Past Events

The South Southwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center (MHTTC), invites Region 6 Peer Specialists and Family Partners working in First Episode Psychosis (FEP) and Coordinated Specialty Care (CSC) teams to participate in our monthly networking meetings. These no-cost, virtual meetings offer you the opportunity to collaborate with other FEP/CSC Team Peer Specialists and Family Partners in a supportive, mentoring environment. The goal is provide a space for resource sharing, support around ways to be most effective when working with FEP/CSC clients, options for self-care strategies, and more! This event takes place on the first Friday of each month.   Facilitators:   Missy Boyd Certified Peer Specialist FEP/Hope Program I have years of experience facilitating groups as well as teaching. I have been in Peer Support close to two years now helping others with my shared life experience. I am now with FEP and am flourishing in the job.               Angie Tyler  Certified Family Partner I have been working with the Integral Care RA1SE Team for 5 years and 7 months. I am fortunate to work and be part of an amazing team here in Austin. As a Certified Bilingual Family Partner, I am able to share my lived experience with families and help them navigate through community resources. My work background includes working with Travis County Juvenile Probation, Caseworker at Lifeworks for Homeless Foster Youth, and Arc of the Capital Area working with IDD services as well as with the Juvenile Justice Program. The work I am most proud of is with the Integral Care RA1SE team because it has allowed me the honor to walk with so many families through their own journey and to give them hope and encouragement in their most challenging moments.

This learning community is closed to select participants.  To learn more about this series, visit the homepage: Implementing Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) in Kansas  

Emotional eating is a struggle that many of us have faced, particularly when feeling isolated, anxious, bored, empty, frustrated, or even excited. Event Description Do you ever feel guilty for eating?   Do you ever feel anxious around food?   Do you ever feel a sense of a loss of control or impulsivity around food? Do you ever judge yourself for what you eat? Do you use food to cope, distract, or numb out?   Do you fear eating certain foods or label certain foods as good/bad?   Do you feel like you’re on a rollercoaster with your eating?   Do you feel like there is no way to trust your intuition and your body to guide your eating?   Do you have difficulty identifying your body’s hunger, fullness, and satiety cues?     If you answered yes to any of these questions, you’re in luck! We are offering an introduction to emotional eating on April 6, 2023, followed by a 4-week emotional eating program starting on April 13th, 2023.     Emotional eating is a struggle that many of us have faced, particularly when feeling isolated, anxious, bored, empty, frustrated, or even excited. Join Laura MacLachlan, registered psychotherapist, for an introduction to emotional eating.     This introduction will offer participants the knowledge and practical strategies needed to understand and conquer emotional eating and make peace with food. Laura will briefly demonstrate how participants can learn to change their relationship with food and how to listen to their bodies.     This introductory training is for anyone interested in learning more about emotional eating and the impact it can have on a person, personally and/or professionally. Participants will also have a chance to briefly review the curriculum for the ongoing 4-week course on emotional eating that is being offered following the introductory training. Trainer Laura MacLachlan, Psychotherapist, BSc., MCP, RP                     Laura MacLachlan is a registered psychotherapist with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario.    She uses evidence-based interventions drawing from cognitive behaviour therapy, mindfulness, and intuitive eating, while liaising with other care providers to ensure a holistic approach to intervention.     She is passionate about working with individuals and families affected by mood and anxiety disorders, emotional eating, and relationship difficulties. In her work with clients who struggle with emotional eating, recovery involves addressing the many issues that contribute to it, such as shame, relationship problems, perfectionism, and past traumas.    When meeting first-time clients, Laura says, “I’m confident that together we can work to help equip you with the necessary tools to help you face and overcome the challenges you are facing. Whether you’re struggling with anxiety, depression, or emotional eating, it is important that you know you don’t have to be alone in this journey.”    

  This is Part 7 of 9 of the Supporting Resilience in Children & Youth learning series.     DESCRIPTION: This 2-hour workshop is the seventh in the Supporting Resilience for Children and Youth series. This presentation focus specifically on the assessment of trauma in children and teens. In doing so, we will discuss how to assess for trauma exposure, the limitations and utility of the ACE scale for different racial and SES groups, and the best practice in asking about trauma with children. We will explore ways to assess for impact and highlight a few trauma screeners for use with children and teens that all clinicians can employ.     LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Explain why it’s important to assess for exposure to adversity and trauma, and impact on functioning to guide treatment Learn strategies to assess for trauma exposure, including why ACEs screening is limited in clinical practice and what to do about it Identify strategies to assess for trauma     CERTIFICATES: Registrants who fully attend this event or training will receive a certificate of attendance via email within two weeks after the event or training.      PRESENTER: Carmela J. DeCandia, PsyD, is a licensed clinical child psychologist who has dedicated her career to advancing best practices and policies to support vulnerable children and families, and to improve the systems which serve them. In practice for nearly 30 years, her primary work focuses on building trauma-informed systems of care. Her specialties include: child and adolescent development, family homelessness,  addressing the impact of traumatic stress, program development and systems change, neurodevelopmental testing and family assessment. A compassionate clinician and effective leader, she is nationally recognized as a writer, advocate, and public speaker. She has led direct service and national agencies including St. Mary’s Women and Children’s Center and The National Center on Family Homelessness. Currently, Dr. DeCandia is the Owner and President of Artemis Associates, LLC where she provides training and consultation to organizations  to enhance resilience for children, families, and their providers. In addition, she maintains a clinical practice in neurodevelopmental and psychological testing of children at Strong Roots Counseling center, and is the Principal Investigator on a NICHD funded project to develop the screening instrument - NEST Early Childhood. Dr. DeCandia has published extensively in academic journals and educational reports, and lectures on lifespan development and psychological testing at Boston College Graduate school in Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology. For her work, she was named the recipient of the 2016 Horace Mann Spirit of Service Award by Antioch University.      The Great Lakes MHTTC is offering this training for individuals working in HHS Region 5: IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI. This training is being provided in response to a need identified by Region 5 stakeholders.

This 75-minute webinar focuses on grief. Offered in collaboration with Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon (MHAAO). ABOUT THIS EVENT We have been through such grief: fires, isolation, sickness, death, murder, protests, job losses, loss of our normalcy. Grief affects our mental health, physical health, coping skills and those we are trying to help in our field.  We are still grieving losses from Covid, from our childhood. We grieve losses we anticipate will be forthcoming. The norm of our culture is to push our grief away, to push through, to "get over it." We isolate, and in the past, self-medicate. While we tuck these griefs further and further away, they aren't gone from us. As mental & behavioral health professionals, our grief requires our tending. We need to walk with our grief from time to time just as we walk with our joy. Grief tending allows us release and relief. It allows those of us working to care for the grief of others to be stronger and better able to offer our skill and attention. Resources Eve L. Ewing: “I saw Emmett Till this week at the grocery store” poetry reading (3-minute video) Spilling the Light, a poem by Theresa I. Soto Ritual: Power, Healing and Community by Malidoma Patrice Somé Examples of altars Five Gates of Grief. From The Wild Edge of Sorrow: Rituals of Renewal and the Sacred Work of Grief by Francis Weller, published by North Atlantic Books, copyright © 2015 by Francis Weller. Used by permission of North Atlantic Books.   FACILITATOR Jennifer Springsteen Jennifer Springsteen is a writer and a teacher in Portland, Oregon. She is in her final year of seminary seeking her Masters of Divinity and is currently serving as the intern minister at Unitarian Universalist Church of Vancouver, Washington. She has been offering grief workshops for the past five years to writers, folx identifying as dually diagnosed, seminarians, and congregants.  

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2023 2:00pm - 4:00pm PT [Find your local time zone here] Workshop 2 of 2 in the "Motivational Interviewing in April, for the Mental Health Workforce" Series (view series page for full details, including priming resources) Motivational Interviewing in April, for the Mental Health Workforce   Workshop 2: Building Strength and Connecting to Intuition Motivational Interviewing and Affirmation Skills for Youth and Young Adults Wednesday, April 5, 2023 ● 2:00pm - 4:00pm Whether voluntarily sought or mandated to treatment, help seekers come to address problems in their lives. In this session, we will discuss how building strengths and affirmations helps promote self-efficacy and confidence that can fuel the change process. This session will focus specifically on using affirmation with young adults (although the skills and practice are applicable with individuals of all ages). After attending this workshop, behavioral health providers and professionals will be able to: Identify at least three strength qualities that can be affirmed and supported among help seekers. Create at least three interventions that affirm help seeker strengths. Use values sorting and characteristics of successful change tools to promote strengths and competencies among help seekers.     Other workshops in this series: Workshop 1: Spirit of Motivational Interviewing Connecting with Our Humanity to Support Growth and Change Tuesday, April 4, 2023 ● 2:00pm - 4:00pm How we show up in our work spaces and the attitudes we hold profoundly impacts the work we do.  It is impossible to separate our professional skill sets from our beliefs about ourselves and others. In this session, we will learn the “spirit” of motivational interviewing and how this spirit shapes our therapeutic approach and creates context for our interactions with clients. We will learn how connecting to the “spirit” allows us to create psychological safety for help seekers and how essential it is for promoting trauma-informed care. After attending this workshop, behavioral health providers and professionals will be able to: Identify and define the four main components of the “spirit” of MI. Demonstrate at least two ways the “spirit” can help promote change among help-seekers. Create their own plan to build “spirit” in their own sessions with help seekers.   While each session is standalone, we highly recommend you attend both!     Who is this series for? All sessions are open to anyone (mental health or school mental health professionals including counselors, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, peer supporters, alcohol and drug counselors, mental health program administrators, MDs, nurses, and other allied health professionals) *Please note that the training will be an advanced level of Motivational Interviewing, and participants should have a basic familiarity or experience with this modality. We are open to all participants; our priority service areas are SAMHSA Region 9 states and territories, including: Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and U.S. Pacific Islands of American Samoa, Guam, Marshall Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau. 4 CEUs are available through full participation (two CEHs are available for each session, with a total of four CEHs for both)

In this webinar, participants will learn to leverage data to identify injustice and advance equity in school mental health, with a focus on groups experiencing marginalization. Event Description Schools are promising natural settings for service provision in the domain of youth mental health. Historically and contemporarily, schools are also frequently sites where societal inequities and oppression are replicated and perpetuated. With proper stewardship, data-based decision making within school contexts can advance equity in access and outcomes for youth. In this webinar, participants will learn to leverage data to identify injustice and advance equity in school mental health, with a focus on groups experiencing marginalization. Specifically, tangible strategies to identifying disproportionality in access and outcomes will be shared. Participants will have an opportunity to learn ways to tailor equitable data-based decision making to their settings and to communicate effectively about aligning mental health systems with socially just practices. Trainer Miranda Zahn, PhD, NCSP                     Miranda Zahn, PhD, NCSP, is an Assistant Professor of School Psychology at the University of South Dakota. She conducts research, training, and technical assistance in school-based mental health services. Specifically, Miranda focuses on social justice and the role of teachers in school supports for youth mental health. In addition, Miranda is a school psychologist and school mental health provider at Nebraska’s Educational Service Unit #1, where she provides direct services to youth as well as training and systems consultation.  

Peer Supporters are needed to support the overall health, wellness, and quality of life needs of the growing number of older adults who may experience mental health and substance use concerns. This webinar will discuss key issues impacting this group, and provide guidance for Peer Supporters to provide person-centered care for older adults. Panel discussion will include a peer supporter and peer support recipient.   Learning objectives: Recognize ageism in self, health care, and society Describe key changes associated with normal aging Identify three common ways mental health issues may differ in older adults   Rush University designates this live activity for 1.5 Continuing Education credits.   This event is hosted by the E4 Center of Excellence for Behavioral Health Disparities in Aging with support from New England MHTTC.   If you would like accommodations to participate in any of our events, please contact us at [email protected].    

DESCRIPTION This webinar will address the importance of supportive reentry for those with mental health challenges and related recovery support needs. More than 700,000 individuals leave incarceration and detention each year in the United States, according to the U.S. Justice Department*. Investing in financial and other resources is critical to supporting what science shows increases the chances of successful reentry. The presentation will also discuss reentry within a health-based model of desistence and explore the supports that are demonstrated to improve the likelihood of successful recovery and reentry.   LEARNING OBJECTIVES Define and explain the health-based model of desistance Explain the importance of using person-first language Explain how a strengths-based approach can improve outcomes for justice-involved individuals List at least three strategies for supporting reentering citizens   PRESENTERS Linda Frazier, M.A., RN, MCHES, director of addictions initiatives at Advocates for Human Potential, Inc. (AHP), has extensive leadership and consulting experience, with more than 30 years working in a variety of clinical settings—including outpatient behavioral health, medications for addiction treatment (MAT), women’s health, and adolescent and college health. Ms. Frazier served as associate director of treatment and recovery services for the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Office of Behavioral Health. She has also served on the leadership team of the American Public Health Association Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs Section since 2009 and is currently the Past Chair.   Jennifer Christie, M.Crim., is a senior program associate II at AHP. She has extensive expertise in applying evidence-based practices in criminal justice settings. She works with all intercepts of the justice system to change a punitive approach to a research-driven, supportive, behavior-change approach through collaboration, relationship-building, and translating research into pragmatic solutions. Ms. Christie works to improve criminal justice services nationwide and has provided training and technical assistance to more than 20 states. Her work spans multiple agencies, where she has been involved in developing, advancing, and implementing policy changes that reduce recidivism and improve outcomes for individuals (both juvenile and adult) in and leaving the justice system.       AUDIENCE Behavioral health providers, community health workers, integrated care providers, anyone working with individuals returning to the community after incarceration, and other traditional and nontraditional supports serving people experiencing homelessness.   _______________________________ *The United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Georgia, Community Outreach. (n.d.). Reentry fact sheet.

  DESCRIPTION: In this session we will explore Emotionally-Inclusive Practices, a framework used to integrate emotion into every part of the educational experience. Emotions lay the foundation for behavior that ground us in how we see the world and respond in our everyday interactions. Developing the emotional intelligence of adults and children across our implicit bias, culture consciousness, and understanding student and our own trauma give us the awareness and skills to create restorative communities that prioritize all relationships.     LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Participants will: • Learn and apply the principles of Emotional Intelligence in both personal and professional areas of life. • Gain the knowledge to mentor or develop others towards greater growing Emotional Intelligence. • Learn 16 Emotional Intelligence strategies that to practice personally and model for youth. • Develop resilient responses to challenges, stress, pressure, and demanding expectations in schools and youthwork.     CERTIFICATES: Registrants who fully attend this event or training will receive a certificate of attendance via email within two weeks after the event or training.      PRESENTER: Brian Dinkins, EdD Dr. Brian Dinkins is the author and creator of Emotionally-Inclusive Practices, motivational speaker, and national education consultant for the Center for Empowering Education, where he leads as CEO. Brian also serves as an assistant professor at Butler University, where he serves as director of the Experiential Program for Preparing School Principals (EPPSP). Dr. Dinkins has served as turnaround principal in four high-poverty schools, including traditional, charter, and private schools, and has committed his work to serve children, partners, and communities in need.     The Great Lakes MHTTC is offering this training for individuals working in HHS Region 5: IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI. This training is being provided in response to a need identified by Region 5 stakeholders.

This enhanced professional learning series is now full. Thank you for your interest in attending. If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected]. Thank you.  Enhance your current knowledge and practice on how to effectively use MI in school-based settings.  Series Description Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based, psycho-social intervention method that aims to improve mental health. CBT focuses on challenging and changing unhelpful cognitive distortions and behaviors, improving emotional regulation, and the development of personal coping strategies that target solving current problems.  This enhanced professional learning (EPL) series will provide a 20-hour curriculum for advanced practitioners of CBT and will cover topics essential to CBT therapy skills in treating social anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The series will be interactive, and participants will be expected to present a case study to the group using a CBT case formulation. Participants will also be given weekly learning activities to complete between sessions.   WHEN:   Every Tuesday, April 4 – May 30, 2023 from 1:30 – 3:00 PM Mountain/2:30 – 4:00 PM Central    TARGET AUDIENCE:  Mental health professionals that:  Are located in the Mountain Pains MHTTC region (HHS Region 8 includes CO, MT, ND, SD, UT, and WY).  Have at least one (1) year of CBT experience and understand the core concepts/foundations of CBT.  Are currently using CBT in professional practice.    PARTICIPANT COMMITMENT & EXPECTATIONS:  Attend a live 1-hour Orientation Session on Tuesday, April 4 at 1:30 pm MT/2:30 pm CT  Commit to 8-weeks of training for 1.5 hours weekly from April 11-May 2023  Complete 1-hour of weekly self-study learning activities  Present a case study to the group during the series using a CBT case formulation.  Access to appropriate technology to utilize online videoconferencing platform (i.e., an internet connection, webcam, computer/tablet, speakers, and microphone)  Be prepared and actively engage while on camera during the scheduled series time.    CONTINUING EDUCATION:  The series has been approved for a total of 21 contact hours (20-hours content instruction and 1-hour orientation session). No credit will be awarded for non-attendance. The knowledge and skills learned should be applied within the framework of any applicable Operating and/or Credentialing regulations in your State of practice.  Learning Objectives  At the end of the Advanced CBT EPL series, participants will be able to:  Describe how CBT can be delivered and identify the types of difficulties that it can help with.  Identify the key components of a cognitive behavioral approach to understanding social anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and OCD.  Describe how specific kinds of behaviors and thought pattern can maintain difficulties in social anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and OCD, and identify key CBT techniques used to address these in therapy.  Trainer Thomas Broffman, PHD, LICSW, CAADAC, CCS, CEAP

DESCRIPTION Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, data has suggested that the mental and emotional health of Black youth have worsened. Social influencers of health — such as disparities in access to mental health services; direct, indirect, and systemic experiences of racism; and greater risk of adverse childhood experiences — have all also been impacted by and exacerbated by the pandemic, further contributing to mental health concerns among Black youth. This presents a particularly important time to understand and identify treatments that address the specific and unique mental health concerns of Black youth, more specifically Black boys.   Black boys are more likely to experience the pressures of Black masculinity roles, which suggest that they must be physically and emotionally strong, athletic, and places less emphasis and value on their emotional health and feelings. This webinar will provide the audience with an understanding of the unique experiences of Black boys, the negative impact of shame and stigma on their mental health (depression, anxiety, trauma, and suicide), and how collectively these factors may make vulnerability, sharing their feelings, and seeking help even more difficult. This presentation will also provide strategies for reducing the stigmatization of mental health, specifically among Black boys.   LEARNING OBJECTIVES Identify social influencers of health that negatively impact the mental health and wellbeing of Black boys and may contribute to increased risk of suicide Understand the impact of shame, stigma, and grief on mental health and wellness and the challenges with vulnerability and help seeking among Black boys Identify at least two strategies to reduce the stigmatization of mental health, and improve the mental health and wellness and support for Black boys   PRESENTERS Nicole Cammack, Ph.D. is a licensed Clinical Psychologist in Washington, DC and in the state of Maryland. She received her bachelor’s degree from Howard University and her master's and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from The George Washington University. Throughout her career, Dr. Cammack has focused on identifying ways to address the cultural and systemic issues that impact Black mental health and wellness. This passion led to the development of Black Mental Wellness, Corp. of which she is the President and CEO.      Jessica Henry, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Georgia. She is the co-founder and vice president of program development and evaluation for the Black Mental Wellness Corp., and founder and CEO of Community Impact: Consultation & Psychological Services—a trauma-informed organization whose mission is to provide trauma-informed services to individuals and organizations affected by traumatic events. Henry is the current senior director of behavioral health for one of Washington, DC’s largest Federally Qualified Health Centers, and previous clinical director of a level-5 close security male prison and Georgia’s largest youth homeless shelter. Overall, Henry is passionate about the mental health of individuals in Black and under resourced communities and has specialized in increasing access to treatment and providing the highest quality of evidence-based mental health treatment services to underserved youth, families, and adults exposed to traumatic events (e.g., community violence, abuse, neglect). She received her B.S. from Howard University, M.A. from Columbia University, and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from The George Washington University. She is from the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area. For more information about Henry, please visit BlackMentalWellness.com or ImpactTheCommunity.com. She can also be found on Instagram @BlackMentalWellness or @CommunityImpact_CP.   AUDIENCE Health and behavioral health professionals, school staff, community members and advocates, and family members of Black youth

This learning community is closed to select participants.  To learn more about this series, visit the homepage: Implementing Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) in Kansas  

  DESCRIPTION:  In this training you will learn eight principles which guide ethical, culturally competent clinical practice; how to address counselor "unfinished business" which can create ethical dilemmas; 10 characteristics of culturally competent service providers; issues of ethics and cultural competence in individual, group and family therapy; principles of ethics and cultural competence in a diversity of communities; how to address intersectionality, clever stories and microaggressions in cross cultural counseling and how to develop an inclusive organization.     LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Be able to use 8 principle to guide ethical, culturally competent clinical practice Be able to assess your own culturally competent practice using a 10 point scale Be able to build rapport with clients in the cross cultural counseling relationship in an ethical manner Be able to build cohesion in groups with multi-cultural membership Have criteria to ethically serve clients from diverse backgrounds ethically Be able to use 7 strategies to create an inclusive organization     CONTINUING EDUCATION: Participants who fully attend this training will be eligible to receive 3 continuing education (CE) hours certified by Illinois Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Professional Certification Association (IAODAPCA). CE certificates will be disseminated by the hosting agency after the conclusion of the training.     PRESENTER: Mark Sanders, LCSW, CADC is Project Manager for Illinois, Great Lakes ATTC. He is an international speaker in the behavioral health field whose presentations have reached thousands throughout the United States, Europe, Canada, Caribbean and British Islands. A partial list of clients include: General Motors Corporation; Xerox Corporation, Northwestern University and the United States Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. Mark is the author of five books. He has had two stories published in the New Times Bestselling Book Series, Chicken Soup for The Soul. He has taught at the University of Chicago, Loyola University of Chicago and Illinois State University's schools of social work. His three decades of experience as a direct service, Licensed Clinical Social worker is the foundation of his presentations     The Great Lakes MHTTC is offering this training for individuals working in HHS Region 5: IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI. This training is being provided in response to a need identified by Region 5 stakeholders.

TUESDAY, APRIL 4, 2023 2:00pm - 4:00pm PT [Find your local time zone here] Workshop 1 of 2 in the "Motivational Interviewing in April, for the Mental Health Workforce" Series (view series page for full details, including priming resources) Motivational Interviewing in April, for the Mental Health Workforce   Workshop 1: Spirit of Motivational Interviewing Connecting with Our Humanity to Support Growth and Change Tuesday, April 4, 2023 ● 2:00pm - 4:00pm How we show up in our work spaces and the attitudes we hold profoundly impacts the work we do.  It is impossible to separate our professional skill sets from our beliefs about ourselves and others. In this session, we will learn the “spirit” of motivational interviewing and how this spirit shapes our therapeutic approach and creates context for our interactions with clients. We will learn how connecting to the “spirit” allows us to create psychological safety for help seekers and how essential it is for promoting trauma-informed care. After attending this workshop, behavioral health providers and professionals will be able to: Identify and define the four main components of the “spirit” of MI. Demonstrate at least two ways the “spirit” can help promote change among help-seekers. Create their own plan to build “spirit” in their own sessions with help seekers.     Other workshops in this series: Workshop 2: Building Strength and Connecting to Intuition Motivational Interviewing and Affirmation Skills for Youth and Young Adults Wednesday, April 5, 2023 ● 2:00pm - 4:00pm Whether voluntarily sought or mandated to treatment, help seekers come to address problems in their lives. In this session, we will discuss how building strengths and affirmations helps promote self-efficacy and confidence that can fuel the change process. This session will focus specifically on using affirmation with young adults (although the skills and practice are applicable with individuals of all ages). After attending this workshop, behavioral health providers and professionals will be able to: Identify at least three strength qualities that can be affirmed and supported among help seekers. Create at least three interventions that affirm help seeker strengths. Use values sorting and characteristics of successful change tools to promote strengths and competencies among help seekers.   While each session is standalone, we highly recommend you attend both!     Who is this series for? All sessions are open to anyone (mental health or school mental health professionals including counselors, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, peer supporters, alcohol and drug counselors, mental health program administrators, MDs, nurses, and other allied health professionals) *Please note that the training will be an advanced level of Motivational Interviewing, and participants should have a basic familiarity or experience with this modality. We are open to all participants; our priority service areas are SAMHSA Region 9 states and territories, including: Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and U.S. Pacific Islands of American Samoa, Guam, Marshall Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau. 4 CEUs are available through full participation (two CEHs are available for each session, with a total of four CEHs for both)

This is Session 5 of our Mindful Monday series, which focuses on a wide range of evidence-based practices from different disciplines.  Event Description Session 5 Apr. 3rd, 2023 This is a 30-minute training and will run every other week through May 15th, 2023.     Each month will have a specific theme/focus with exercises from that discipline. At the beginning of each session, participants will spend a few minutes grounding and learning about the practice for that day and then spend approximately 15-20 minutes in experiential practice, leaving a few minutes in the end for reflection and discussion.   Trainer Christina Ruggiero, Masters of Counseling Psychology, Registered Psychotherapist

This 90-minute virtual consultation call with ACT teams and ACT stakeholders consists of a mini-didactic training on a topic of relevance and interest to ACT teams (at times circling back to topics related to navigating the COVID-19 pandemic and related issues as they come up), plus opportunities to pose consultation questions and learn from other ACT teams and their shared experiences within ACT. ABOUT THIS EVENT In April, Dr. Pat Deegan will present on What is the Role of Peer Supporters When It Comes to Psych Meds? There is little guidance in the peer movement about the role of peer supporters and psychiatric meds. In some services peer supporters assist clinical teams in helping people become compliant with meds.  In other agencies, peer supporters are instructed not to talk with people about meds. Pat Deegan will explore the various tensions we encounter when working with peers who use meds and propose some guidelines for navigating these spaces. Pat will also present a new framework for peer specialists to use when supporting people on their journey to use medication as a tool in getting to the life they want. There will be ample time for Q&A and discussion. 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. The Northwest MHTTC is partnering with the Institute for Best Practices at the University of North Carolina to host and facilitate regular meetings for ACT teams.  Goals of the meetings are to: connect with one another share strategies and resources for adapting team practices and communications    facilitate connection to the most up-to-date resources during the COVID-19 pandemic.   For more information or questions, contact: Maria Monroe-DeVita, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine and Director of the Washington State Center of Excellence in First Episode Psychosis or Lorna Moser, PhD, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Director of the Institute for Best Practice, Center for Excellence in Community Mental Health. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS SERIES FACILITATORS Pat Deegan, PhD Patricia E. Deegan, PhD's mission is to help activate and empower mental health services users in their own recovery and to provide peer supporters and clinicians with the know-how to support people in their recovery journey. She is uniquely positioned to fulfill her vocation because she was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager, went on to get her doctorate in clinical psychology and today leads a company run by and for people in recovery. She is a thought-leader in the field of mental health recovery, has numerous peer-reviewed publications, has held a number of academic appointments, and has carried a message of hope for recovery to audiences around the world. In addition to her work on the CommonGround Program, she consults with OnTrackNY and has helped the team at the Center for Practice Innovations develop an innovative model for engaging young people under the NIMH RAISE Study. The model is now being adopted nationally.   Lorna Moser, PhD Dr. Lorna Moser is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, and the Director of the Institute for Best Practice, Center for Excellence in Community Mental Health.     Maria Monroe-DeVita, PhD Dr. Monroe-DeVita is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington School of Medicine and the Director, Washington State Center of Excellence in First Episode Psychosis.

NOTE: This event is specifically for Washington State attendees who are part of the behavioral health workforce. This session is part of the Older Adults track of the Mental Health Institute. ABOUT THIS EVENT This workshop provides a practical overview of mental health assessments with older adults, including considerations for biopsychosocial assessments with older adults, screening and assessment tools, differential diagnosis based on assessment tools, and the role of ongoing assessment in treatment planning.   Contact hours will be available for participants who attend the entire session. The University of Washington is an approved provider of continuing education for DOH licensed social workers, licensed mental health counselors, licensed marriage and family therapists, psychologists, chemical dependency professionals, nurses and physicians under the provisions of: WAC 246-809-610, WAC 246-809-620,WAC 246-811-200, WAC 246-840-210, WAC 246-919-460 and WAC 246-924-240.   Session is 9am-12pm PT See more in the Older Adults (OA) Track HERE  LEARN MORE ABOUT THE MENTAL HEALTH INSTITUTE HERE FACILITATORS Janelle Jensen, LMFT  Janelle has been working in the aging and mental health field for over 15 years.  Currently working in private practice as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with mostly older adults and families who provide care for a loved one living with dementia and related conditions, contracts with local skilled nursing facilities to provide mental health services, and past work experiences include care manager in private care management, family caregiver support with the Alzheimer’s Association, and social worker in a skilled nursing facility. Janelle received her bachelor’s degree in Social Work and master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy.  Janelle manages an online support site, careclub.care writing weekly blog posts focused on supporting family caregivers and supports the Edmonds Waterfront Center as a business member where she also volunteers with active older adults.                     VISIT THE MENTAL HEALTH INSTITUTE MAIN PAGE    

  DESCRIPTION: We avoid difficult conversations because we don’t feel prepared for them. It makes sense to avoid something that’s difficult, but the delay could mean the problem situation growing rather than going away. In this session we review steps to make a potentially difficult conversation with a supervisee go according to plan with a direction, and desired outcomes.     LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Recognizing what makes a conversation difficult Preparing yourself Separating issues from personalities Developing a strategy not a script Clarifying your position without minimizing theirs Following up and following through     CONTINUING EDUCATION: Registrants who fully attend this training will be eligible to receive 2 continuing education (CE) hours certified by the Minnesota Board of Social Work. CE certificates are provided by People Incorporated Training Institute.     PRESENTER: Russ Turner, MA, Director of the People Incorporated Training Institute  During Russ’s 16-year tenure, he has written and taught thousands of hours of person-centered curriculum to help people become more effective helpers, communicators, and leaders. His audience includes workers and leaders across a wide range of organizations from human services, healthcare, and libraries, to law enforcement and corrections. He trains trainers, works with management, and has consulted and coached on training projects across multiple sectors of the economy. He has worked as an educator for three decades in a variety of countries and settings including Japan, the Czech Republic, and the UK. His teaching philosophy is that adults learn best when they are challenged, the material is applicable to work situations, and sessions are interactive and engaging.     The Great Lakes MHTTC is offering this training for individuals working in HHS Region 5: IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI. This training is being provided in response to a need identified by Region 5 stakeholders.

Learning objectives:  Participants will learn about the Autism Spectrum Disorder characteristics and learning styles of students. Participants will identify disparities in the identification and receipt of evidence based services faced by Latino students and their families and the reasons for those disparities. Participants will learn about cultural values to take into account when working with Latino students and their families, including spirituality and personalismo. Participants will learn strategies to help service providers interact appropriately to understand and respect cultural differences with Latino Autism Spectrum Disorder students and families.   Speaker: Sandy Magaña, PhD, MSW Sandy Magaña, PhD, MSW, holds the Professorship in Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disabilities in the Steve Hicks School of Social Work. She received a Master of Social Work from California State University, San Bernardino and her Ph.D. from the Heller Graduate School of Social Policy at Brandeis University. Magaña completed post-doctoral training from the NICHD funded Post-Doctoral Program in Developmental Disabilities Research at the Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison. She was a faculty member in the UW-Madison School of Social Work for 12 years and later served as a Professor at the Department of Disability and Human Development at the University of Illinois at Chicago. At SHSSW, Magaña is the Executive Director of the Texas Center for Disability Studies (TCDS) and Director of the Autism Consortium of Texas Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and other Related Disabilities (ACT LEND). Dr. Magaña’s research focuses on the cultural context of families caring for persons with disabilities across the life course. Her current research includes investigating racial and ethnic disparities among children with autism and developmental disabilities and developing culturally relevant interventions to address these disparities. She has received funding for her research from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), National Institute on Aging (NIA), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR).  

Fostering culturally-responsive and safe school environments is critical to the success of students. Join us March 30th, 2023 for this free webinar.  Event Description Join Casey Dupart as she leads a discussion on how to create inclusive, culturally responsive environments that foster diversity and promote collaboration.  Trainer Casey Dupart                     Casey Dupart is an accomplished K12 Administrator, School Psychologist, Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, and Behavior Analyst (BCBA)  who has built a versatile career across K12 environments.  She has supported students across various settings living in Italy, Maryland, Texas, North Carolina, Utah, and Hawai’i. 

About the Event:  The Community Resiliency Model (CRM)® is a skills-based wellness and prevention program that provides a biological, non-stigmatizing perspective on human reactions to stress and trauma. The primary focus of this stabilization program is to learn to reset the natural balance of the nervous system, using the body itself. CRM skills help people understand their nervous system and learn to track sensations connected to their own wellbeing. This low-intensity intervention teaches easy-to-learn skills to manage difficult emotions which can be brought on by stressful personal or professional situations. CRM skills may be shared with others immediately after taking the 1 ½ hour training. CRM skills are useful for self-care in any setting: work, home, school, healthcare, faith communities, public safety, and even in crisis situations. CRM is a valuable resource for individuals coping with chronic stressors such as physical pain, addiction, and grief or loss. A range of persons that suffer the effects of cumulative trauma (e.g., violence, poverty, racism, homophobia, incarceration) may benefit from these tools. CRM was developed at the Trauma Resource Institute by Elaine Miller-Karas [Miller-Karas, E. (2015). Building resilience to trauma: The trauma and community resiliency models. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group]. For more information: www.crmgeorgia.com

Supporting Recovery for People Aging with Serious Mental Health Conditions Session 3: Approaches to Expand Strengths and Support Challenges as People Age with Serious Mental Health Conditions Summary: People aging with serious mental health conditions (SMHC) experience age-related challenges, yet they also bring experience, problem-solving, and resilience to each day. This session will explore some of these strengths and challenges, discuss motivating strategies and build new resources and social supports. Learning Objectives: • Explore the strengths and challenges of people aging with serious mental health conditions (SMHC) • Identify specific strategies that can help engage and motivate people aging with SMHC • Discuss strategies to build resources and social supports  

Social Media and Adolescent Mental Health  Description Impacts of social media and screen time on teen’s mental health and development – both positive and negative How/why social media can be ‘addictive.’   Background into what types of social media teens are now using How to identify when social media usage has become a problem Specific strategies that parents, and others who support teens, can implement to help teens navigate the challenges that social media can create and responsible usage.