Past Events

Description: This webinar will highlight the importance of sustaining the school mental health workforce for achieving the goals of an effective, high-quality school mental health services system.  Dr. Mark Weist and Dr. Janet Cummings will discuss recruitment and retention approaches that community mental health providers and local education agencies may want to consider implementing to support these goals, the current evidence concerning these approaches, and key resources to inform implementation efforts.   Learning Objectives: Understand the essential roles of workforce in achieving high-quality school mental health services systems Describe potential approaches to improve recruitment and retention of the school mental health workforce Discuss the evidence about best practices in recruiting and retaining school mental health providers Identify key resources on developing the school mental health workforce     The recording and slides of this event can be found HERE. 

  The school mental health supplement to the Northwest MHTTC is excited to co-sponsor the UW SMART Center's 2021 Virtual Speaker Series. Originally a series of in-person events, we have moved these presentations to a virtual format due to COVID-19.   Join us on Wednesday, December 2nd from 8:30 - 9:45am for a presentation by Dr. Rhona Nese who will present:   "Developing an Instructional Alternative to Exclusionary Discipline Practices​".   Please note: This event will be limited to 500 attendees. Access to the live event will be available to registered participants on a first come, first serve basis. To secure a spot, we invite you to log on 5 - 10 minutes prior to the event. About the Presenter: Dr. Rhonda Nese, Ph.D.,  is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Special Education and Clinical Sciences at the University of Oregon. Dr. Nese currently serves as the Principal Investigator of an IES grant to refine and test an intervention to reduce exclusionary discipline practices, improve student behavior and student-teacher relationships, and increase instructional me for students in secondary settings, and Co-Principal Investigator on three additional IES grants to identify factors that predict implementation and sustainability of evidence-based practices, to develop technology to improve online learning for educators, and to develop and validate an automated scoring system for oral reading fluency. Dr. Nese also provides technical assistance to state, district, and school-level teams across the nation on preventative practices, including addressing implicit bias in school discipline, effective classroom behavior management strategies, bullying prevention, and alternatives to exclusionary discipline practices through the OSEP-funded National TA-Center on PBIS. Dr. Nese’s research involves intervention delivery within a multi-tiered behavior support framework focused on preventative strategies for improving student outcomes. Learn more and register for other events in the series here. Want more information and school mental health resources? Visit the Northwest MHTTC's School Mental Health page and sign up for our monthly newsletter for regular updates about events, trainings, and resources available to the Northwest region.  

Please note: These events will be limited to 500 attendees. Access to the live event will be available to registered participants on a first come, first serve basis. To secure a spot, we invite you to log on 5 - 10 minutes prior to the event.   About the Webinar: The Northwest MHTTC and the Pacific Southwest MHTTC are continuing our partnership to provide and extend deeper technical assistance on the Interconnected Systems Framework (ISF). This year, we are offering programming to deepen your ISF work and contextualize ISF to this moment of COVID-19 and beyond. Interconnected Systems Framework (ISF) is a structure and process that maximizes effectiveness and efficiency by blending the strengths of school and community mental health with strengths of the multi-tiered framework of PBIS (Barrett, Eber, Weist, 2013). This webinar is part of our ISF West Coast Party Webinars: Enhancing MTSS - Integrating Student Mental Health and Wellness Through Systems, Data, and Practices. This series consists of four modules and ends with a town hall for you to be able to ask faculty your questions and resource one another. Each module includes teaching from Susan Barrett and field leaders on ISF systems and USC faculty on ISF practices.  Mental Health is Everyone’s Job. Come learn how the Interconnected Systems Framework approach supports students, staff and families. Learn more about our presenters and access all presentation materials & recordings here. Series Schedule:  You can register for multiple events using the registration button above. You are welcome to attend as much or little as desired, though we do recommend attending the systems sessions (in blue) before the practices sessions (in green).   Module 1: ISF in Virtual Conditions 10/20/20 - ISF Systems in Virtual Conditions w/Susan Barrett 10/22/20 - Secondary Traumatic Stress and Educator Well Being w/Steve Hydon   Module 2: ISF + Trauma Informed Approaches 10/27/20 - ISF Systems & Trauma-Informed Approaches w/Susan Barrett 11/5/20 - Virtual Adaptations of Psychological First Aid w/Marleen Wong 11/17/20 - Virtual Adaptations of Trauma Informed Skills for Educators w/Pamela Vona & Vivien Villaverde   Module 3: ISF + Tiers 2 & 3 12/1/20 - ISF Systems and Tiers 2 & 3 w/Susan Barrett 12/3/20 - Virtual adaptations of SSET/Bounce Back w/ Pamela Vona & Vivien Villaverde   Module 4: ISF & Equity 1/12/21 - Secondary Traumatic Stress & BIPOC Educator Well Being w/Steve Hydon & Guests 1/19/21 - ISF Systems & Equity w/Susan Barrett 1/21/21 - Racial Violence and Trauma and Schools w/USC faculty & Guests   ISF West Coast Town Hall 1/26/21 - ISF systems & practices in this moment with Susan Barrett & USC Faculty *Our events are open to the public and attendees from any region. Due to limited capacity, however, we kindly ask that if you are not from Region 9 (AZ, CA, HI, NV, and U.S. Pacific Islands of American Samoa, Guam, Marshall Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau) or Region 10 (AK, ID, OR, WA) to please consider waiting to register or not attending live and watching the recording in order to prioritize space for our Region 10 participants. We have an amazing team that will post a link to the recording within a week of event.

Join us for a three-part webinar series for school field leaders who are leading systems’ support for student suicide prevention. Session content will focus on providing timely, effective, competent, and evidence-based suicide prevention support to students and families. Each session will be contextualized with experience and suggestions from on-the-ground regional leadership.   Learning Objectives: Understand suicide prevention policy, the prevalence and impact of traumatic stress and its relation to suicide, and resources available to schools; Understand your role as a school leader in providing trauma informed practices when conducting a risk assessment; and, Learn how to effectively collaborate with community partners when providing follow up support to students and families.   Attendees will have the opportunity to submit questions upon registration, enabling our team to shape the session content to meet your needs. The presenters will devote the first segment of each hour-long presentation to a specific topic, then address attendee-submitted questions. Audience: System leaders, prevention specialists, educators, administrators, school site leadership district and state administrative leadership, and anyone interested. The series will be led by Angela J. Castellanos, PPSC, LCSW, Pacific Southwest School Mental Health Training Specialist, and systems leaders as guest presenters.   Continuing Education Hours Available: An optional 2.0 Continuing Education Hours are available for each event in this series (6.0 total). There is no fee to attend this event; a processing fee of $25 for each event will be payable to Center for Applied Research Solutions (CARS) if you would like CEHs. CEHs are available for ASW, BRN, LCSW, LEP, LMFT, LPCC, and/or PPS as required by the CA Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT) and CA Board of Registered Nursing (BRN). CARS is an approved provider for CA BRN #16303 and CAMFT #131736.   Sign up for additional sessions in this series! Part 2: Trauma Informed Approaches to Suicide Prevention: What Every School Leader Wants to Know December 7, 6-8 p.m. ET / 3-5 p.m. PT / 1-3 p.m. HT  Register here Part 3: Setting the Stage:  Collaboration and Risk Assessment December 14, 6-8 p.m. ET / 3-5 p.m. PT / 1-3 p.m. HT  Register here   About the Facilitator: Angela J. Castellanos, PPSC, LCSW, serves as a School Mental Health Training Specialist. Angela Castellanos, LCSW, is an experienced mental health consultant and administrator with 25+ years of diverse and progressive expertise in the mental health care industry and school settings. As a licensed clinical social worker, she specializes in administering school mental health programs, mentoring industry professionals (local, state, and federal), developing and teaching best practices in the area of Trauma, Suicide Prevention, Crisis Response and Recovery and School Mental Health.     

Please join us in our weekly open forum to listen and share suggestions/resources. Special attention will be paid to resiliency, strength, overcoming challenges of social distancing, and supporting mental health professionals in their efforts to adapt their delivery of services. Times for this session: 11:00am – 12:00pm AKDT 12:00pm – 1:00pm PDT 1:00pm – 2:00pm MDT 2:00pm – 3:00pm CDT 3:00pm – 4:00pm EDT

Learning Objectives: present the steps of developing a safety plan, with special considerations of the limitations imposed by the current pandemic; risk management including the use of involuntary commitment in clients experiencing psychosis; crisis planning and potential harm reduction strategies to decrease risk of violence for when clients have encounters with law enforcement.

Quarterly Supervisors of Adult Peer Workforce Calls Facilitated by Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon (MHAAO). Quarterly learning and discussion opportunities for supervisors of peer staff in Region 10. The first call (December 1st) will be focused on supporting staff in times of crisis, and subsequent topics will be developed in response to group need. Facilitated through Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon, and supported by the University of Washington's Northwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center.  MHAAO Consultation Calls & Webinars 2020-2021 OTHER DATES IN THIS QUARTERLY SERIES   January 26, 2021 at 1:00 PM Pacific April 6, 2021 at 1:00 PM Pacific Facilitators: Adrienne Scavera is the Training and Outreach Department Director for Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon (MHAAO), one of Oregon's oldest and largest peer-run organizations. In her role as a department director, Adrienne works to support the peer workforce from initial entry and training to systems-level advocacy. Currently, Adrienne serves on several committees and boards, including the Oregon Health Authority’s Training Evaluation and Metrics Program Scoring Committee and the state Traditional Health Worker Commission. In her work, Adrienne prioritizes the experience of individuals as the experts on their own lives. Over the years, she has worked in research, direct service, program development, management, training, and with non-profits, educational institutions, and peer-run organizations. She enjoys writing about herself in third person, well-organized spaces, and friendly animals. Janie Gullickson is a person in long-term recovery and for her that means she has not used alcohol or other drugs in over 12 years. Janie is in recovery from both addiction and mental health challenges as well as homelessness, incarceration, and criminal justice involvement. She navigated all types of systems and institutions that can accompany such life experiences, from frequent hospitalizations to prison. Janie was released from Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in September of 2006. Janie first began her work as a Peer Support Specialist/Recovery Mentor for Yamhill County HHS in McMinnville, Oregon in 2011. Janie joined the peer-run organization Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon (MHAAO) as a project assistant in 2014. In May of 2017 Janie became MHAAO’s Executive Director. She also earned her Master of Public Administration: Health Administration (MPA: HA) degree from Portland State University in June of 2017. Janie is passionate about social justice issues with a focus on mental health and addiction recovery, peer programs and services and advocacy in these realms. Want more information? Visit the Northwest MHTTC's Resource Library and Websites by Topic  and sign up for our monthly newsletter for regular updates about events, trainings, and resources available to the Northwest region.

National ACT Virtual Meetings & Discussion Forum to Address Impact of COVID-19 Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) is a multidisciplinary, team-based model that provides intensive community-based and outreach-oriented services to people who experience the most severe and persistent mental illness. The vast majority also have a co-occurring substance use disorder and many experience comorbid medical illnesses as well as homelessness. This is a vulnerable population and their providers – ACT teams – are at elevated risk themselves during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are hosting a meet-up for non-provider ACT stakeholders who assume a role of overseeing ACT from a mental health authority perspective, funding ACT, providing ACT training and technical supports, which includes leading ACT fidelity reviews. The intent is to create a unique space to share challenges and solutions related ACT operations and services during the COVID-19 pandemic. This meet-up is hosted by Lorna Moser, PhD, of the Institute for Best Practices, UNC Center for Excellence in Community Mental Health and Maria Monroe-DeVita, PhD of the University of Washington Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the Northwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center (MHTTC), the sponsor for these ACT meet-up events. For more information or questions, contact: Lorna Moser, PhD, Director of the UNC ACT Technical Assistance Center in the UNC Department of Psychiatry’s Center for Excellence in Community Mental Health; and Coordinator of the North Carolina ACT Coalition. Maria Monroe-DeVita, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine; Co-Director of the Northwest MHTTC; and Director, Washington State Center of Excellence in First Episode Psychosis.    

Join Pacific Southwest MHTTC Associate Director Heliana Ramirez, PhD, LISW, and Program Manager Tiara Peterkin, LCSW, for an interactive discussion about virtual and socially distanced resources for mood management over the 2020 holiday season. Learn about apps, virtual support groups, curated videos about resilience in diverse communities, and the presenters’ own “secret sauce” for managing the ups and downs of the 2020 holiday season as Latinx and Black mental health providers. Share your own self-help skills and the resources you provide clients to get through the difficulties of the holiday season—we look forward to learning with one another!    Continuing Education Hours Available: An optional 1.5 Continuing Education Hours are available for mental health professionals. There is no fee to attend this virtual event; a processing fee of $25 will be payable to Center for Applied Research Solutions (CARS) if you would like CEHs. CEHs are available for ASW, BRN, LCSW, LEP, LMFT, LPCC, and/or PPS as required by the CA Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT) and CA Board of Registered Nursing (BRN). CARS is an approved provider for CA BRN #16303 and CAMFT #131736.   About the Presenters  Heliana Ramirez, PhD, LISW, is a licensed clinical social worker with over 20 years of experience and Associate Director of the Pacific Southwest MHTTC. Dr. Ramirez has addressed a variety of clinical issues through individual and group interventions including suicide prevention and postvention, Veteran post-deployment health, psychosocial rehabilitation, LGBTQ minority stress and resilience, trauma-informed care with combat Veterans and survivors of sexual assault, HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C prevention, and substance abuse harm reduction efforts. Dr. Ramirez’s suicide prevention work with clients includes suicide assessments, developing Safety Plans, crisis intervention, and processing the impacts of suicide attempts through suicide post-ventions following hospitalization. Dr. Ramirez organized the nation’s first multi-state LGBT Veteran Suicide Prevention Conference and produced a documentary about trauma and recovery among LGBT Veterans that addresses suicide from a strengths based and culturally-specific perspective (www.camouflagecloset.com).    Tiara Peterkin, LCSW, is an advanced practice clinical social worker who has been working in the field for 8 years and a Project Manager with the Pacific Southwest MHTTC. Ms. Peterkin started her journey into social work in 2007 as a Peace Corps Volunteer serving as a Youth Development Volunteer in Costa Rica. After completing her social work degree with a concentration in mental health and military social work, she worked in several Veterans Affairs social work programs, including homeless outreach, combat PTSD, the emergency department, homeless case management, suicide prevention, and outpatient mental health. Under her stewardship, the suicide prevention program was able to increase outreach and engagement activities throughout the Pacific Basin and has received supplemental funding from the national office to demonstrate innovative practices in suicide prevention. Ms. Peterkin is passionate about suicide prevention and is thrilled to share her knowledge with the audience.      

Trauma Responsive School Training of Trainers (TOT) Part 2 November 30, 2020 9:00am - 12:00pm US/Mountain Time This interactive training will cover the HEARTS Core Guiding Principles, build capacity to facilitate foundational trainings, and formulate a plan for the integration of trauma-informed practices.    This is a closed event. If you are interested in similar technical assistance training, please contact Stefanie Winfield at [email protected]. Learning Objectives Establish a training for educators, school leaders and district staff that builds on and strengthens foundational trauma-informed knowledge grounded in the HEARTS framework. The training focuses on moving from theory to application using practical strategies that can be implemented immediately. Examine trauma and trauma-informed practices through a lens of equity and cultural humility focusing on racial trauma, implicit bias, racial equity, and the importance of applying culturally responsive trauma-informed practices. Participants will create a multi-phased action plan for adopting and integrating trauma-informed practices into their school/district that is sustainable. Participants will gain materials and knowledge to lead foundational trauma-informed trainings in their school/ district.  Trainer Megan Brennan, PsyD  Brennan is a licensed clinical psychologist with extensive experience in the areas of children and adolescent mental health, working in school systems, trauma-informed care, mindfulness, crisis response, culturally responsive practices, supervision, program development, and program evaluation. Working to advance systems transformation, Megan has partnered with school districts, individual schools, grant funders and community partners with a focus on advancing trauma-informed, culturally responsive school communities.           Upcoming Session December 14, 2020   Trauma Responsive School Training of Trainers Part 3

Pursuing Self-Care During Challenging Times - Operation Honoring and Supporting our Modern Day Protectors November 24, 2020 12:30 - 2:30 pm MST | 1:30 - 3:30 pm CST Law enforcement officers and first responders are facing a myriad of challenges related to COVID-19 due to an increase in mental health and substance use disorders and community violence. These pressures, coupled with an already high-stress job environment, underscore the need for addressing and maintaining personal wellness. This multi-part training series will engage law enforcement officers and first responders to develop positive protective factors to cope with the increased pressures of their day-to-day work. This webinar will be divided into two 30-minute moderated panel discussions followed by 15-minutes of Q&A. The first discussion session will review best practices for law enforcement and first responders when engaging in self-care. The second discussion session will provide content on ways to overcome challenges due to stigma when engaging in self-care. This training series is open only to members of the Bureau of Indian Affairs Justice Services Division.   Training developed in collaboration with the following agencies:  

Description: Pennsylvania’s primary health care providers play important roles in improving access to affordable, quality care for over 800,000 Keystone State residents. Community health care center staff are working long days and often report feeling overwhelmed by juggling many job responsibilities. The effects of this stress can lead to compassion fatigue, burnout, or secondary traumatic stress, which contribute to lower job satisfaction and employee turnover. This four-part training will explore the differences between and strategies to counter fatigue, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress. Participants will also learn strategies to enhance well-being and promote job satisfaction. Download flyer   Presenter: Kristin M. Scardamalia, PhD, SSP, LP is a psychologist whose research builds on her extensive experience working with high-needs youth and their families. She has worked as a school psychologist in juvenile justice settings including juvenile detention and post-adjudication residential treatment. Her current research focuses on the intersection of the public education, juvenile justice, and mental health systems and their contribution to the disproportionate number of minorities impacted by the school to prison pipeline. In addition to conducting school-based research, Dr. Scardamalia provides training, technical assistance, and consultation support to the behavioral health workforce at local, state, and national levels. She currently works as an Assistant Professor at the National Center for School Mental Health, located at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. She received her Bachelors’ degree in Psychology from Baylor University, and her doctoral degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin.   Learning Objectives: Describe contributors to and symptoms of compassion fatigue, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress Gain an understanding of how stress impacts individuals and manifests in our lives Develop a personal plan to improve well-being and to counter compassion fatigue, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress   Closed Registration Target audience: Pennsylvania Association of Community Health Centers personnel

Have a training or technical assistance question regarding mental health service provision or school mental health in the Pacific Southwest MHTTC region of Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, or the Pacific Islands? Join us for monthly PS MHTTC Office Hours! Once a month, PS MHTTC staff will host a virtual meeting for the mental health and school mental health workforce to pose questions, access support, and share resources. Office Hours are held 3-4 p.m. PT on every 4th Monday of the month, October through January, and on the 3rd Monday in February. Please register at by 3 p.m. PT on the dates you would like to attend.

  **This is a private training not opened to our community** This online seminar will review stressors that have been intensified to 2020 events. The online seminar will also identify stress management tool s that can be used for school-aged children and those who provide services to them in a school-based setting. Special considerations for Hispanic and Latino youth mental health will also be discussed.   Learning objectives: Discuss how 2020 stressors has impacted Latinx youths and caregiver's mental health. Identify basic cultural considerations for Hispanic and Latino youth and caregivers. Apply stress management tools that can be utilized in the school setting.   Who should attend? This is an intermediate level workshop designed for mental health providers, school mental health providers, and school administrators.    About the presenters:    Danita Gallegos, LCSW- Danita Gallegos is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Houston, Texas. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from Texas A&M University – College Station and her Master’s in Social Work degree from the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. She has experience working with families in medical social work, crisis response, school social work and as a psychotherapist. Danita currently works with the UT HealthTexas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine (TCHATT) Program in providing school crisis response and school-based therapy.     Please read the following before registering:  The National Hispanic and Latino Mental Health Technology Transfer Center use GoToWebinar as our online event system.  Audio for the event is accessible via the internet. To receive audio, attendees must join the event by using computers equipped with speakers or dial in via telephone.  After registration, a confirmation email will be generated with instructions for joining the event. To avoid problems with log-in, please use the confirmation email to join the event.  

The National Hispanic and Latino MHTTC in collaboration with Antioch University presents this webinar. Rituals are actions done in purposeful ways that symbolize something much more than the acts themselves. Every culture has rituals that provide purpose and meaning to experiences. Rituals are made up of actions that represent ideas, thoughts, myths, or beliefs about something specific. They give purpose to action and always serve to connect us to something else, generally something greater than ourselves. In difficult times, rituals provide a certain order to an existence that otherwise might be full of confusion and chaos. Given the current pandemic, loss and grief have taken a front seat. A sense of loss permeates in many of our lives, and for many clients this may be difficult to name. Furthermore, the inability to perform rituals in our habitual ways can be distressful for many. The current webinar will discuss the experience of loss and grief for Latinos during the current pandemic: including physical and symbolic losses. The presenters will discuss Latinos values and rituals as they relate to the current pandemic. The importance of te therapeutic relationship will be discussed as well as approaches and strategies that promote new rituals, new meanings, and a transformative experience.   Who should attend? This is an intermediate level workshop designed for mental health providers including psychologists, clinical social workers, mental health counselors, and graduate level students in the mental health field   About the presenters:    Salvador Treviño, PhD- Dr. Treviño has taught professional psychology for over 40 years and lectures extensively on the theories and practices of psychoanalytic psychotherapy, primitive mental states, and Latino behavioral health. Drawing on his scholarship of more than 43 years of clinical work with Latino immigrants and families, Dr. Treviño is active in furthering the national conversation on cultural diversity, the impact of historical trauma on Latino behavioral health, the psychology of racism, and matters of social justice from a psychoanalytic perspective. Dr. Treviño is Executive Director of GCAPS - Guadalupe Counseling & Psychological Services in Santa Barbara, CA and is adjunct faculty of the Antioch University Santa Barbara Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology. Dr. Treviño is licensed as a psychologist and marriage and family therapist specializing in salud mental Latina.   Darice Orobitg, PhD- Darice Orobitg is a clinical psychologist. She obtained a BA from Washington University in St. Louis and completed her PhD at Carlos Albizu University in San Juan, PR. Dr. Orobitg worked at the PR Rape Crisis Center where, she was a therapist for children, adolescents, and adult survivors of sexual violence. At the PRRCC she was also a clinical supervisor and coordinator of clinical services. She later worked at the National Hispanic and Latino ATTC as trainer and TA consultant offering training and TA to clinicians, counselors, social workers, and other professionals offering services to Hispanic and Latino populations with SUDs. Dr. Orobitg was also a clinical consultant at Proyecto Mujer- a gender-specific treatment program for Latinas with SUDs and trauma histories. Darice is currently the Training and Content Specialist for the National Hispanic and Latino Mental Health Technology Transfer Center. She has been in private practice since 2005.   Please read the following before registering:  The National Hispanic and Latino Mental Health Technology Transfer Center use GoToWebinar as our online event system.  Audio for the event is accessible via the internet. To receive audio, attendees must join the event by using computers equipped with speakers or dial in via telephone.  After registration, a confirmation email will be generated with instructions for joining the event. To avoid problems with log-in, please use the confirmation email to join the event.  

Quarterly Adult Peer Workforce Calls Facilitated by Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon. Quarterly learning and discussion opportunities for peer-delivered service workers across Region 10 (Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Idaho). The first call (November 20th) will be focused on self-advocacy and asking for what you need in the workplace, and subsequent topics will be developed in response to group need. Facilitated through Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon, and supported by the University of Washington's Northwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center.  MHAAO Consultation Calls & Webinars 2020-2021 OTHER DATES IN THIS QUARTERLY SERIES   Jan 27, 2021 01:00 PM  Apr 9, 2021 01:00 PM    Facilitators: Adrienne Scavera is the Training and Outreach Department Director for Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon (MHAAO), one of Oregon's oldest and largest peer-run organizations. In her role as a department director, Adrienne works to support the peer workforce from initial entry and training to systems-level advocacy. Currently, Adrienne serves on several committees and boards, including the Oregon Health Authority’s Training Evaluation and Metrics Program Scoring Committee and the state Traditional Health Worker Commission. In her work, Adrienne prioritizes the experience of individuals as the experts on their own lives. Over the years, she has worked in research, direct service, program development, management, training, and with non-profits, educational institutions, and peer-run organizations. She enjoys writing about herself in third person, well-organized spaces, and friendly animals. Janie Gullickson is a person in long-term recovery and for her that means she has not used alcohol or other drugs in over 12 years. Janie is in recovery from both addiction and mental health challenges as well as homelessness, incarceration, and criminal justice involvement. She navigated all types of systems and institutions that can accompany such life experiences, from frequent hospitalizations to prison. Janie was released from Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in September of 2006. Janie first began her work as a Peer Support Specialist/Recovery Mentor for Yamhill County HHS in McMinnville, Oregon in 2011. Janie joined the peer-run organization Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon (MHAAO) as a project assistant in 2014. In May of 2017 Janie became MHAAO’s Executive Director. She also earned her Master of Public Administration: Health Administration (MPA: HA) degree from Portland State University in June of 2017. Janie is passionate about social justice issues with a focus on mental health and addiction recovery, peer programs and services and advocacy in these realms. Want more information? Visit the Northwest MHTTC's Resource Library and Websites by Topic  and sign up for our monthly newsletter for regular updates about events, trainings, and resources available to the Northwest region.

  **This is a private training not opened to our community** This online seminar will review stressors that have been intensified to 2020 events. The online seminar will also identify stress management tool s that can be used for school-aged children and those who provide services to them in a school-based setting. Special considerations for Hispanic and Latino youth mental health will also be discussed.   Learning objectives: Discuss how 2020 stressors has impacted Latinx youths and caregiver's mental health. Identify basic cultural considerations for Hispanic and Latino youth and caregivers. Apply stress management tools that can be utilized in the school setting.   Who should attend? This is an intermediate level workshop designed for mental health providers, school mental health providers, and school administrators.    About the presenters:    Danita Gallegos, LCSW- Danita Gallegos is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Houston, Texas. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from Texas A&M University – College Station and her Master’s in Social Work degree from the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. She has experience working with families in medical social work, crisis response, school social work and as a psychotherapist. Danita currently works with the UT HealthTexas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine (TCHATT) Program in providing school crisis response and school-based therapy.     Please read the following before registering:  The National Hispanic and Latino Mental Health Technology Transfer Center use GoToWebinar as our online event system.  Audio for the event is accessible via the internet. To receive audio, attendees must join the event by using computers equipped with speakers or dial in via telephone.  After registration, a confirmation email will be generated with instructions for joining the event. To avoid problems with log-in, please use the confirmation email to join the event.  

Join us for a screening of the documentary “The S Word,” a SAMHSA Voice Award-winning film that breaks the silence and undermines the shame of suicide. The critically acclaimed “The S Word” is filmed by a suicide survivor who interviews a diverse group of people across race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation about their experiences of trauma, suicide, survival, and mental health advocacy. Following the film screening, participants will receive multimedia socially distanced suicide prevention resources, from warm and crisis lines to self-help mental health apps and virtual support groups, available during the holiday season of 2020.

Young people with foster care experience are incredibly resilient. Despite facing enormous challenges including trauma, loss, and disruptions to schooling and social and family connections, they can and do heal, thrive, and contribute to their communities every day. Relationships with supportive adults and the right services at the right time both contribute to better outcomes - particularly when the adults supporting young people in foster care recognize their potential and when services meet their needs and strengthen protective factors. Please join the New England Mental Health Technology Transfer Center for an interactive conversation about the resilience of youth and young adults in foster care, and how providers, practitioners, caregivers, and other adults can help them to navigate challenges and thrive.   Panelists:  Jae Canas, Amnoni Meyers, Katheryn Tavares   Moderator:  Sandra Gasca-Gonzalez

Please join us for our weekly sessions at 2- 3pm CST. “Throughout their history, tribes have faced numerous and dark challenges, and they have always managed to overcome…It’s been a story of resilience and perseverance.” — Eric Henson With schools re-opening just around the corner and many complications still unknown, tribal schools and communities are faced with making very tough decisions about moving forward. The challenge posed by this crisis adds to existing issues present in some Native communities such as teacher shortages and the lack of infrastructure for high speed internet, which further impedes their ability to offer appropriate distance learning programs. For teachers, who are held accountable for getting students ready for college or careers, COVID-19 has added to their already jam-packed workloads and responsibilities as we look to them to teach and practice preventative safety measures to avoid any exposure to COVID-19. Some of these added responsibilities will be to ensure and instruct students in effective social distancing, wearing face coverings, and practicing appropriate hygiene. For students, school is their most sought-after place to socialize. As students return to school, they will be introduced to another form of socialization at a six-foot distance. Understandably, these changes can lead to confusion, anxiety, and other challenges. The MHTTC K-12 program invites the entire school community (students, parents, teachers, counselors, and principals) to our special weekly listening sessions covering topics that are important for you as we go through this new school year together. Examples of upcoming session topics: Hear from other tribal schools as they re-open Is Your School Ready? COVID -19 Toolkit Best Practices in Teaching Hygiene Self-Care for Teachers What Parents Have to Say Telehealth in Schools Rise in Mental Outcomes and Crisis Intervention Serving Students with Disabilities Protecting the Health and Safety of Students

This workshop targeted to mental health providers will explore the concepts of personal resilience and post-traumatic growth, including definitions and application of the ideas in personal and professional life. The links between adverse events and challenges will be discussed and how we can use these difficulties to help us grow stronger and more balanced through post-traumatic growth. Strategies for building resilience and encouraging growth will be sought from participants and discussed from a Post-Traumatic Growth lens and from the positive psychology “Flourishing” model- Positive Emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment (PERMA). Objectives: Explore resilience and post-traumatic growth for mental health providers Identify links between difficult situations and post-traumatic growth Review PERMA (Seligman) model Identify strategies for flourishing for mental health providers

A session titled, "Systematic Implementation of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosis with Early Intervention for Psychosis Coordinated Specialty Care Teams" was presented by the Northwest MHTTC and affiliates at the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies 54th Annual Convention, held virtually November 17-22, 2020. EVENT DESCRIPTION Evidence supports the use of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for psychosis (CBTp) in the tertiary prevention of psychosis among individuals at high risk and as a consistent component of treatment packages among individuals who have experienced a psychotic episode. However, even among early psychosis coordinated specialty care teams, CBTp competencies are rare. Oregon’s Early Assessment and Support Alliance (EASA) has been a frontrunner in providing team-based specialty care for individuals who have or are at risk for psychotic disorders. In 2018, the EASA Center for Excellence (EASA C4E) partnered with SAMHSA-funded Northwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center (MHTTC) at the University of Washington to support the implementation of CBTp, using an evidence-based implementation framework and empirically supported and emerging implementation practices. This presentation will review pre-, peri-, and post-implementation activities as well as implementation outcomes. Nine providers, six site supervisors, and the EASA C4E clinical training director were directly involved in the 18-month CBTp implementation (October 2018-April 2020) across seven community mental health agencies in Oregon. Post-implementation evaluation (time point 5) occurs April, 2020. Process data to-date suggest that CBTp trainings and follow-up consultations have been well-received and rated as high-quality. Preliminary outcome data indicate statistically significant improvements in CBTp-related knowledge between pretest and post-event (t = -4.39, p = .002), and small positive effects on self-reported practice changes. There were no significant changes in attitudes towards EBP or attitudes toward psychosis, although attitudes were generally positive at both time points. Additional findings on changes in organizational readiness and implementation outcomes will be included as long-term follow-up data become available. Together, these data provide preliminary evidence that intensive, multimodal implementation supported by an external facilitator can effectively promote knowledge gains and practice changes designed to support individuals at high risk for psychotic disorders. SPEAKERS Sarah L. Kopelovich, PhD Faculty-Scientist University of Washington School of Medicine Seattle, Washington Jennifer Blank, B.A. Research Coordinator University of Washington School of Medicine Seattle, Washington Jonathan Olson, PhD Research Scientist University of Washington Seattle, Washington Jeffery Roskelley, LICSW Staff Trainer University of Washington Seattle, Washington Ryan Melton, PhD EASA Clinical Training Director Early Assessment and Support Alliance Portland, Oregon Want more information? Visit the Northwest MHTTC's Resource Library and Websites by Topic  and sign up for our monthly newsletter for regular updates about events, trainings, and resources available to the Northwest region.

Families of persons with serious mental illness play an important role in the lives of their loved ones. In addition to being caring siblings, parents or spouses, they often function as caregivers and can be an asset to any mental health team to assure optimal benefit of treatment. A new workforce is emerging to support these families. Family peer support workers are persons with a lived experience trained to provide support to other family members who are caring for a person with a serious mental illness. In this presentation, Mid-America MHTTC specialists and partners with Omaha-based Community Alliance will describe how family peer support workers help families adjust their thoughts, feelings and behavior to promote health and well-being. Self-care allows family members to relate better to their loved ones, and providers and practitioners to promote recovery. Participants will understand how a family peer support worker can help families:   •             Adopt productive self-care strategies through teaching and modeling; •             Understand, identify, and accept their own emotional response to the illness of a loved one; and •             Develop a personal self-care plan. Content is tailored to address needs within our four-state region — Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri — but all are welcome. 

The Northwest MHTTC in partnership with Pathways Research and Training Center (RTC) is pleased to announce a series of monthly consultation calls focused on “Advanced Topics in Strengthening Youth/Young Adult Peer Support.” Each call will have its own topic, in an area such as skill building, supervision, coaching and training, organizational policies and procedures, hiring and onboarding, and more. This series is intended primarily for peer support specialists, their supervisors, and administrators charged with implementing youth/young adult peer support.  Pathways RTC Consult Calls   On November 19, from 10-11 AM Pacific, we will discuss how youth peer support specialists (PSSs) engage in strengths-based conversations with young people, using the framework of "Strengths, Passions, Achievements, and Motivators (SPAM)." Discussing strengths can feel uncomfortable, distressing or phony for youth clients. In this call we will focus on specific techniques that PSSs can use to help ensure a comfortable and engaging conversation that builds both the PSSs' and the youth's awareness and genuine appreciation of the young person's SPAM.   Here's what you can expect from each consultation call: Focus on one topic such as skill building, supervision, coaching and training, organizational policies and procedures, hiring and on-boarding, and more Sharing a practical resource related to the meeting's topic, such as  a strategy, tool, set of research findings, or template Time for focused discussion in which attendees can ask questions and share knowledge and ideas relevant to the day’s topic, followed by an open discussion of any topic related to youth/young adult peer support To allow for interaction and discussion, registration will be limited. Register early to ensure your space! Attendees from each meeting will be given priority to register for the next one. Want more information? Visit the Northwest MHTTC's Resource Library and Websites by Topic  and sign up for our monthly newsletter for regular updates about events, trainings, and resources available to the Northwest region.