Products and Resources Catalog

      Hard copies of the toolkit are also available. If you'd prefer a hard copy, please reach out to us at [email protected]. This guide provides resources specific to addressing the unique mental health training and technical assistance needs of schools serving rural and remote communities. School administrators, faculty, and support staff are facing increasing pressure to respond to a host of unmet mental health needs of students in K-12 and higher education. In response, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released a resource to assist states and schools in addressing mental health and substance use disorders. Underscoring the purpose of the document was a recognition that schools, communities, and families often lack “comprehensive treatment and services for children and youth.” That is particularly true in rural communities. Authors Thomasine Heitkamp Sarah Nielsen Shawnda Schroeder

In this webinar, we describe a community campaign that we developed and evaluated to reduce the treatment delay of Latinos with first-episode of psychosis. We first review the rationale for early intervention of persons with psychotic disorders, especially for high-risk groups that include Latinos residing in the United States. Then we describe our conceptual model of psychosis literacy that guided our campaign. We also point out how we constructed our campaign message using simple everyday language and how we evaluated the different resources of the campaign regarding efficacy and effectiveness. We then describe the key elements of the two-year campaign and report the evaluation of the campaign. We propose ways to improve future campaigns to reduce treatment delay. Our campaign and other initiatives give us hope that we can ease the suffering of persons with early psychosis and their families.

Prepared by Sarah Kopelovich, PhD Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for psychosis (CBTp) is an accepted evidence-based treatment aimed at reducing the distress and impairment associated with psychotic symptoms.  CBTp has been incorporated in national Canadian and United States schizophrenia treatment guidelines. It is also a mode of treatment that can sometimes be perceived by providers as lacking emphasis on human relationships, though the basis of CBT is built upon relational factors including: validation, optimism, recovery-orientated practice and collaboration.  As a result of this perception, CBTp may not be as attractive to some practitioners, resulting in fewer trained clinicians, in turn, impacting client access to this evidence based treatment. This brief provides a summary of research to determine if CBTp is able to meet the stated needs of individuals seeking mental health services. 

This webinar, sponsored by the MHTTC Network Coordinating Office and Pacific Southwest MHTTC, introduced the K-12 Toolkit for Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention. This Toolkit was created by the Health Care Alliance for Response to Adolescent Depression (HEARD) in 2013 (updated in 2017), in response to a need for schools to promote student mental health and wellbeing, to prevent suicide and, in particular, how to respond after a suicide loss. The Toolkit convenes national best practices from SAMHSA, the NCSMH, and other organizations. It serves as a resource to fulfill California law AB 2246, The Pupil Suicide Prevention Act (2016), which requires that all public schools serving students in grades 7-12 have a Pupil Suicide Prevention Policy. This document has been updated to reflect both this need and this policy requirement. The tools and resources provided in this updated Toolkit are meant to complement what schools may already have in place and to help initiate the implementation of a Pupil Suicide Prevention Policy. You can download the slide deck for this webinar above. The recording of this webinar is available here. The Toolkit is available for download on the HEARD Alliance website here.  Please contact Jessica Gonzalez at [email protected] if you have any questions pertaining to this webinar.

Participants will become familiar with the history, strengths, and challenges related to gender diversity in the behavioral health field, gain an understanding of the research addressing disparities in behavioral health care regarding gender diverse individuals, and focus on improving services for gender diverse individuals. Gender diverse refers to those who vary in gender identity or expression based on the wide spectrum of gender that exists outside of the rigid gender binaries of male and female.  Review key aspects from Part 1 Highlight how a sense of community may lead to increase resilience Explore different aspects of gender affirming services Identify the WPATH and many additional resources to help support behavioral healthcare services for gender diverse individuals Illustrate and apply the Indivisible Self – Wellness model to the case of Gabriel   View session recording Article with referenced case study   Dr. Anthony Zazzarino, PhD, LPC, ACS, CPRP is a full-time faculty member at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey in the Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling Professions. He currently provides instruction for professional education courses for New Jersey’s Supported Housing agencies implementing Community Support Services (CSS), the Master’s program in Rehabilitation Counseling, and the Doctoral program in Counselor Education and Supervision. Dr. Zazzarino is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS), and Certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation Practitioner (CPRP). He completed his PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision at Walden University where he focused on improving the lives of sexual minorities with serious mental illnesses and enhancing individual’s knowledge of multicultural competence. Dr. Zazzarino is actively presenting at local, state, and national conferences related to psychiatric rehabilitation methods, counseling services, and supervision practices. In addition to his work at Rutgers, Dr. Zazzarino is a suicide prevention trainer for the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide, facilitates group therapy for adolescents and adults at an intensive outpatient program, provides outpatient counseling services at his private practice, and provides clinical supervision for counselors who need supervised clinical hours in New Jersey.

Regulatory Strategies: Trauma-Informed Care and Practices Webinar Series This session was part one in a three-part webinar series on Trauma-Informed Care and Practices. In this session, participants learned more about regulatory strategies.   Dr. Tami DeCoteau, a national expert on trauma-informed care, offered insight to providers and educators interested in gaining a deeper understanding of trauma, including content on historical trauma and adverse childhood experiences. The science of trauma-informed care compels us to look more deeply into the human physiological process and understand how DNA provides evidence of intergenerational trauma. Recent research has shown that emotional trauma often affects the human nervous system long-term. Study of epigenetic DNA demonstrates that the substance use disorder need for self-regulation via alcohol or drugs is actually a physiological process and not a moral choice. Recording   Trauma-Informed Care and Practices Webinar Series Session two: Sensory Strategies Session three: Correcting Behaviors

An overview of key constraints on Medicaid reimbursement for School Mental Health Services.

Eligibility and enrollment in Medicaid in the Southeast.

Medicaid Managed Care and Behavioral Benefit Administration in the Southeast.

Features of Medicaid programs in the Southeast.

The presentation slide-deck of the financing for school based mental health webinar, presented by Dr. Adam Wilk on August 7th, 2019.

Participants will become familiar with the history, strengths, and challenges related to gender diversity in the behavioral health field, gain an understanding of the research addressing disparities in behavioral health care regarding gender-diverse individuals, and focus on improving services for gender-diverse individuals. Gender diversity refers to those who vary in gender identity or expression based on the wide spectrum of gender that exists outside of the rigid gender binaries of male and female.  Describe the many facets of gender. Define key terms associated with gender-diverse individuals. Illustrate the importance of using specific gender pronouns. Highlight health disparities that impact the lives of gender-diverse individuals. Apply the Minority Stress Model to working with gender-diverse individuals.   View session recording   Dr. Anthony Zazzarino, PhD, LPC, ACS, CPRP is a full-time faculty member at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey in the Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling Professions. He currently provides instruction for professional education courses for New Jersey’s Supported Housing agencies implementing Community Support Services (CSS), the Master’s program in Rehabilitation Counseling, and the Doctoral program in Counselor Education and Supervision. Dr. Zazzarino is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS), and Certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation Practitioner (CPRP). He completed his PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision at Walden University where he focused on improving the lives of sexual minorities with serious mental illnesses and enhancing individual’s knowledge of multicultural competence. Dr. Zazzarino is actively presenting at local, state, and national conferences related to psychiatric rehabilitation methods, counseling services, and supervision practices. In addition to his work at Rutgers, Dr. Zazzarino is a suicide prevention trainer for the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide, facilitates group therapy for adolescents and adults at an intensive outpatient program, provides outpatient counseling services at his private practice, and provides clinical supervision for counselors who need supervised clinical hours in New Jersey. 

On July 31st, we held a webinar on "Affirming Gender Identity in Clinical Practice". Megan Graham discussed the distinction between sex and gender, and provided a better understanding of the range of gender identities that exist. She also reviewed strategies for providing an open and affirming stance for clients and families to talk about their gender identity, and to help clients to advocate for their needs.

The fact sheet provides an overview of the mental health services and landscape of Alabama.

This fact sheet provides an overview of the mental health services and landscape in Florida.

Texas schools have never been more interested in supporting students’ mental health. Community mental health centers are a critical partner for schools seeking to provide comprehensive school mental health; however, creating healthy partnerships can be challenging. Join us for the fourth webinar in the series to hear from Jill Bohnenkamp and Kristin Scardamalia from the National Center for School Mental Health at the University of Maryland. The presenters will discuss some of the common challenges to creating strong partnerships between schools and community providers and share lessons learned from states and districts across the country about creative approaches to overcoming barriers.

On July 25th, Dana Asby shared some mindfulness habits that can be modeled and cultivated in students. The webinar focused on the benefits of intentionally adopting mindful habits as a school/classroom community with a focus on early childhood settings. To download the slides, click here.  Presenter(s): Dana Asby, M.A., M.Ed., CEI Director, Innovation and Research Support

This is the second issue of the Southeast MHTTC's informational newsletter.

Recording of the webinar titled "Conducting Mental Health Assessments: A Trauma-Informed, Cultural Humility Framework," originally held on June 28, 2019.   Download the slides

Recording of the webinar titled Cultural and Linguistic Appropriate Services (CLAS) Standards in Behavioral Health Settings: Aging, originally held on January 16, 2019.

Recording of the webinar titled Cultural and Linguistic Appropriate Services (CLAS) Standards in Behavioral Health Settings: African American, originally held on February 13, 2019.

Recording of the webinar titled Venus vs. Mars in Healthcare: Impacts on Women's Health Outcomes, originally held on March 13, 2019.

Recording of the webinar titled Is Past Prologue? From Insane Asylums to Peer Support Workforce Recording, originally held on June 25, 2019.   Slide Presentation

Recording of the webinar titled The Changing Older Adult Landscape & Effective Planning for Service Changes, originally held on June 20, 2019.   Slide Presentation Older Adult Fact Sheet