Provider Wait Times November 2019 Wait Time to Initial Assessment: * Child & Adolescent Behavioral Health: 9.2 days Coleman Professional Services: 0 days CommQuest Services: 12.5 days Summit Psychological Associates: 5.75 days *Wait times reflect adult and youth services combined. The above wait times were reported to StarkMHAR from each provider organization.

Trauma Responsive Care and the CALMER Skills What: Trauma Responsive Care system and the CALMER Skills is a curriculum for personnel who have direct contact with the individuals served. Practicing the CALMER Skills positions staff to help people they support feel safe, connected, and in control. This promotes healing from trauma and helps improve positive outcomes, not only for the person served but also for the agency. When: Thursday, January 9th from 9:00am - 1:00pm Where: First Christian Church, Heritage Hall 6900 Market Avenue North North Canton, OH 44721 Education Credits: 4.0 CEUs pending Cost: FREE Register Here

Lunch & Learn Series

Register Here

Resource of the Month

Just this month, SAMHSA published a new resource on preventing marijuana use in pregnant women. It includes information on risk factors, harms associated with marijuana use by pregnant women, and effective prevention practices. Download the publication from SAMHSA's website by clicking the link below: Preventing the Use of Marijuana: Focus on Women and Pregnancy Resource of the Month is designed to highlight a resource available at either StarkMHAR or in the community. If you have a resource you would like to share, please email [email protected]

StarkMHAR Shout-out!

This month StarkMHAR would like to recognize Heather Slaughter from ICAN because of her ongoing quality work with her residents. She is aware of their stages of change and meets them where they are. Recently she had a challenging situation with a resident and really went out of her way to ensure this person was able to have access to the Housing Promotion process. This resident doesn’t have a phone and lives on the other side of the county. Heather drives out regularly to try to find this person and made at least 4 trips in 2 days to get a meeting set up. She also works to empower the resident to engage in treatment and gain insight into how collaborative efforts between housing supports and treatment providers can help maintain housing.

Thank you for all that you do, Heather!

Zero Suicide Tidbit - Handling Special Occasions

"Special occasions, such as holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries can be difficult for many individuals, including those who have been impacted by suicide." The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) offers these tips for handling special occasions: Consider whether usual traditions may be comforting or challenging Anticipating the event can be harder than the event itself Communicate your needs in advance Take a break if needed Consider traveling Volunteering is a great way to heal Take care of yourself Read more on AFSP's website

Trauma Tidbit - Compassion Fatigue "Secondary Traumatic Stress/Compassion Fatigue [STS/CF] is the emotional, physical, and personal response to frequent exposure to and empathic engagement with individuals and families struggling with significant challenges in their lives. It is often referred to as the “emotional cost of caring.” The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (CEBC) is hosting a free webinar on Wednesday, January 15th from 2:00-3:00 PM on recognizing the symptoms of STS/CF and learning strategies to enhance compassion satisfaction. For more information and to register for the webinar, click here .

Coalition Corner

Did you know that Drug Free Stark County and the Opiate and Addiction Task Force distribute medication disposal pouches? In the past few years, the coalitions have received several donations of Deterra bags to help reduce access to prescription painkillers. Unlike traditional methods of disposal, such as mixing unwanted pills with kitty litter and throwing them in the trash, the activated carbon in the pouch permanently deactivates the medication making it unable to be abused. Click on the photo to watch a short video about the product. The coalitions are working with distribution partners and often have the pouches available for free at resource tables. Each bag distributed also has a pre-paid postcard attached for data collection. If you are interested in being a distribution partner or would like a pouch for yourself, contact Justina Gorman at [email protected] .

Would you like to be more involved in the community? Would you like to help effect change by working with community partners? Do you have resources or ideas you would like to share with us? If you answered yes to at least one of these questions, consider attending one of StarkMHAR's coalition meetings. Suicide Prevention Coalition Meets the second Wednesday of every month from 3:30-4:30 at StarkMHAR. Drug Free Stark County Meets the second Tuesday of every month from 3:30-5:00 at StarkMHAR. Opiate and Addiction Task Force Meets the third Friday of every month from 11:30-1:00 at StarkMHAR. Hoarding Coalition Meets the first Friday of every month from 10:00-11:00 at The Ken Weber Community Campus at Goodwill

Forward to a friend or colleague! Do you have a colleague that works within the Stark County system of care for a StarkMHAR contract provider? If so, forward this email, and they can click the blue button to sign up to receive StarkMHAR’s monthly Clinical eNewsletter. Sign me up for StarkMHAR's Clinical eNews!

Save the dates! Tuesday, January 14th: Involuntary Hospitalization and Pink Slip Training - Morning Session from 9:00am to 12:00pm. RSVP>> Tuesday, January 14th: Involuntary Hospitalization and Pink Slip Training - Afternoon Session from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. RSVP>> Tuesday, February 4th - Wednesday, February 5th: Adult Mental Health First Aid - 8:30am to 12:30pm each day RSVP>> Wednesday, February 5th: CIT Dispatcher/Call-Taker Training - 8:00am to 5:00pm RSVP>> Look further ahead at upcoming trainings by visiting the StarkMHAR Training Center .

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