Products and Resources Catalog

The purpose of the Case Conceptualization for First Episode Psychosis (FEP) series is to introduce FEP therapists, skills trainers, and team leaders to three different case conceptualization approaches. In the first three sessions of this series, attendees learned the basics of building a Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Psychosis (CBT-P) case conceptualization. Please see attached for the presentation slides from Session 1, which took place on October 13, 2022.

The purpose of the Case Conceptualization for First Episode Psychosis (FEP) series is to introduce FEP therapists, skills trainers, and team leaders to three different case conceptualization approaches. In the first three sessions of this series, attendees learned the basics of building a Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Psychosis (CBT-P) case conceptualization. Please see attached for the presentation slides from Session 2, which took place on November 10, 2022. Handouts:  Understanding my experiences with CBT-P: Fillable Form Understanding my experiences with CBT-P Worksheet:  Vignette Practice

The Early Psychosis Intervention Network (EPINET) is a collaboration of over 100 early psychosis programs across the United States. All EPINET programs collect client data using the Core Assessment Battery (CAB), a collection of evidence-based measures that can assess domains relevant to individuals with early psychosis over time. The WebCAB is a new online data collection tool that makes it easier for clinicians to adopt CAB measures and use these data as part of their clinical practice. The state of Virginia recently adopted the WebCAB across all early psychosis programs within their state. The WebCAB allows Virginia to look at aggregate data across the state and provides CSC programs with an opportunity to compare their populations with others. Learn more about the CAB, WebCAB, and how even a subset of these measures can help enhance clinical interactions with clients and foster shared decision-making. This webinar is offered by the MHTTC Network, in collaboration with the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the Early Psychosis Intervention Network (EPINET), PEPPNET, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Access the slides for this presentation here. View the recording by clicking the play button down below.

August 26, 2022 This talk reviewed the team-based approach to medication management in early psychosis treatment, including the role of non-prescribers in supporting positive health behaviors for patients experiencing early-course psychosis. The speakers presented recent updates in our understanding of psychiatry for early-course psychosis and led a discussion on medication management with two individuals with lived experiences of psychosis.   To watch the recording, go to: https://harvard.zoom.us/rec/share/SegPS3stMmh6w5MULwWvF7rTy2sRfYmIswubJGF1rHdsLYsEDSqKmrGRnsG6enVT.RIyjouVCSxPRSyzn   Matcheri Keshavan, MD is the Stanley Cobb Professor and Academic Head of the Harvard Department of Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He has conducted early psychosis intervention and research for nearly three decades, and has published over 600 papers and 4 books on psychotic and related disorders. He edits the Elsevier journal Schizophrenia Research and is on the editorial Board of several other journals, including the Journal of Early Intervention in Psychiatry.   Dr. Schooler is Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences Center, New York, NY.  She is a fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, the Collegium Internationale Neuropsychopharmacologicum (CINP), the American Psychological Association, and the American Psychological Society.  Dr. Schooler has been President of the American Psychopathological Association and the Association for Clinical Psychosocial Research, an elected Councilor of the CINP and a member of the SIRS Board of Directors.   Charles Stromeyer works in stocks investing, advising startup companies, & doing research in artificial intelligence. He has helped with pioneering multiple industries such as AI- based programmatic marketing, the intercloud & deep learning- based software coding assistants, & the startups he helped have since raised more than $6 billion in funding. He was awarded the Deval L. Patrick Commonwealth Innovation Award. Charles is also a member of the Consumer Advisory Board (or CAB) at the at the Psychosis Research Program of the MMHC Public Psychiatry Division of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA. His hobbies include music, movies & neurobiology, and he especially enjoys mentoring young people, including 14 individuals in the Forbes 30 Under 30 lists.    Nate Schwirian is also a member of the CAB at MMHC. He has an interdisciplinary Bachelor of Arts degree from UMass Amherst and an Associate of Science degree in Biotechnology from MassBay Community College. He currently works with Tunefoolery Music (a group of musicians in mental health recovery), where he works as an audio technician, performer, and meditation group facilitator.   This webinar is part of an initiative by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)’s New England Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Network (MHTTC), which provides training, technical assistance, and tool and resource development to enable states and mental health practitioners to provide recovery-oriented practices within the context of recovery-oriented systems of care (see https://mhttcnetwork.org/centers/new-england-mhttc/home).   This webinar was co-hosted by the Massachusetts Psychosis Network for Early Treatment (MAPNET, www.mapnet.online).  

August 11, 2022 Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experience a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared towards any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.

Opening Remarks Recording The 2022 South Southwest MHTTC First Episode Psychosis (FEP) Conference took place from June 1-3, 2022 both virtually and in-person in Austin, TX. Jennifer Baran-Prall and Samantha Reznik led opening remarks on June 1st. Opening remarks included the conference theme, considerations around accessibility, community guidelines, context for the conference, and information about the South Southwest MHTTC. Please watch the opening remarks to learn more about the vision and intentions for the 2022 South Southwest MHTTC FEP Conference.

July 7, 2022 Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experience a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared towards any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.    

Presentation Slides Presentation Recording Presentation Summary This presentation occurred during the 2022 South Southwest MHTTC First Episode Psychosis conference on June 3rd. Dr. Dror Ben-Zeev was the keynote speaker for this session. Presentation Summary: Technology is redefining how we study, assess, and treat mental illness. Mobile health (mHealth) now enables us to bring cutting-edge treatments out of the clinics and research centers and into the hands of the people who need them most. Professor Dror Ben-Zeev from the University of Washington provided an overview of recent advancements in the field of mHealth and examines how mobile devices and digital telecommunication infrastructure can be harnessed to support detection, prevention, and support for people with serious mental illness.  Professor Ben-Zeev described the lessons his team learned from conducting multiple mHealth initiatives with complex populations in real-world settings. He outlined his vision for effective, realistic, and sustainable mHealth for mental health in the years ahead. About the Speaker   Dr. Dror Ben-Zeev (he/him/his) Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science University of Washington   Dror Ben-Zeev, PhD, is a Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington. He is a Clinical Psychologist who specializes in the development and evaluation of technology-based approaches in the study, assessment, treatment, and prevention of mental illness. Dr. Ben-Zeev serves as the Director of UW's Behavioral Research in Technology and Engineering (BRiTE) Center (https://www.brite.uw.edu/) and the mHealth for Mental Health Program (www.mh4mh.org), a multidisciplinary effort to harness mobile technology to improve the outcomes of people with psychiatric conditions and their loved ones. His research includes development of several self-management apps for people with serious mental illness, leveraging mobile and context-aware technologies for assessment of violence and suicidality in psychiatric hospital settings, behavioral sensing and Natural Language Processing systems for detection of psychotic relapses, social media-based outreach and remote data collection involving people who experience hallucinations, community-based clinical texting interventions, and technology designed to reduce human rights violations perpetrated against people with mental illness in Low and Middle Income Countries. Dr. Ben-Zeev’ s work has been supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation, Patient Centered Outcome Research Institute, the Veterans Administration, and several foundations. His studies have been covered by NPR, The Washington Post, Nature, Wired Magazine, Slate, Vice News, The Economist, and the New York Times. He serves as the Editor of the "Technology in Mental Health" Column in Psychiatric Services (APA Journal) and is a regular speaker at national and international scientific meetings including invited presentations at the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Academies, and the White House.

Presentation Slides Presentation Recording Presentation Summary This presentation occurred during the 2022 South Southwest MHTTC First Episode Psychosis conference on June 3rd. Mx. Yaffa was the keynote presenter for this session. Presentation Summary: Although the current Mental Health system is starting to integrate understandings of equity and justice into healing practices and treatment it is important to understand the oppressive history of our system and how this has led to harm within various communities. In this session, Mx. Yaffa discussed the social, historical, and cultural factors impacting care for individuals experiencing psychosis through an intersectional lens. They shared their experiences with living with various mental health challenges and seeing, hearing, and believing things that others do not. Mx. Yaffa shared their experiences with navigating mental health care in three countries, and the cultural Intersections that create various challenges for individuals experiencing first psychosis episodes. Mx. Yaffa shares how their other intersectional identities have both made navigating the mental health system more complex and has helped on their road for recovery. In particular, Mx. Yaffa highlighted trans, Muslim, and indigenous identities as inseparable constants in their care and wellbeing. About the Speaker   Mx. Yaffa (they/them/theirs) Equity and Transformation Consultant   Mx. Yaffa is an award-winning disabled, mad, trans, queer, Muslim, indigenous Palestinian. Mx. Yaffa conducts transformative work around displacement, decolonization, equity, and centering lived experiences of individuals most impacted by injustice. Mx. Yaffa is a storyteller and an equity and transformation consultant, having shared their story with over 100,000 audience members at speaking events globally. Mx. Yaffa has worked in over two dozen countries, and specializes in global and community vision building. Mx. Yaffa is an engineer, with a specialty in sustainability and social engineering, a peer support specialist, and an equity and transformation consultant. Mx. Yaffa utilizes peer support as a foundation for all their work, supporting peer-run spaces in organizational capacity building, equity, and sustainment. Mx. Yaffa brings together engineering, peer support, and trauma to support their vision of more equitable and accountable communities that lead to individuals' self-actualization. Mx. Yaffa is the Founder of several non-profits and community projects, such as CT Mutual Aid, and Life in My Days, an international non-profit that supports individuals and their communities on their journeys for self-actualization through mutual aid, transformative justice, and disability justice. For the last few years, Mx. Yaffa has also been a Master Recovery Educator, facilitating the RI Peer Support Certification training nationally to certify individuals as Peer Support Specialists. Additionally, Mx. Yaffa is an Equity Coach with Sustainable CT, supporting municipalities in the State in engraining equity practices into any sustainability work. Mx. Yaffa has a MA in Conflict Transformation and Social Justice from Queen's University Belfast, a Childhood Traumatic Stress graduate certificate from the Boston Trauma Center, and a Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering from WPI. Mx. Yaffa currently serves as a board member for TransLifeline and is the previous co-chair of the International Association of Peer Supporters board.

Presentation Slides Presentation Recording Panel Summary This panel presentation occurred during the 2022 South Southwest MHTTC First Episode Psychosis conference on June 2nd. Dr. Vanessa Vorhies Klodnick was the moderator of this session and panelists consisted of leaders from South Southwest Region 6 FEP programs. Presentation Summary: There are few opportunities within traditional conference structures to celebrate individual and program level accomplishments that incrementally improve services. The “Sharing Successes Project” allowed multiple first episode psychosis (FEP) programs within the South Southwest region of the United States to share strengths at both an individual and systems level. Presenters share about program-level changes that sustain and transform recovery-oriented care in this region as well as transformation that they hope to see in FEP care in the future, inspiring further systems-level change.   About the Panelists Moderator   Dr. Vanessa Vorhies Klodnick (she/her/hers) Director of Research & Innovation for Youth & Young Adult Services Thresholds Vanessa Vorhies Klodnick, PhD, LCSW, is a nationally-recognized expert in adapting and blending evidence-based practices for older youth and young adults, including IPS Supported Employment. Vanessa is the Director of Research & Innovation for Youth & Young Adult Services at Thresholds, the largest community mental health provider in Illinois, and a faculty affiliate at the Texas Institute for Excellence in Mental Health at The University of Texas at Austin. Vanessa has been involved in multiple projects across the country that enhance IPS and/or draw from IPS to improve community mental health provider engagement of, partnership and impact with vulnerable and marginalized young people with serious mental health conditions. Vanessa is currently overseeing the continuous quality improvement of multiple multidisciplinary teams designed for youth and young adults, all which include Supported Employment and Education Specialists. Panelists Burke Center: Roger Riley, Program Lead Taylor Stevens Trisha Jolly, STEP MHC Recovery Coach COMPASS: Delinda Reese, Certified Family Partner Emily Sanchez, Case Manager Early First Episode Psychosis Program at UNM: Ashley Park, Program Therapist Emergence: Alejandra Cuellar, Administrative Support Supervisor and Outreach Coordinator Harris Center: Anna Marshall, Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)/Licensed Practitioner of the Healing Arts (LPHA) Integral Care: Sanjhi Gandhi, Primary Clinician    Tropical Texas: Victoria Castaneda, Case Manager

Presentation Slides Presentation Recording Presentation Summary This presentation occurred during the 2022 South Southwest MHTTC First Episode Psychosis conference on June 2nd. Dr. Oladunni Oluwoye was the keynote speaker for this session. Presentation Summary: Family member or support person engagement is invaluable throughout care for their loved one experiencing the early stages of psychosis. From navigating pathways to services to receiving services from coordinated specialty care, engagement can be defined in various ways. In this presentation, Dr. Oladunni Oluwoye provided an overview on the importance and impact of family members or support persons on the pathway to mental health services and while receiving care for loved ones in the early stages of psychosis. She presented recent work and several strategies used to improve family engagement in early intervention services as well as culturally-informed approaches used to address racial inequities. About the Speaker Dr. Oladunni Oluwoye (she/her/hers) Co-Director Washington Center of Excellence in Early Psychosis   Dr. Oluwoye is an assistant professor in the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine at Washington State University, Spokane, and the Co-Director of the Washington Center of Excellence in Early Psychosis. She received her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, an M.S. in Clinical Psychology from Alabama A&M University, and her Ph.D. in Health Promotion and Education for the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Oluwoye is the lead evaluator for New Journeys a network of coordinated specialty care programs in Washington State and is supported by multiple grants from NIMH, including a Mentored Research Scientist Career Development Award(K01). Dr. Oluwoye’s overarching research focuses on the early onset of serious mental illness, specifically psychosis among racially and ethnically diverse families, and the development of strategies to increase engagement and service utilization. Through this work, her hope is to improve pathways to care and advance the availability, acceptability, and effectiveness of mental health care among racially and ethnically diverse populations.   Positionality Statement: We should all strive to assess how our own positions in society and experiences might contribute to the research questions we ask, how we engage with those who participate in studies, and our interpretation of findings based on peoples’ lived experiences. Because of this I acknowledge my standpoint and the privilege I have as a Black woman/scholar. While I identify as Black and technically African American by naturalization, I am slightly removed from the experiences of the African American community, although I consider myself as an outside/insider. To an extent, it is through my own family’s experiences with a loved one with a serious mental illness and that of a Black individual in the US, that initiated my research focus on family engagement in early psychosis with an emphasis on improving the experiences of Black families. While, I do not have direct experience of navigating mental health services, I am fortunate enough to to have families willingly share with me their stories/experiences that paints part of the picture for me to have better understanding.

Presentation Recording Presentation Materials Presentation Slides ASQ NIH Screening Tool C-SSRS Baseline Screening Tool C-SSRS Baseline Screening Tool - Spanish Version Patient Safety Plan Template SAFE-T Handout Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire - Revised (SBQ-R) Presentation Summary This presentation occurred during the 2022 South Southwest MHTTC First Episode Psychosis conference on June 2nd. Dr. Tara Niendam facilitated this keynote session. Presentation Summary: Risk for self-harm behaviors is high in early psychosis populations; therefore, all clinical programs need a protocol for risk assessment and management that begins at first client contact and is maintained over time. This presentation provided an overview of suicide rates in the US, an approach to assessing risk and protective factors, and an introduction to the CSSRS – the gold-standard tool for suicide ideation and behavior. The presentation will also briefly covered methods for addressing suicide, including the Safety Plan Protocol. About the Speaker Dr. Tara Niendam (she/her/hers) Associate Professor and Vice Chair of Research Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at the University of California, Davis   Dr. Niendam is an Associate Professor and Vice Chair of Research in Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at the University of California, Davis. She completed her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles. She is the Executive Director of the UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs (EDAPT and SacEDAPT Clinics) and has developed 4 early psychosis programs in Northern California based on the coordinated specialty care model of early psychosis. Her research focuses on improving clinical and functional outcomes for youth with serious mental illness, with a focus on mobile health technology. She is the Principal Investigator for the Early Psychosis Intervention Network of California, or EPI-CAL, which is part of the new NIMH-funding EPI-NET program. EPI-CAL links multiple county-and university-based EP programs to bring client-level data to the clinician’s fingertips, and enable large scale data-driven approaches to improve outcomes for EP care. She also directs the EPI-CAL affiliated Training and Technical Assistance Center, which seeks to bring evidence based early psychosis care to all Californians. Within both clinical and research contexts, Dr. Niendam has worked to amplify the need for high-quality suicide risk assessment and management protocols, as this is critical to reducing high suicide rates for individuals with serious mental illness.   Positionality Statement: I come to this work from both personal and family experiences. Within the psychosis space, my family supported loved ones who experienced psychotic symptoms as part of bipolar disorder. I was raised by a single mom in a small, rural town in Kentucky, where mental health services were nonexistent for lower-middle class families like mine, and the stigma against mental health prevented us from seeking help anyway. In the realm of suicide, I have lost friends and consumers in my clinics to suicide and experienced the unbearable pain and unrelenting “what-if” questions. I believe we can do better, hence my passion for speaking about suicide and pushing our field toward incorporating high-quality approaches. I identify as a white, cisgender, heterosexual woman, a mother, a wife and a clinician-scientist. I am a consumer of mental health services. I am strongly committed to DEIA and seek to amplify the voices of marginalized communities in all areas of my work. Consumer and support person voices are present in both my research and clinical work.

Presentation Slides Presentation Summary This presentation occurred during the 2022 South Southwest MHTTC First Episode Psychosis Conference on June 1st. Dr. Eleanor Longden was the keynote speaker for this session. Presentation Summary: Although traditionally understood as a medical condition, an increasing amount of evidence shows powerful links between painful events in people’s lives (particularly, but not exclusively, childhood abuse) and the likelihood of experiencing psychosis. This lecture drew on the presenter’s own lived experience of trauma and psychosis, as well as recent research and clinical findings, to explore how a greater emphasis on trauma-focused care may help to promote healing and recovery within mental health services. About the Speaker   Dr. Eleanor Longden (she/her/hers) Postdoctoral Service User Research Manager Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust Dr. Eleanor Longden is a Postdoctoral Service User Research Manager at the Psychosis Research Unit at Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust (GMMH), honorary research fellow at the University of Manchester, and co-director of GMMH’s Complex Trauma and Resilience Research Unit. Throughout her career, Dr Longden has drawn on her own experiences of recovery from trauma and psychosis to promote person-centered approaches to complex mental health problems that emphasize the lived experience and expertise of service-users. Her research focuses on the relationship between dissociation, trauma, and voice-hearing, and she has lectured and published internationally on these issues, including numerous peer-reviewed journal articles, contributions to the British Psychological Society’s landmark reports Understanding Psychosis & Schizophrenia and The Power Threat Meaning Framework, and reviewing materials for the World Health Organizations’ Quality Rights Initiative. Her 2013 TED talk on voice-hearing was named by the Guardian newspaper as one of the ‘20 Online Talks That Could Change Your Life’ and in its first year online was viewed 2.5m times and translated into 33 languages. In 2015, Dr Longden received a commendation for her work from the Deputy Prime Minister’s Mental Health Hero Awards. Along with Dr Charlie Heriot-Maitland, she is co-author of the forthcoming book Relating to Voices Using Compassion Focused Therapy: A Self-Help Companion.   Positionality Statement: I am a Postdoctoral Service User Research Manager employed by the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), predominantly working with colleagues who share my own identity as White British, cisgender, and college educated. My work is mainly focused on designing and conducting studies and, while I have experience of peer-support, am not clinically qualified and lack any formal therapeutic expertise. I am strongly influenced by my own lived experience of trauma and mental distress, which has led me to favour approaches to understanding and treating psychosis which emphasizes the impact of psychosocial factors in the origins of peoples’ difficulties. This includes, for example, the effects of interpersonal violence, such as abuse and assault, as well as systemic injustices, such as economic inequality and identity-based discrimination. However, working with research participants, fellow survivors, and/or professional colleagues has encouraged me to be more considerate of alternative understandingsfor psychosis; for example, by recognising the high value manyservice-users place in biomedical models,by developing more nuanced definitions ofwhat constitutes ‘trauma’ or ‘adversity’, and by expanding my awareness of more culturally diverse explanationsfor people’s experiences, including religious or spiritual frameworks.I receive speaking fees from both government and private sector organisations for the provision of lectures and trainingand my research is currently funded by a Development and Skills Enhancement Award from the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR). I am also a co-applicant on two projects funded by grants from the NIHR’s Health Technology Assessment Programme; however, the views expressed in my presentation are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of the NHS, the NIHR, or the Department of Health and Social Care.

June 2, 2022 Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experience a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared toward any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.   to watch the recording, go to: https://youtu.be/eNQLYlIHT2o

Hosted by the MHTTC Network, in collaboration with the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the Early Psychosis Intervention Network (EPINET), PEPPNET, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), this webinar was for providers who support individuals in coordinated specialty care clinics and environments. The Early Psychosis Intervention Network (EPINET) is a collaboration of over 100 early psychosis programs across the U.S.  All EPINET programs collect client data using the Core Assessment Battery (CAB), which is an evidence-based set of measures that are sensitive to change over time and are relevant to individuals with early psychosis. The CAB measures are publicly available and the WebCAB, a new online data collection tool, makes it easier for clinicians to adopt these measures and use these data as part of their clinical practice. This webinar introduced clinicians to the CAB, and WebCAB, and discussed how even a subset of these measures can help enhance clinical interactions with clients and foster shared decision making. Staff from early psychosis programs in Texas discussed their experience with collecting CAB measures, how to incorporate evidence-based measures into routine clinical practice, and use of these measures as a part of quality improvement initiatives among early psychosis teams. This was the first session of a 2-part series. View the slides and recording for the second session, WebCAB: A New Online Outcomes Monitoring Tool for States and Agency Administrators Working with Early Psychosis Clinics, here.  Download the presentation slides by clicking the "download" button above. Watch the video recording by clicking the play button down below. Using Evidence-Based Tools to Improve Clinical Care of Early Psychosis Clients

/*-->*/ /*--> There is limited research addressing the needs of gender-expansive individuals in the context of psychosis-spectrum illnesses and treatment. As first episode and clinical high-risk for psychosis (CHR-p) assessment and treatment become more accessible to increasingly diverse populations, there is a need for clinicians to demonstrate greater clinical competency working with individuals across diverse social backgrounds and identities. This talk (a) reviews the diagnostic profile of gender-expansive individuals seeking assessment at the CEDAR Clinic between 2017 and 2020, (b) outlines gender-expansive practices implemented by this clinic to support clinician competency and improve care for gender-expansive patients, and (c) discusses areas for future research on psychosis risk in gender-expansive populations.   To watch the recording, please go: https://youtu.be/o5noKFh2dh0

May 5, 2022 Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experienced a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared toward any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.   To watch the recording, please go to: https://youtu.be/5H0QaNFN40o    

About this Resource:  The Southeast MHTTC Newsletter highlights upcoming events and recently released products as well as shares information on available resources from SAMHSA and the MHTTC network.  The May 2022 issue recognizes National Mental Health Awareness Month and Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month, highlights our upcoming "Perspectives in Mental Health Crisis" events and recent products, and provides resources available through the MHTTC Network and SAMHSA to connect individuals to needed treatment and support. 

/*-->*/ /*-->*/ /*-->*/ /*--> April 26, 2022 A study team from the Center for Addiction Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital will discuss their recent trial which found that training doctors and CHWs in evidence-based practices for smoking cessation more than doubled quit rates for individuals with SMI. An active discussion will follow to listen and learn from those with field experience, particularly psychiatric rehabilitation workers, and to brainstorm ways to incorporate an emphasis on tobacco cessation into routine client care.    To watch the recording, please go to: https://youtu.be/80hU5pqedco   /*-->*/ /*-->*/ /*-->*/ /*--> Presenters: Dr. Kristina Schnitzer, Dr. Eden Evins, and Dr. Corinne Cather    

March 16, 2022   to watch the recording, go to: https://youtu.be/l2QUKbyD4rk   The program describes a novel approach to engaging patients with psychosis and their families. We seek the development of true collaboration. Critical in this approach is establishing a community of individuals with a common interest that provides support for each other. The support allows the treatment team to secure the patient's trust, develop a therapeutic relationship and do the hard work of creating an optimal clozapine regimen. This session will go on to:   describe how we develop clozapine regimens that minimize predictable side effects and optimize benefits;  share our results in improving patient outcomes. Presenters: Robert Laitmain, MD & Matcheri Keshavan, MD  

/*--> Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experience a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared towards any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.    

/*-->*/ /*--> Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experienced a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared towards any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.   Presenter:  /*-->*/ /*--> Patrick Kaufmann  

January 12, 2022   This lecture placed this study in the context of the knowns of stigma research. Specifically, this study’s findings indicate that CHR services should address stigma associated with symptoms quickly at first identification, given their negative impacts on outcomes. Dr. Yang will lead a discussion on how we might integrate best evidence into designing services for young people who may develop psychosis.   To watch the recording, go to: https://youtu.be/VurWStgVkgU      Presenter:  Dr. Lawrence Yang is Vice Chair and Associate Professor of the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at NYU- School of Global Public Health. Dr. Yang also is Founding Director of the Global Mental Health and Stigma Program where he administers a generous donor gift from the Li Ka Shing Foundation, and is Associate Director for the University-Wide Global Center for Implementation Science at NYU. He is also an Adjunct Associate Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University. Dr. Yang received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Boston University and completed his clinical training at Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts Mental Health Center. He received a T32 NIMH-sponsored post-doctoral fellowship at Columbia University in psychiatric epidemiology. Dr. Yang’s research focuses on two main areas: 1) Global Mental Health, Implementation Science and Stigma; and 2) Cognition of Untreated Psychosis. Dr. Yang is currently PI of two separate R01’s and a 3-year Supplement in China, which seek to examine the cognition in the ‘natural state’ of psychosis in a large untreated, community sample of individuals with psychosis (n=400), who have not yet received any antipsychotic medications, compared with a treated sample (n=400) and healthy controls (n=400) in China. He also is PI of a third R01 implementing task sharing measures for global mental health which seeks to validate a newly-developed multi-dimensional measure that enables rapid assessment of modifiable critical factors that affect the implementation of task sharing mental health strategies. In his presentation, Dr. Yang (PI) will describe results from a recently-completed 5-year NIMH R01 grant examining the stigma associated with the "clinical high risk state for psychosis" designation, a potentially transformative new syndrome to detect psychotic signs before symptoms develop into a full psychotic disorder. Dr. Yang has over 125 peer-reviewed publications, including publications in the JAMA Psychiatry, British Journal of Psychiatry and The Lancet. Dr. Yang has received seven national awards, most recently the 2021 Maltz Prize for Innovative and Promising Schizophrenia Research from the Brain and Behavioral Research Foundation, for his work.

December 1, 2021   Join us for this listening session to gain insight on the early signs and symptoms of psychosis, review the research on early intervention, and access tools that help young people connect with care. Specialized early intervention provides the best hope for recovery and growth for teens and young adults who are starting to experience psychosis.   To download the slides, click here. To watch the recording, click on "view resource".   Presenter(s):  Kelsey Johnson, MPH Dan Johnston Raquelle Mesholam-Gately, PhD Courtney Spitzer Martha Staeheli, PhD