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Mental Health Association in NC, Inc
E-Advocate
May 2008 Edition
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MHA/NC Headline News…
MHA/NC Launches New Website!
In an effort to better serve our supporters, community, consumers and their families, MHA/NC is proud to announce the launching of our new and improved website. You can visit us online at the same address: www.mha-nc.org. This website has several advanced features, including online event registration, online donation acceptance, affiliate log-in sections, job posting programs, newsletter sign-up, and mass email/newsletter distribution capabilities. As we continue to enhance our online communications and outreach, the site will soon include additional features, such as a Spanish version to better communicate with our Hispanic/Latino population. The new site also features a more advanced program for electronic communications than what we have previously been using. If you would like to receive our electronic communications and have not already done so, please sign up at
http://www.mha-nc.org/english/index.php/Newsletter-Signup.html.
Candidates for Governor Weigh In on Mental Health
The Associated Press encouraged responses from the eight major party gubernatorial candidates regarding mental health in an article published April 25. The article posed the following questions regarding mental health and recorded the candidates’ unabridged responses, edited for AP style:
1. In 2001, lawmakers began to overhaul the state
' s mental health treatment system by shifting more patients from institutional care to community-based treatment by private doctors and services. The reforms have stalled and are widely regarded by critics and advocates of the mentally ill as a failure. As governor, what will you do in your first two years in office to improve the state
' s mental health care system?
2. Do you support a law - as proposed by a campus safety task force led by Attorney General Roy Cooper - to bar handgun sales to people who have been involuntarily committed to mental hospitals? Read the full article and candidates’ responses at: http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/2796046/
Golfing For Kids Tourney Coming up May 19th, Sign-up Now!!
It’s almost time for MHA/NC’s 12th Annual Golfing for Kids Charity Golf Classic, Monday, May 19, 2008 at the Governor’s Club in
Chapel Hill . In addition to golf, lunch and special prizes will provided for those in attendance. Jeff Gravley, Sports Anchor for WRAL/FOX, will be the celebrity host, and the News & Observer is our Premier Media Sponsor. For more information, visit www.mha-nc.org or contact Jeff Furst at 1-800-745-5067.
Recommendations on "Reforming" the Reform
The Mental Health Association in
Greensboro
' s Board of Directors has adopted a statement on NC
' s mental health system of care that includes eight specific recommendations for "reforming" the reform. The overall goal is to ensure that by the end of 2011, state-of-the-art mental health, developmental disabilities, and substance abuse treatment and support services will be readily available to all
North Carolinians , without regard to ability to pay or county of residence. A copy of the recommendations is available at http://mhag.org/reform.cfm. The Association welcomes other groups to share the recommendations with NC legislators by adding their endorsement to the statement. Contact
Greensboro
' s Executive Director Blair Benson,
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or 336/373-1402.
Come Meet Dorothy Hamill!
MHA/NC 2008 Annual Conference – September 17th-18th, 2008!
Dorothy Hamill will be the featured speaker at MHA/NC ‘s 2008 Annual Conference, It’s Your Voice, Let it Be Heard. The conference will take place September 17-18 at the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort at
Wrightsville Beach, NC . Dorothy’s presentation will be part of an awards luncheon on Thursday, September 18th. For more information, or to register, visit www.mha-nc.org.
The Coalition: 2008 Legislative Events & Important Dates
The Coalition consists of individuals and organizations working together to meet the needs of North Carolinians living with mental illness, developmental disabilities, and the disease of addiction. As in past years, the Coalition is hosting a series of events during the upcoming Legislative session as a way for constituents to meet and discuss topics of importance with their State Representatives and Senators.
Mark your calendars now for these important dates:
May 13 – First Day of Legislative Session
May 21 – Coalition Popcorn Rally
June 4 – Coalition Central Regional Breakfast
June 18 – Coalition Eastern Regional Breakfast
June 24– Coalition Western Regional Breakfast
For more information on these events go to our Upcoming Events or contact
Erin McLaughlin at 1-800-897-7494.
Upcoming Events…
Anger Management
CONNECTIONS Family Program will be hosting a free lunch n’ learn on Anger Management. The program will be on Monday, May 5, 2008 at
First
United
Methodist
Church at 410 E. Washington Street in Rockingham (
Richmond
County ) from 11:30AM to 1:00PM. Lunch will be provided free of charge. To register, contact Adrian Lovelace at 919-866-3273 or 910-895-9553 or toll free at 866-916-1493 or by email
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Please register by May 2nd.
Mental Illness Exhibit in
Wilmington
Something unique and special is coming to
Wilmington ! The Mental Health Association and the National Alliance for Mental Illness will bring to the
Port
City , Nothing to Hide: Mental Illness in the Family, a traveling, museum quality, photo-text exhibit. This event will correspond with Mental Health Month and the exhibit will be displayed at the main branch of the New Hanover County Library, May 2-8 and Independence Mall, May 9-15. By sharing their stories of courage and hope, these families are helping to dispel harmful stereotypes, myths, and misconceptions about mental illness.
Adolescent Depression and Suicide Awareness
On Thursday, May 8, 2008 from 3:00PM to 5:00 PM at the Hoke County Library in Raeford, there will be a presentation on Adolescent Depression and Suicide Awareness by Judy A. Schmidt. Warning signs, crisis response and interventions, therapies, medications, etc. will be discussed. Family members, caregivers, social workers, case managers, school resource officers and direct care members are encouraged to attend. For more information or to register please contact Wendy at (910) 635-6264 (leave voicemail) or email to
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Free Training for Pharmacists, Caregivers and Individuals Taking Over Three Medications Regarding Drug Interactions!
The Mental Health Association in
Wilson
County is partnering with the Wilson County Family Caregiver Support Program to sponsor a Medication Management Seminar in
Wilson
County . The event will take place on Wednesday, May 21, 2008 from 2:00PM to 4:00PM at the UNC School of Pharmacy. The event is for caregivers, pharmacists, and patients regarding drug interactions. For more information contact Jennifer Hancock
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Mental Health Roundtable, the 4th Thursday of each month!
Let your voice be heard and join us for our monthly Mental Health Roundtable where we aren’t just complaining! Come and share your knowledge and experience with the Mental Health Delivery system in
Wilson
County . Each month we are tackling the problems we have identified with mental health service delivery in
Wilson
County .
We meet at Imagination Station at the Merck Courtroom on the 2nd floor from NOON TO 1:30 PM. For more information or a copy of the working document please contact us at
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NC Council’s 2008 Spring Policy Forum
The Spring Policy Forum is from June 9-10, 2008 in
New Bern, NC . The NC Council’s Spring Policy Forum is offering attendees the tools and resources to adapt to service system trends. The sessions offered reflect the critical importance of the business side of the service system and keeping everyone updated on the latest policy and political changes ahead. This conference offers trainings that will support all MH/DD/SAS stakeholders in the Target Audience of:
Local Management Entities and their staff
Board Members, Service Providers CEOs and Management Staff, Supervisors, Quality Improvement Staff, Counselors, Service Coordinators, Social Workers, Hospital Leaders, Consumer and Family Advisory Committee Members, Advocates, and others interested in our system. For more information and to register visit www.nc-council.org.
Other News in Mental Health…
Leading National Organization Calls on Presidential Candidates To Emphasize Mental Health in Health Policy Plans
Mental Health
America is calling on all three presidential candidates to address the critical importance of mental illnesses and mental health in their health policy proposals. "Any plan to modernize our health care system and proposals to contain costs could hardly find a better target for achieving those goals than mental health," said David Shern, Ph.D., president and CEO of Mental Health
America . "The candidates take different approaches on health policy. What they have in common is a failure to specifically and fully emphasize the importance of mental illnesses and mental health."
Read the full article at: http://www.nmha.org/index.cfm?objectid=81814505-1372-4D20-C86BA6F4737BB17C
The 2008 Presidential Primaries
:
Bringing Mental Healthcare to the Ballot
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) has sent a questionnaire to all presidential candidates in each party. Read their responses at: http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=2008_Primaries_and_Elections&Template=/ContentManagement/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentID=55411
Contact MHA/NC's Information & Referral Line at 1-800-897-7494 or callctr@mha-nc.org
for non-crisis mental health information statewide.
Please feel free to share this publication with colleagues & friends and
visit MHA/NC online at www.mha-nc.org.
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