Category: Events

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Events

Recovery symposium highlights area resources in southwest Georgia

DBHDD, along with the Georgia Council on Substance Abuse, the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network, and the Albany and Moultrie chapters of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, co-sponsored Transforming 2 Wellness, a regional symposium held in Norman Park on April 29. The program highlighted area resources that help people achieve and sustain long-term recovery from mental health challenges and substance use disorders.

Speakers included individuals from Lee and Terrell counties, as well as other surrounding communities. Materials from exhibitors demonstrated the range of resources for mental health and addiction in southwest Georgia.

“We need to be very aware of what the local efforts are, what the local needs are, what the local gifts and the local talents are and that’s what we really trying to do here,” said Mark Baker, director of DBHDD’s Office of Recovery Transformation, which funds effort to raise recovery projects around the state.

See more photos from the symposium on the DBHDD Fackbook page.

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Events

DBHDD staff provides an update on the settlement agreement

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Last week, DBHDD staff provided an update on the settlement agreement between the U.S. Department of Justice and the State of Georgia at the 20th annual Rosalynn Carter Georgia Mental Health Forum held at the Carter Center. Commissioner Frank Berry, Terri Timberlake, director of adult mental health, and Dan Howell, director of intellectual and developmental disabilities, presented to stakeholders on the progress toward building a high-quality, sustainable behavioral health system in the state.

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Photo courtesy of Debbie Atkins.

 

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Photo courtesy of Debbie Atkins

 

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Department News Events

Nursing conference focuses on brain manipulation and stimulation

In celebration of National Nurses Week each year, West Central Georgia Regional Hospital hosts a nursing conference in Columbus. This year’s conference, “Manipulating the Brain: From Lobotomy to Deep Brain Stimulation,” enabled participants to apply knowledge of past and present interventions involving brain manipulation to identify patients who may benefit from these treatments.

The featured speaker was Dr. Nzinga Harrison, chief medical officer for Anka Behavioral Health Inc. and a member of the Clinical Adjunct Faculty in the nursing schools at Emory University and Morehouse School of Medicine. Dr. Harrison spoke on several topics, including defining and describing brain manipulation techniques; describing the history and past uses of brain manipulation techniques; discussing alternative interventions and their safety with patients; and identifying alternative interventions for common neurological diseases.

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Events

Join us as we celebrate National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week

Governor Deal issued a proclamation declaring May 3-9, 2015 as Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week in Georgia. In support of children’s mental health, DBHDD and our partners at the Georgia Parent Support Network, Mental Health America of Georgia, Voices for Georgia’s Children, and the Center of Excellence in Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health, are celebrating Georgia’s children and recognizing the unique challenges they deal with related to mental health.

On May 7, a rally will be held in downtown Atlanta. All are welcome and encouraged to wear a green ribbon. Registered attendees will also receive a free t-shirt. Registration will take place at the Freight Depot, and the event will kick off with a rally at the Capitol. After the rally, participants will return to the Freight Depot for a panel discussion on school-based supports for children’s mental and behavioral health.

The National Federation of Families sponsors National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week annually to raise awareness of issues in the field of children’s mental health in the United States. This year’s theme, “Mental Health is Fundamental,” emphasizes that mental health is essential to children’s overall health, and equally important to physical health in integrated care settings.

Children’s Mental Health Day Agenda (May 7)
9:00 a.m. Registration & light refreshments at the Freight Depot in the blue room
10:00 a.m. Rally at the Capitol
11:00 a.m.Panel discussion: “Education and Mental Health” at the Freight Depot (concludes at 12:30 p.m.)

Register: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/childrens-mental-health-day-intersection-of-childrens-mental-health-education-tickets-16677584103

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Department News Events

Commissioner Berry to give the welcome address  at conference on opioid addiction  

The public health crisis of opioid addiction, which includes prescription medication and heroin, will be addressed at this year’s annual conference of the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence, Inc., (AATOD). The national conference, taking place March 28 – April 1 in Atlanta, features experts from the White House, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, state governments, and the healthcare industry.

As the conference host agency, DBHDD Commissioner Frank Berry will welcome all attendees on behalf our agency as a keynote presenter at the opening plenary session on March 30. He will also describe Georgia’s efforts in providing addiction treatment and recovery services. Others speakers at the session include Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and AATOD President Mark W. Parrino, who will present AATOD’s work with government in support of evidence-based opioid treatment.

Registration to the AATOD conference allows attendees access to workshops, pre-conference sessions and an exhibitor hall where more than 1500 people, including healthcare professionals, program administrators and other treatment providers, are expected to attend.

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Community Events

Statewide symposiums promote recovery-oriented system of care

Recovery from mental health and substance abuse challenges happens when people can access natural support systems and engage in a life of independence. DBHDD, through the Office of Recovery Transformation, is partnering with the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network, Georgia Council on Substance Abuse, and Georgia Parent Support Network as well as behavioral health providers, stakeholders, and families across the state to host “Recovery Symposiums” that foster the development of recovery-oriented communities.

“The Recovery Symposiums are the evolution of the numerous community forums and listening sessions held throughout Georgia as we continue the work of transforming our services to a community-based, recovery-oriented system of care,” said Mark Baker, director of DBHDD’s Office of Recovery Transformation.

The first Recovery Symposium kicked off in Augusta earlier this month. The next event will be held on Saturday, March 21 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Savannah.

Upcoming Sessions:

March 28, 2015: Warner Robins

April 10, 2015: Athens

April 10, 2015: Dublin

April 18, 2015: Atlanta

April 21, 2015: Cornelia

April 29, 2015: Moultrie

To learn more about the Recovery Community Development Project and additional symposiums, visit gasubstanceabuse.org.

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Events

Recovery and suicide prevention in the spotlight at the Capitol on Thursday

On February 5, advocates will meet with legislators at the Capitol for both Addiction Recovery Awareness Day and Suicide Prevention Day.

The Georgia Council on Substance Abuse (GCSA) is sponsoring Addiction Recovery Awareness Day with the message of “spreading hope through recovery.” Training will be provided on how to advocate the council’s goal of increasing recovery opportunities for those in recovery to work and live in their communities. The day’s events will culminate with a rally inside the Capitol on the south steps.

Advocates seeking to promote suicide prevention awareness will also be gathering to meet with the governor and legislators. DBHDD Commissioner Frank Berry and Representative Katie Dempsey are two of the featured speakers on the agenda. Georgia Suicide Prevention Information Network, the program’s sponsor, will offer training on how to voice the organization’s support for legislation to decrease suicide among youth.

Register for Addiction Recovery Awareness Day

Register for Suicide Prevention Day

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Department News Events

Public invited to comment and suggest improvements to Medicaid waiver programs

In collaboration with the Georgia Department of Community Health, DBHDD’s Division of Developmental Disabilities will host six public forums next month to collect comments and suggestions for the Medicaid waiver programs.

The opportunity to gather feedback is part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ application process to continue operating the Comprehensive Supports Waiver Program (COMP) for another five years. The public is also invited to comment on the New Options Waiver (NOW). Both programs offer home- and community-based services for people with developmental or intellectual disabilities.

“We would like to reach out to individuals and families who use the services and to advocates and other interested parties to determine what programs are doing well and what could be improved,” said Catherine Ivy, director of community services for the division. She will be presenting the latest information on the NOW and COMP waivers at each of the forums.

Anyone who receives, provides or manages the NOW and COMP waivers is encouraged to attend one of the six statewide forums. Attendees will also participate in a focused discussion with other advocates and can record suggestions for improvements to services.

For locations and to RSVP, please visit http://dbhdd.georgia.gov/nowcomp-community-forums.

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Community Events

From heroin addiction to helping others rehabilitate: Judge Albert Zweig shares story of recovery, hope

Alby Zweig, magistrate judge, Denver County Drug Court Photo credit: The Colorado Independent
Alby Zweig, magistrate judge, Denver County Drug Court
Photo credit: The Colorado Independent

During a lunch session at the 10th annual Accountability Courts Conference, Judge Albert “Alby” Zweig shared his story from heroin addiction to law school to helping others as a magistrate judge in Denver, Colorado’s drug court.

Judge Zweig emphasized the role that community supports play in recovery. People struggling with addiction are “worthy of your compassion, not your scorn,” said Zweig. “A lot of people don’t understand the level to which addicts cannot stop using without help-and how successful they can be if we help them.”

Read: “Denver Drug Court Second Chance: From Addict to Magistrate“

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Community Department News Events

Accountability Courts Conference: DBHDD session supports veterans’ treatment courts

Governor Nathan Deal delivering welcome address Photo credit: Derrick Bryant, Judicial Council of Georgia, Administrative Office of the Courts

In September, DBHDD joined Georgia’s Administrative Office of the Courts to host the 10th annual Accountability Courts Conference. The five-day conference in Cobb County featured education and training sessions for over 1,000 law enforcement professionals and stakeholders who attended.

DBHDD conducted an all-day session, Veterans Treatment Court: Mentor Boot Camp. During the workshop, which was open only to veterans, participants received mentor training, enabling them to help other veterans successfully navigate veterans’ court treatment programs. Graduates of the workshop are trained veteran mentors and are eligible to be assigned by a veterans’ court to mentor a defendant. The workshop was provided through DBHDD’s Jail Diversion Trauma Recovery grant initiative.

Currently, there are five veterans’ courts in Georgia. They operate using either drug court or mental health court models. In April, Governor Deal signed SB 320, which established the creation of a veteran’s court division in Georgia’s judicial system. The new law will allow for make it easier for jurisdictions to create veterans courts.