a conference in Aberdeen, attended by health professionals and service users, that people suffering from mental illness too often attracted fear and hostility. "  
  

Families get help finding way around mental health system (Pennsylvania)
Story in the Observer-Reporter - "When a child is diagnosed with a mental illness, the family experiences a variety of emotions. Thanks to the new Family Partner Program through NAMI of Southwestern Pennsylvania, helplessness in navigating the system won't be one of them. The pilot program, being offered only in Washington and Indiana counties, provides emotional and technical support after a child is diagnosed with a mental illness."  
  

Website for Maori mental health (New Zealand)
Story at Stuff.com - "A website designed to educate and test psychiatric registrars' knowledge of Maori mental health issues will be launched in Hamilton today. All psychiatric registrars will be required to receive additional specialist training in Maori mental health issues from December. The Te Iho website, developed by Auckland psychiatrists with sponsorship from pharmaceutical firm Janssen-Vilag, provides information on topics such as disparities in Maori mental health and the implications of loss of identity among Maori. It also includes formal assessments..." See also the Maori Mental Health Registrar Training Website.  
  

Man launches hunger strike for mental health (Canada)
CBC-New Brunswick story - "A New Brunswick man is on a hunger strike to bring attention to mental health services in the province. Robert MacKay wants the Department of Health and Wellness to allow mental health patients to run programs for their peers. He says policies exist to allow this to happen, but for some reason, no programs are in place."  
  

Norfolk mental health center backed (Iowa)
Sioux City Journal story - "Sen. Jim Jensen doesn't have all the answers when it comes to explaining how the state may move toward a community-based mental health system. The state senator from Omaha and chairman of the Legislature's Health and Human Services Committee was quizzed Monday at a hearing in Norfolk, home to a state mental hospital that could close under legislation being drafted by Jensen's staff."  
  

Attack fuels concerns for safety of mental health workers (New Zealand)
Story at Stuff.com - "A suicide prevention group is reviewing its safety procedures after a supervisor was attacked last week. ... The assault comes after the Waikato District Health Board released figures showing that over a nine-month period, 15 per cent of patients admitted to its care – 535 – committed violent acts or were verbally aggressive. The results are being presented to the Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists Conference in Hamilton today. "  
  

Kids' Mental Health Care Varies by State
HealthDayNews story at Yahoo - "A review of mental health care for children revealed wide disparities in 13 states that represent a cross-section of the nation. The comparison, done by researchers from RAND Health, found that mental health programs serve a far greater share of children in some states than in others, but that states with a higher use of children's mental health services don't necessarily have a higher need for them." See also the full report, Geographic Disparities in Children's Mental Health Care (Adobe Acrobat format).