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Dear PPAL Friends and Supporters,
The snow has begun its long melt and our focus is shifting to May, which is mental health month. Celebration and awareness takes preparation so please send in your events for Children's Mental Health Week and your "asks" for mayoral proclamations. All your efforts and ideas go into raising awareness across the state. At the end of May is our 5th annual conference and we have a great keynote speaker and workshops you'll love. It is May 29 -- so save that date!
Snowy weather didn't stop us from posting two wonderful blogs. Ally C wrote about her experience as an active participant in our YOUTH M.O.V.E chapter titled, How PPAL Has Helped Me and you can read it here. Her blog was followed up by one of my own. This post, called That's what our families look like can be read here. Did you know that our posts are being read and shared all over the country? I often hear from others in Texas, Michigan and Arizona, as well as many other states. Thanks for forwarding on the ones you like!
Warm Regards,
Lisa Lambert, Executive Director
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PPAL Launches Our Own "University"
PPAL announces the launch of the University of PPAL (UP). UP offers courses to train, inform and empower families. UP is also here to work with professionals, helping them to engage families and youth. And youth can participate in valuable skill-building courses, all of which are led by other youth.
The University of PPAL kicks off in April with six courses focused on the specific concerns of families, youth and providers who make up the mental health community. For families, UP offers courses which help youth and families access information and build skills in the important areas of educational needs and engaging with their mental health care providers. For professionals/providers, courses are focused on how to engage with families so that youth and families' participation in their mental health care is meaningful and effective. UP also offers training for families and professionals who interact in the juvenile justice world to explain the process to all parties from their different perspectives in order to improve outcomes for children and youth.
For more information, please watch our website at
www.ppal.net. More courses will be added as UP expands in the coming months.
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Children's Mental Health Week
is just around the corner
The first full week in May is our favorite awareness week -- Children's Mental Health Week. CMH Week is May 3-9 and events, materials and exciting ideas on how to celebrate are coming soon.
This year's theme, "Mental Health is Fundamental" emphasizes how essential mental health is to overall health.
Planning an event for CMH Week? Let us know by April 7th!
PPAL would love to hear about your events and feature them in the calendar of events. Please send them in quickly and be sure to include a description, a time/date, location and other details. Events might include: support group speakers, community events, outings, dinners and other activities.
Ask your mayor or town council to issue a proclamation! Each year towns and cities across Massachusetts sign proclamations -- be sure your town or city is one of them. Looking for sample language? Email us.
Don't forget to send an email with your updated address to [email protected] if you'd like a Children's Mental Health Awareness Week toolkit!
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PPAL'S 5TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE & CELEBRATION
 PPAL will hold its 5th Conference and Celebration on Friday, May 29 in Marlboro. We have an amazing keynote speaker, youth track and exciting workshops.
Our keynote speaker is Victoria Costello, author of A Lethal Inheritance:A Mother Uncovers the Science Behind Three Generations of Mental Illness. Victoria also writes the Mental Heatlh Mom blog, is a science writer and has written extensively about parenting and mental illness.
Workshop topics will include Trauma and Addiction, Making Positive Connections with Your School. Restorative Justice and a Frank Talk on Mental Health. This is a small sampling of the day.
More details about workshops and registration will be announced this week. Stay tuned to PPAL'swebsite for the most up-to-date information. We will return to last year's location: The Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel and Trade Center in Marlborough, MA.
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Setting the (Medical) Record Straight
The results of PPAL's survey on electronic health records (EHRs) and families were presented by Lisa Lambert at a poster session at the
28th Annual Research and Policy Conference
in Tampa. PPAL surveyed 203 families in April and May 2014. This study is the first of its kind -- similar studies have collected information from medical staff.
While families had hope that EHRs could increase coordination of care, they also worried that they increased the vulnerability of their children's health information to hackers.
Key findings include:
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71% of parents thought behavioral health clinical notes were in the electronic record
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37% thought age, ethnicity and other information about the parents and siblings was kept in their child's medical record
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12% thought their credit card information was kept on file
The report is being written and complete results will be on our website shortly.
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Beth Pond, Norma Mora present at FCSN
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Norma Mora, Anne Silver and Beth Pond of PPAL's at our table at FCSN.
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PPAL was represented at the Federation for Children with Special Needs Visions of Community 2015 Conference by Anne Silver, Meri Viano, Beth Pond and Norma Mora. Hundreds of parents and professionals stopped by the PPAL resource table to learn about our resources, supports and community activities. It was a great day of networking, and to make the day even more exciting, three members of PPAL's staff led two separate workshops.
Meri Viano and Beth Pond led a workshop called Mental Health in School:
Let's talk about it
which focused on tips and tools for parents navigating the school system for their child with mental health challenges.
The workshop was very interactive with parents, school staff and child-serving providers
talking about it
and learning from Beth, Meri and each other.
PPAL's Outreach Coordinator, Norma Mora led a workshop in Spanish called Apoyo a los Ninos con Problemas Emocionales (Supporting Children with Emotional Problems). She helped attendees learn about Children's Behavioral Health Initiative system services created for children and youth up to age 21 who are enrolled in MassHealth and need help with emotional and behavioral problems to remain at home.
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Juvenile Justice
 PPAL continues to advocate on behalf of families who may be entering the Juvenile Justice System. PPAL's enthusiasm is rising as we continue to teach and discuss family voice, engagement and involvement among state-run committees including dually-involved youth, inter-agency involved youth, Alternatives to Detention, Family Engagement in Strategic Planning, JDAI steering committees and family events within DYS. ( Please see schedule to attend
here.)
We have also reached out directly to public schools in Boston, Southeast, Worcester and Northeast. Collaborations with probation and police officers continue to grow offering guidance, understanding of emotional, behavioral, and mental health. PPAL continues delivery of trainings aimed at increasing the knowledge of youth, families and parents raising children in the community needing assistance.
PPAL trainings this month were: Worcester-Centro Los Americano's on Mobile Crisis Intervention, Boston-Crisis Planning with the Parent Cafe at Children Services of Roxbury and Juvenile Justice 101 with the Youth Move Massachusetts group. PPAL currently has a Juvenile Justice Parent Leadership Group- for more information, to join, or if you know someone who could use support, please email
[email protected].
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IT'S AWARD NOMINATION TIME!
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Do you know someone who's made a big difference in their own and others' lives? During our annual conference, we will award several people for their outstanding commitment to serving children's mental health. We welcome your
nominations by April 10, 2015.
Here are the award categories:
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Excellence in Youth Leadership Award
This award is for a youth/young adult up to the age of 26 who has displayed extraordinary youth leadership. This person is someone who has made a difference for youth with mental health needs and also has lived experience of their own.
Excellence in Family Leadership Award
This award is for a parent, caregiver, or family member of a child or youth with mental health needs. This person has made a significant contribution to children's mental health at a local or state level.
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MEDICAL HOME NEWS
There are new Pediatric Medical Home Resources for Families and Providers from the CHIPRA Medical Home Learning Collaborative.
First an online collaboration community platform from NICHQ provides a unique place for people to learn, share, engage and collaborate with others doing similar work. There are tips and an opportunity to post and respond to questions, share resources and articles and learn about upcoming events/webinars. Sign up for an account here: community.nichq.org. After setting up your account, go to the Groups page and join "Medical Home"
Other tools facilitating NCQA recognition include:
The NICHQ-NCQA Medical Home Transformation Crosswalk. It helps to map tested change concepts in NICHQ's framework to the 2014 NCQA PCMH standards.
The NICHQ Care Plan Template is a helpful resource allowing pediatric practices to choose only those items to include in care plans. These can then be exported and printed for immediate use.
The NICHQ Care Team Role Builder enables a pediatric practice to match up activities--such as those associated with registration, population management or care coordination--with the appropriate care team member.
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Youth M.O.V.E.:
Trained in Strategic Sharing,
speak to Bullying and meet Job Corp
Bella Concordia, Lead Youth Advocate and Chandra Watts, Lead Peer Support Specialist (pictutred) spoke on a panel at YOU Inc.'s Bullying Prevention and Intervention Conference on February 25 in Boylston, MA.
Both Bella and Chandra are members of PPAL's Youth M.O.V.E. Massachusetts who congratulates them "for bringing Youth Voice and Choice to this very important arena." |
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Michelle Cook, David X, and Job Corps participants visited the HOPE youth group to share information about the program and their experiences at Job Corps. Youth Group members asked questions and shared a meal with young adults from many different backgrounds who have found a home and a future with Job Corps! Said Lydia Proulx, PPAL Youth Program Manager, "We would like to extend a special thank you to Youth MOVE Massachusetts member and Job Corps student, Amber, for connecting us with Michelle Cook and her team!"
A mini grant from the Community Health Network Area 9 in collaboration with You INC Family Center in Gardner, MA, allowed nine youth and young adults to be in Strategic Sharing by Youth MOVE Massachusetts Peer Facilitators, Britt and Pawel! We are so excited to have these youth and young adults join our network, and look forward to further collaboration in the North Central area of Massachusetts!!! We would like to congratulate each participant on their success, and thank them for their time, effort, and willingness to share their own stories."
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Keep your eyes on Youth M.O.V.E. Massachusetts Facebook for announcements around Children's Mental Health Month. For more information, please contact Lydia, Chandra, and Britt at 508-767-9725 x204 or email [email protected]!"
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Also from our youth, "YAYA - Young Adults and Youth Advocacy - would like to thank PPAL DYS Family Support Specialist Kristen Solaras, for attending group on March 5th in order to talk about Juvenile Justice and the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI). Everyone had a wonderful time and is eager to collaborate in the future, in order to further youth voice in a system that affects many young people in Massachusetts."
Upcoming YAYA events:
April 2 - Second Chance Animal Shelter
April 16 - Games and Art Night!
May 7 - Through the Looking Glass Art Show" (poster below)
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Find Training and Support in April!
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DATE
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TIME
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LOCATION
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TOPIC
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| Thursday, April 2, 2015 |
10am-12pm |
LMCC - Families and Youth Initiative
112A East Haverhill St.
Lawrence, MA 01841
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Mobile Crisis Intervention: Supporting Families in Crisis
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| Thursday, April 9, 2015 |
5:30pm-7:30pm |
PPAL - Worcester
51 Union Street
Suite 308 |
Parent Support Group: Sharing and Support
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| Wednesday, April 15, 2015 |
6pm-8pm
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In Sync Communication Ctr.
1 Beverly Drive
Sterling, MA |
Moving Forward: Our Journey
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Thursday, April 16, 2015
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10am-12pm
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Children's Friend and Family Services
15 Union St. Suite 557
Lawrence, MA 01840 |
Mobile Crisis Intervention: Supporting Families in Crisis
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Monday, April 20, 2015
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10am-12pm |
Family Continuity/JRI Cape and Island
60 Perseverance Way
Hyannis, MA 02601
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Special Education 101 -Meri Viano and Danielle Hill
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Thursday, April 9, 2015
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5:30pm-7:30pm
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PPAL - Worcester
51 Union Street
Suite 308
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Guest Speaker: Eilen Kneeland, Comm. Outreach, Worcester D.A. Office; Topic: Cyber Safety/bullying, Stranger Danger, Sexting |
| Wednesday, April 29, 2015 |
6pm-8pm |
Elm Street Middle School
160 Elm Street
Gardner, MA 01440
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Crisis Planning: Preparing for a Mental Health Crisis |
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BUILDING BRIDGES INITIATIVE/
CULTURAL LANGUAGE COMPETENCE
Building Bridges is a national initiative working to identify and promote practice and policy that will create strong and closely coordinated partnerships and collaborations between families, youth, community and residentially-based treatment and service providers to improve lives. PPAL's Outreach Coordinator Norma Mora has been invited to present to the BBI Training Conference in Andover, MA, August 5 - 7, 2015 and will lead two discussions:
AVOIDING CONFLICTS REGARDING CULTURAL ISSUES IN RESIDENTIAL PROGRAMS -
Different cultures and languages can create confusion and conflict within a residential program. Learn some new skills to lead to better ways to identify and resolve those conflicts.
SPEECH LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY SERVICES -
Children and youth often have difficulty with communication or social language use including difficulty expressing emotions and using appropriate language to handle stressful emotions. For some ethnic groups, this can present a barrier to accessing services.
For more information about BBI, click here.
Hannah Martinez, PPAL's Multicultural Outreach Specialist has been included in the BBI Workgroup to provide information and collaboration to address helping ethnic groups bridge barriers toward comprehending culture, families and youth.
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Help DPH Improve Services
for familes of children and youth with special health care needs
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) is conducting its five-year Title V Maternal & Child Health Needs Assessment. Family input is critical. The anonymous and confidential survey takes about 10-20 minutes to complete. After completing the survey, families will have the opportunity to enter a raffle for the chance to win one of twenty $50 gift cards.
Click for the survey:
mdph.checkboxonline.com/CYSHCN2015.survey
.
If you would like a paper copy of the survey, or if you have any questions, call
En Español:: Si desea una copia en papel de la encuesta, o si tiene alguna pregunta, por favor llame al
617-624-5478
o envíe un correo electrónico a:
[email protected]
. (Copias en papel están disponibles en Inglés y en Español. El enlace en línea es sólo en Inglés.)
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BIDMC Children's Study
Researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are seeking children (ages 7-12) with a parent or sibling with a psychotic disorder (including schizophrenia, depression or bipolar with psychosis) to participate in an MRI research study of brain development in childhood.
Eligible families could be compensated between $200-$225 for 4 visits, (2-4 hours each) plus compensation for travel.Contact [email protected] or by phone: 617-754-1224.
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ANOTHER GREAT NEW WAY TO DONATE TO PPAL...
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Board Whisperer Dede Ketover has discovered a new way to make donations to your favorite charitable organization: Amazon Smile. By shopping through the Amazon site, and at no extra cost to the shopper, Amazon will donate .05% of every purchase to the charitable organization of your choice. To find out more about this opportunity, click here. And of course, make PPAL the charity of your choice! |
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Support PPAL through your donation today! COMECC # 700554 Combined Federal Campaign # 11595 |
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Monthly Poll
Click
here
to participate in our April 2015 poll:
For what needs, has your family used a lawyer?
Results from last month's poll:
What type of respite does your family need the most:
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50%
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Hourly care (wknd, morning, afterschool)
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20%
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Week respite
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20%
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Emergency respite
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10%
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Overnight
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Statewide Meeting
Our featured speaker at the April Statewide meeting is Judy Giovangelo. She survived the untimely death of her mentally ill child and reclaimed her life through the power of choice. Judy shares through speaking engagements the empowerment she's earned.
Please note we have had a change of speaker for April. Judy is the recipient of the 2013 Be the Change Award and an inspiring presenter. The original speaker has been rescheduled.
Join Us!
Tuesday,
April 14th,
10 a.m. - noon
Networking lunch
and business meeting
to follow
Tatnuck Bookstore
Westboro, MA
Special drawing for a $15 gift certificate for Tatnuck
RSVP:
March Meeting
March 10, 2015
Lynn Rachlis
was our featured speaker in March to a capacity crowd of attendees. She brought thirty years in advocacy and her deeply informed experience in private practice to our monthly statewide meeting.
Please note: Trainings are limited to family members, family partners, family support specialists, parent coordinators and others in family support roles.
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Contact Us
Parent/Professional Advocacy League
Statewide Office (Boston)
45 Bromfield Street,
10th Floor
Boston, MA 02108
Toll Free: (866) 815-8122
Fax: (617) 542-7832
Email: [email protected]
Central MA Office
(Worcester)
51 Union Street
,
Suite 308
Worcester, MA 01608
Tel: (508)767-9725
Fax: (508)767-9727
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