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Governor Hochul Announces $22.5 Million Grant to Increase Health Care Workforce Training
Governor Kathy Hochul last week announced that 28 health care facilities statewide will receive $22.5 million in awards during the next year for training — a part of the Governor’s $10 billion multi-year investment in health care, the largest in State history — to help rebuild and grow the health care workforce and help strengthen the health care system. The Increasing Training Capacity in Statewide Healthcare Facilities awards were issued by the State Health Department’s Office of Healthcare Workforce Innovation, to increase training in the health care workforce. Read more here.
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Workforce Recruitment and Retention Technical Assistance Project Releases Lessons Learned Report
The New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD), and the New York Alliance for Inclusion & Innovation (New York Alliance), in partnership with the McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research at New York University worked on the Workforce Recruitment and Retention Technical Assistance project in collaboration with New York State providers to identify, share, and create resources and tools that can be used in recruitment and retention efforts. As part of this work, the McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research at New York University has released a “Lessons Learned” Report that summarizes practical strategies and key insights shared by organizations throughout the regional in-person Learning Intensives that took place from May-June 2024.
Related: The Burnout Crisis Isn’t Over. Here’s What We Can Do About It.
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‘Diversity Can’t Be An Afterthought’: How Behavioral Health Providers Should Approach the Clinician Workforce
Patients and providers want to see representation when they engage with the behavioral health care industry.
Historically, that has been a challenge as the behavioral health workforce continues to under represent minority communities. That makes hiring and retaining a diverse clinical workforce a daunting but vital task for organizations seeking to improve the health of their respective communities. “Diversity can’t be an afterthought,” Alice Zhang, co-founder and CEO of Anise Health, told Behavioral Health Business. “If you think you can hire one or two clinicians to represent that small group that you’re serving and call yourself a culturally responsive provider — it doesn’t quite work out that way.” Most behavioral health providers focus on populations based on geography and diagnoses. For many communities, various minority populations represent a smaller percentage of their customer base. Organizations will focus on the larger portion of their business without specific intent. Read more here.
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Governor Hochul Expands Access to Lifesaving Overdose Emergency Kits in Domestic Violence Programs Across New York
Governor Kathy Hochul last week announced that domestic violence shelters and service providers across New York State will now have access to free Overdose Emergency Kits following a partnership between the New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence (OPDV), the Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS), and the Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS). The kits are made possible by Project COPE (Community Overdose Prevention Education), a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grant-funded initiative. Read more here.
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Attorney General James Secures $86 Million Multistate Settlement in Principle with Indivior for Its Role in the Opioid Crisis
New York Attorney General Letitia James last week announced an $86 million multistate settlement in principle with opioid manufacturer Indivior for its role in driving the spread of deadly opioid addictions across New York and the country. Indivior produced buprenorphine-based products to treat opioid use disorder, which can feed opioid addictions when abused and cause further harm. As Attorney General James and a multistate coalition of attorneys general allege, Indivior inappropriately targeted its sales to dangerous prescribers – including doctors running pill mills. Indivior also failed to monitor suspicious orders, causing its products to be inappropriately prescribed and used to fuel, rather than treat, opioid addictions. The settlement in principle announced last week will provide $86 million to participating states over five years, which will be used for opioid addiction treatment, recovery, and prevention programs. Read more here.
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Could This Van Help People Quit Fentanyl?
Before he started taking methadone, Vinny Parisi had overdosed 16 times from using street drugs, including fentanyl. Eating out of garbage cans and sleeping under a bridge in Harlem, he finally hit bottom, he said. Now, Mr. Parisi goes every weekday morning to an R.V.-size white van parked at a Days Inn in the South Bronx. Within a few minutes, he drinks a bright pink fluid — a dose of methadone — saving him the hours of commuting and waiting it often takes to visit a brick-and-mortar clinic to get the drug. “This definitely works, I’m living proof,” Mr. Parisi said on a recent Tuesday outside the van, where he was waiting with about a dozen other men from his residential drug treatment program. He is only 30 years old, but has been in and out of treatment programs since age 15, after starting to abuse pain pills on Staten Island. “My mother sent me a picture of me and 12 friends, and I’m the only one left alive,” he said. Read more here.
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Behavioral Health News Summer 2024 Issue: "Caring for Older Adults"
As our population ages, the need for specialized behavioral health care for older adults becomes increasingly critical. The Summer 2024 issue of Behavioral Health News explores the complex challenges and opportunities associated with caring for older adults. From addressing the unique mental health challenges brought on by aging and providing innovative treatment services to exploring the impact of social isolation and elder abuse, this issue offers comprehensive insights and practical strategies.
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New Data Analysis Guides States on How to Improve Public Safety, the Juvenile Justice System, and Youth Outcomes
Youth across the country are grappling with myriad challenges that include increases in mental health issues, school absenteeism, community violence, and victimization. At the same time, many policymakers and system leaders are struggling with how best to respond, including whether greater reliance on the juvenile justice system and more sanctions-oriented approaches are warranted. Navigating Concerns on Youth Crime, Violence, and Behavioral Health: What Does the Data Say? by The Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center, with support from the Prudential and W.T. Grant Foundation, aims to help policymakers better understand and address trends related to these issues. Read more here.
Related: New CMS Guidance on the Provision of Medicaid and CHIP Services to Incarcerated Children and Youth
New Resource Aims to Bring More Adolescent Brain Science Into Juvenile Courtrooms
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Ensuring Long-Term Equitable Access to Telehealth in New York State: Opportunities and Challenges
Telehealth use spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic, facilitated by state and federal policy changes. Before and throughout the pandemic, New York State enacted several temporary measures to expand telehealth access, removing delivery restrictions and broadening reimbursement policies for Medicaid and commercial plans. These efforts enabled providers to offer patients a wide range of virtual health care services in a variety of settings. Although New York has been a national leader in telehealth, opportunities remain to strengthen and enshrine existing policies. A new report prepared by Manatt Health provides a comprehensive assessment of the post-pandemic telehealth policy landscape in New York State. It also offers policy recommendations for policy-makers and advocates, to ensure and expand equitable access to telehealth. This report—informed by the latest literature, policies, and clinical best practices, as well as interviews with key stakeholders—offers a roadmap to enhance and sustain telehealth services across the State.
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KFF Examines the Latest Data on Calls, Texts, and Chats to the 988 National Suicide and Crisis Hotline, Two Years After Its Launch
A new KFF analysis examines the latest data on usage of the 988 number for the National Suicide and Crisis Hotline, two years after its launch in July 2022. Since launch, 988 has received 10.8 million combined calls, texts, and chats. KFF analysis of federal data shows that, in May 2024, monthly contacts (calls, texts, and chats) exceeded half a million, up about one-third from a year ago and 80% since May 2022. State-level call volume and in-state answer rates vary widely across states, though monthly call volumes have increased in all states. The 988 line steers callers who are suicidal or experiencing a behavioral health crisis to the renamed “988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline,” through which they can be connected to a local Lifeline counselor and may receive crisis counseling, resources, and referrals. Read more here.
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As Preteen Suicides Increased, Most Youths Went Undiagnosed for Mental Health Issues
In two cross-sectional studies, researchers found a significant increase in suicide rates among preteens in the U.S., while more than half of adolescents who died by suicide did not have a prior documented mental health diagnosis. Among U.S. preteens ages 8 to 12 years, suicide rates significantly increased by 8.2% annually from 2008 to 2022, after a downward trend until 2007, according to Donna A. Ruch, PhD, of Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and co-authors. The overall suicide rate during that time period (5.71 per 1 million) also represented a significant increase over the rate from 2001 to 2007 (3.34 per 1 million), for an incidence rate ratio (IRR) of 1.71, they reported in JAMA Network Open. "These findings suggest there is a need for widespread and universal suicide risk screening starting at earlier ages as a preventative measure," Ruch told MedPage Today in an email, adding that the overall increasing trend was concerning, and several minority groups were disproportionately affected. Read more here.
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Patients in Public Hospital-Based Opioid Program More Likely To Stay in Treatment, Study Shows
More patients with opioid addiction are getting into treatment thanks to a unique program at New York City Health + Hospitals that aims to fill a gap in specialized treatment for substance use disorder, a new study shows. Hospitals are one of the most common medical touchpoints for people addicted to opioids and other drugs. The program, known as Consult for Addiction Treatment and Care in Hospitals, takes advantage of that setting to connect opioid users to medication, social workers, and peer support. Patients who went through the city-funded program were eight times more likely to start treatment and seven times more likely to remain on medication for 30 days, according to a study released Monday by NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Read more here.
Related: ‘It’s a Brain Disease’: Changing Perception of Substance Use Key to Battling Opioid Epidemic
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UPCOMING EVENTS & TRAININGS
Traveling the Road to OPWDD Eligibility & How Self-Direction Can Give You the Tools for a Fuller Life
August 1, 10 - 11:30 am, Adapt Community Network
PCSS-MOUD Exchange
August 1, 8, 15, 22, 3 - 4 pm, PCSS
Building a Behavioral Health Continuum of Care: The Role of Rural Leaders and Behavioral Health Directors
August 6, 2 - 3 pm, NACo
Interdisciplinary Care in Opioid Treatment: A Public Health and Interdisciplinary Approach to Substance Use Disorders
August 6, 3 - 4:30 pm, NAADAC
Prevention to Treatment: Substance Use Disorder Solution Strategies
August 7, 2 - 3 pm, NACo
Transforming Justice Through Collaboration
August 7, 2:30 - 3:30 pm, NACo
Navigating the Suicidal Crisis with your Outpatient Client
August 8, 2 - 3 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Understanding Community Trauma: Systemic Challenges in Black and Brown Communities
August 8, 2:30 - 3:30 pm, NASMHPD
Innovative Initiatives to Serve the Needs of Older Adults with Serious Mental Illness
August 12, 12 - 1:30 pm, NASMHPD
Learn the Law About Service and Support Animals
August 13, 10 - 11 am, Disability Rights New York
What Is Harm Reduction for Alcohol?
August 14, 3 - 4 pm, NAADAC
Interdisciplinary Care in Opioid Treatment: The Role of Physicians and Nurses in Opioid Care — Bridging the Gap
August 14, 3 - 430 pm, NAADAC
School Mental Health Resource & Training Center Summer Academy for School Staff
August 20, 8:30 am - 12 pm, August 21, 9 am - 12 pm, MHANYS
Ask the Expert: Collaborative Approaches to Providing Mental Health and Law Enforcement Services
August 20, 2 - 3:30 pm, CSG Justice Center
Interdisciplinary Care in Opioid Treatment: The Role of Addiction Psychiatrists in Opioid Treatment — Mastering the Art of Opioid Treatment
August 20, 3 - 4:30 pm, NAADAC
Barriers to Care: Solutions for Mental Health and Substance Use Treatment Provision in Rural Communities
August 21, 12 - 1 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Peer Recovery Support Series: Passionate Professionals; Dispassionate Practice — Ethical Boundaries in Non-Clinical Roles
August 22, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC
Behavioral Treatments for Alcohol Use Disorder: Using Harm Reduction as a Path Forward
August 22, 1 - 2 pm, PCSS
Understanding Mental Health Disparities Within Rural LGBTQ+ Communities
August 22, 1:30 - 3 pm, NIMH
What Now: Xylazine in the Age of Opioid Use Disorder
August 27, 1 - 2 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Interdisciplinary Care in Opioid Treatment: The Role of Counselors in Opioid Treatment — Guiding the Path to Recovery
August 27, 3 - 4:30 pm, NAADAC
Three Crucial Factors in Treating Suicide Risk Lessons Learned from the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide
September 12, 1 - 2 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Increasing Accessibility of Mental Health Services for Unhoused Populations in Rural and Urban Communities
September 18, 12 - 1 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Rural Health Symposium - Binghamton, NY
September 19 - 20, NYS Association for Rural Health
Ask the Expert: Family-Centered Reentry Programming
September 25, 2 - 3:30 pm, CSG Justice Center
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CLMHD CALENDAR
AUGUST
Quarterly LGU Billing Staff Call
August 6: 11 am - 12 pm
Executive Committee Meeting
August 7: 8 - 9 am
Addiction Services & Supports (ASR) Committee Meeting
August 8: 11 am - 12 pm
Developmental Disabilities Committee Meeting
August 8: 1 - 2:30 pm
Mental Health Committee Meeting
August 8: 3 - 4 pm
LGU Clinic Operators Meeting
August 13: 10 - 11:00 am
Children & Families Committee Meeting
August 20: 11:30 am - 1 pm
Membership Call
August 21: 9 - 10:30 am
SAVE THE DATE
Fall 2024 Full Membership Meeting
October 23-25, Clayton, NY (Jefferson County)
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