[NYAPRS Enews] NYAPRS Conference Focus: Best Practices in Advocacy, Service Innovation

Wed Sep 15 07:19:40 EDT 2010

NYAPRS Note: The NYAPRS Conference is just a week away but there're
still some rooms available at the Hudson Valley Resort and plenty more
at the nearby Honors Haven in Kerhonkson, NY! Here're details of an
extraordinary lineup of workshops that represent state of the art
practices for peer empowerment and provider service innovations.  

For more details about the conference and how to register, please go to
http://www.nyaprs.org/conference/.

Whole Self Whole Health Whole Lives

NYAPRS 28th Annual Conference

September 22-4, 2010

Hudson Valley Resort   Kerhonkson, NY

Wednesday, September 22

Round 1, Wednesday, 2:00pm - 3:15pm

Workshop Number #107       Track: exemplary practices
Room: Hudson III

Who's Failing Dignity? Not Us!

Karen Rosenthal, Janice Walker and Sha'worne Smith, Community Access,
New York, NY

The value of dignity and the skills needed to promote dignity and
self-determination can easily elude providers. In this workshop we will
explore dignity and why it can be so difficult to fully promote dignity,
empowerment and self-determination. We will share skills, innovations,
and policies that promote the restoration of individuals' dignity,
self-realization, and recovery.

Workshop Number #110      Track: advocacy & empowerment
Room: Hudson 1

Medicare Low Income Programs: Getting Help Paying for Medicare

Sue Batkin, LMSW, Lac, The Medicare Rights Center, New York, NY

Medicare provides excellent health and prescription drug coverage.
However, it is not free--there are cost sharing requirements for all
parts of Medicare. Most people with Medicare must pay high monthly
premiums to retain it, as well as co-pays or co-insurances and
deductibles for most medical services and prescription drugs. For people
with limited incomes, these costs can create barriers to care. This
workshop will outline the 5 programs that help people with limited
incomes pay for Medicare, including Medicare Savings Programs, Extra
Help, EPIC, the NYS Prescription Saver Card, and Medicaid.

Workshop Number #111      Track: advocacy & empowerment
Room: Columbia

Clubhouses at the Cross Roads 

Harvey Rosenthal, NYAPRS, Albany, NY

Barbara Sebastian, New Directions of Greater Rochester, Rochester, NY

Jack Guastaferro, Restoration Society Recovery Center, Buffalo, NY

Roni DeKoning (invited), Clubhouse of Suffolk, Ronkonkoma, NY 

Ray Schwartz, Venture House, Jamaica, NY 

Clubhouse and social club programs face challenging choices in this
environment, including whether to become ICCD certified clubhouses, seek
a PROS Medicaid license or become a peer run Recovery Center. The
presenters will discuss the considerations that their own club community
faced and describe which choice their program has made and the
consequences and details involved in all 3 possibilities.  

Round 2, Wednesday, 3:30pm - 4:45pm

Workshop Number #114      Track: administration & management
Room: Orange

Informed Tenant Choice of Case Manager in Supportive Housing

John Jost, PhD, Center for Urban Community Services, Inc., New York, NY

Stacy Matuza, LCSW, Center for Urban Community Services, Inc., Brooklyn,
NY

Aaron Levitt, MS, Center for Urban Community Services, Inc., New York,
NY

This workshop will describe an initiative in which tenants residing in a
supportive housing site were given the opportunity to choose their case
worker. Findings are presented from interviews conducted with staff and
tenants which focused on tenant and staff satisfaction with the choice
process and areas for improvement.

Workshop Number #116      Track: advocacy & empowerment
Room: Manhattan Theatre

NYAPRS Public Policy Priorities for 2011

Dhrmaine Coleman, New York, NY

Ray Schwartz, Venture House, Inc, Jamaica, NY

Harvey Rosenthal, NYAPRS, Albany, NY

This workshop will provide a brief overview on how NYAPRS develops its
public policy priorities, report on the NYAPRS 2010 legislative and
budget achievements, and have an open discussion on the draft
legislative budget agenda for 2011.

Workshop Number #120      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Hudson I

Shift Happens

Alison Carroll and Diane Russo, Putnam Family & Community Services,
Carmel, NY

Forget the jargon, go past the theory and ignore the detractors. How do
agencies really make changes in their programs and culture that are
meaningful, lasting, and not just superficial? New evidence-based
practices, clinic restructuring, person-centered planning, PROS are all
initiatives that have necessitated shifts in thinking, culture, and the
way we provide services. Shift happens, but not overnight. How do you
get your staff to make and embrace this shift? We will discuss specific
interventions, pitfalls and outcomes that we experiences in our agency
when encountering some of the above changes in programs.

Workshop Number #121       Track: Advocacy & Empowerment
Room: Bentley

Empower Yourself, Vote!

Don Olsen, Clubhouse of Suffolk/Synergy Center, Riverhead, NY

Elected officials regularly make decisions that are critical to our
lives; decisions about healthcare, education, employment, culture,
housing and rights. By voicing our opinions as voters we can make a huge
difference in our lives and in the lives of others. Advocacy efforts are
more effective when done by registered people who vote.

Thursday, September 23

Thursday, Round 3, 9:00am-10:15am 

Workshop Number #123       Track: advocacy & empowerment
Room: Hudson III

A Services for the UnderServed Initiative: Project PREPARE (Year 2)

Luis O. Lopez, MS and Paul Ney, LCSW-R, Services for the UnderServed,
New York, NY

This workshop will provide attendees with an overview of the SUS pilot
program - PREPARE. This is our second year and 18 more residents
recently graduated from the program. Graduates received intensive
training on topics of Recovery, psych rehab and Evidence Best Practices.
The graduates will share their journey and talk about program details.

Workshop Number #124      Track: administration and management
Room: Orange

Changing the Culture in a Large Hospital System

Marylee Burns, Med, MA, CRC, LMHC and Linda Richard, BA, NYC Health and
Hospitals Corp, New York, NY

This workshop provides an overview of the steps taken and stages
identified in the successful employment of over 48 peer counselors
throughout the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, most
notably within in-patient units. Attendees will learn the process to
prepare for and support the change in culture resulting from the
integration of rehabilitation and recovery focused care.

Workshop Number #125      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Dutchess

Supporting Recovery for Veterans

John Javis, Mdiv, MHA of Nassau County, Hempstead, NY

As our armed forces withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan, there will be an
influx of new individuals seeking to recover from war related trauma.
Statistics indicate that veterans have twice the suicide rate than
non-veterans, and, while veterans are 11% of the general population,
they comprise 26% of the homeless population. Collaborative and
innovative efforts are underway in New York City and Long Island to
promote the well-being of veterans and their family members through a
broad array of services. Come to hear how you can reach out and help
veterans in your area.

Workshop Number #126      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Hudson I

Center for Practice Innovations brings Best Practices to NYS: Focus on
Integrated Treatment for Co-Occurring 

Susan Essock, PhD, Carlos Jackson, PhD, Nancy Covell, PhD, Paul
Margolies, PhD, and Daniel Herman, PhD, NYS Psychiatric Institute, New
York, NY

The CPI supports the New York State Office of Mental Health's mission to
promote the widespread availability of evidence-based practices to
improve mental health services, ensure accountability and promote
recovery-oriented outcomes for consumers and families. This workshop
focuses on two key initiatives that are designed to improve practitioner
competencies in providing recovery-oriented services: Focus on
Integrated Treatment for Co-Occurring Disorders (FIT) and Assertive
Community Treatment (ACT Institute).

Workshop Number #130      Track: advocacy & empowerment
Room: Ballroom C

A Path to Consumer Leadership

Saya Krebs, MS, CLC, Deborah Wasilchak, MA, and Martin Baiada, Community
Care Behavioral Health Organization, Pittsburgh, PA

Consumers can develop leadership skills that can help them achieve
personal goals and become more effective advocates for themselves and
other consumers. This presentation describes strategies used to help
consumers in Pennsylvania achieve these goals as part of a statewide
advisory group.

Workshop Number #133      Track: administration & management
Room: Manhattan Theatre

Innovations in Recovery

Edythe Schwartz, DSW, Putnam Family & Community Services, Carmel, NY

Michael Stoltz, LCSW, Clubhouse of Suffolk, Ronkonkoma, NY

Ellen Healion, MA, Hands Across Long Island, Central Islip, NY

Donna Colonna, MS, Services for the UnderServed, New York, NY

Leaders from four innovative community agencies, who have engaged in an
extended transformation process, will share their experiences and answer
your questions about how to move an organization towards recovery
oriented, person centered and culturally competent services. Strategies,
successes and barriers will be shared.

10:30        Keynote Address
Manhattan Theatre

Michael Stoltz, LCSW, Clubhouse of Suffolk, Ronkonkoma, NY

          A Provider's Journey: Building a Life and a Legacy from
Parallel Processes and Counter-Transference

Thursday, Round 4, 11:30am-12:45pm

Workshop Number #134      Track: Advocacy & Empowerment
Room: Bentley

Accept Empower Include

Leonard Liguori and Robin Land, Directions in Independent Living, Olean,
NY

This workshop will focus on obtaining the skills necessary to bring
about acceptance, empowerment and inclusion, and on identifying the
common barriers that are often encountered by people with mental health
issues. It will highlight the vital role that professionals, family
members, friends and others play in a person achieving and maintaining a
meaningful life.

Workshop Number #135      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Orange

Clinical Counseling and Psychotherapy: An Opportunity for a Continuous
Healing Relationship 

John Catalino, LMSW, Spectrum Human Services - Buffalo, Buffalo, NY

Michael Stoltz, LCSW, Clubhouse of Suffolk, Ronkonkoma, NY

As PROS programs roll-out, the role of a psychotherapy relationship in
relation to a rehabilitation-and-recovery service umbrella can offer
participants a revitalized opportunity to benefit from a healthy,
healing relationship. The presenters will discuss the therapeutic
alliance and a participant feedback tool that can enhance the journey to
overcoming barriers to personal goals.

Workshop Number #137      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Hudson I

Community-Based Flexible Supports: Innovative Mobile Response Teams in
New York and Massachusetts

Steven LaMaster, VINFEN, Cambridge, MA

Luis O. Lopez, MS, Services for the UnderServed, New York, NY

The Massachusetts DMH has reconfigured existing services to maximize the
speed and ease with which they can be adapted to match the varying needs
and preferences of each person served.  This presentation will describe
the concept of Community Based Flexible Supports and how Vinfen's new
model is making that concept a reality. At the same time, New York
City's Services for the Underserved offers a mobile, rapid response team
approach integrated with their residential services and will describe
their person-centered approach to offering innovative mobile services. 

Workshop Number #138      Track: Exemplary Practices
Room: Ballroom C

Because PROS Works, I am Working! CHS Worked for Me!

Gary Scannevin, Jr., Geraldine Santos, LMHC, CRC, Emily Sussman, BS and
Lou-Ann Rinde, FEGS Health and Human Services Systems, LIFE Programs,
Copiague, NY

This interactive workshop is designed to address both the vocational
needs of recipients and the best practices available to meet those
needs. Participants will have the opportunity to learn from PROS
recipients who have made their way to employment with the support of a
PROS program. This presentation will also include Careers in Human
Services, a peer run transitional employment program that bridges the
gap to permanent employment by providing training and real life work
experience in a safe and supportive environment.  

Workshop Number #139      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Bentley

Integrating Mental Health and Addiction Recovery in Our Lives and
Systems

John Challis, BA, BSW, DipTeach, National Development and Research
Institutes, New York, NY

Chacku Mathai, CPRP, NYAPRS, Albany, NY

The New York State Health Foundation recently funded the creation of the
Center for Excellence in Integrated Care (CEIC) in collaboration with
the NYS Office of Mental Health and the NYS Office of Alcoholism and
Substance Abuse Services. The CEIC is focused on increasing the capacity
of clinics to engage and support people with co-occurring mental health
and substance abuse conditions toward recovery. This workshop is an
opportunity for advocates and people in dual recovery to learn more
about the CEIC and share with each other and the CEIC implementation
team what is really needed to become whole.

Workshop Number #140      Track: advocacy & empowerment
Room: Dutchess

Partnering with Peer Specialists

David Kamnitzer, Institute for Community Living, Brooklyn, NY

Paul Chipkin, Baltic Street Mental Health Board, New York, NY

Theresa M. Benkovic, Occupations, Middletown, NY

Gwendolyn Florant, LCSW, PSCH, Inc., Flushing, NY

Mental health peer specialists bring much strength to our programs. Like
all of us, they have their own unique stories to tell and hiring peers
can bring added richness to agencies, consumers and staff. While the
peer advocacy movement has come a long way, there is still a lot to be
learned from peer specialists - especially as we enter into PROS, and
other services that emphasize peer support and mutual aid. This workshop
is aimed for peer specialists currently employed or for other
individuals considering working in this area. We will examine the role
of peers in programs throughout the state and how they are being
integrated as a whole. We will discuss issues of stigma and ways to
dispel myths and stereotypes about living with a psychiatric disability.
We will examine issues of inclusion and acceptance and the shifts that
agencies must address as peers become more integrated. We will encourage
an open dialogue and exchange of ideas about maximizing the peer's
experience of working alongside agency staff and administration.

Workshop Number #141      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Ulster

Starting and Sustaining Consumer-run, Recovery-Oriented Programs within
State Services

Andrew T Kirsch, MD, Inge Curran and Donna Geisert, Rockland Psychiatric
Center, Orangeburg, NY 

Robin Alwine and Sandra Tolkacz, Buffalo Psychiatric Center, Buffalo, NY

Kathleen M Lynch, NYS Office of Mental Health, Buffalo, NY

This panel workshop will present two recovery-oriented, consumer-run
programs at State facilities. Presenters will discuss the many
transformative benefits of these programs to all stakeholders and the
process of working through the various barriers that originate from
staff, systems, and consumers in implementing these programs..

Workshop Number #143      Track: administration and management
Room: Manhattan Theatre

Person-Centered Planning: The Top Ten Implementation Issues

Diane Grieder, MEd, AliPar, Inc, Suffolk, VA

Although acceptance of a person-centered approach to developing
treatment plans is generally accepted in today's mental health world,
there are still real and perceived challenges to implementing
person-centered planning. This workshop will take a look at the top ten
concerns around implementation and offer some potential solutions/tools
for the participants.

1:45 Keynote Address
Manhattan Theatre

Ron Manderscheid, National Association of County Behavioral Health and 

Developmental Disability Directors, Washington, DC

National Healthcare Reform: What Does It Mean To You?

Moderator: Harvey Rosenthal, NYAPRS Executive Director

Round VThursday, Round 5, 2:45pm-4:00pm

Workshop Number #145      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Ballroom C

Center for Practice Innovations Brings Best Practices to NYS: IPS Model
of Supported Employment and Wellness

Susan Essock, PhD, Carlos Jackson, PhD, Paul Margolies, PhD, Raymond
Gregory, NYS Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY and Anthony Salerno,
PhD, NYS Office of Mental Health, Albany, NY

The CPI supports the NYS OMH's mission to promote the widespread
availability of evidence-based practices to improve mental health
services, ensure accountability, and promote recovery-oriented outcomes
for consumers and families. This workshop focuses on two key initiatives
that are designed to improve practitioner competencies in providing
recovery-oriented services: Individual Placement and Support model of
supported employment for PROS programs and Wellness Self-Management.

Workshop Number #148       Track: cultural competence
Room: Ulster

Deafness and Mental Health Services: Barriers and Facilitators in New
York's Capital District Region

Hee Chul Kim, University at Albany, SUNY, Albany, NY

Heather Horton, MS, AM, PhD, University at Albany, SUNY, Albany, NY

Based on evidence from a focus group with key stakeholders related to
deafness and mental health in Albany, NY, we will talk about factors we
need to consider when providing mental health services to deaf people,
future research direction and policy recommendations.

Workshop Number #150       Track: advocacy & Empowerment
Room: Columbia

Radical Community Integration: Peer Partners in Recovery Research

Amy Colesante, Mental Health Empowerment Project, Albany, NY

David Brown, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY

Michael Miriello, NYAPRS, Albany, NY

Christina Pratt, Ph. D., Lester Cook and Judith Sugarman, Nathan Kline
Institute, Orangeburg, NY

Expanded capabilities and freedoms emerge when peers contribute to
research on recovery. This workshop examines lessons learned in the
first 8 months of peer partners in research; presents models of critical
thinking about community, participation, and research; and, engages
conference participants in problem solving around language, capabilities
and recovery paradigms.

Workshop Number #152      Track: administration and management
Room: Manhattan Theatre

OMH Update on  PROS and Clinic Restructuring

Robert Myers, PhD, David Bucciferro and Gary Weiskopf, MPA, NYS Office
of Mental Health, Albany, NY 

The presenters will provide up to date details on efforts to implement
and expand the availability of Personalized Recovery Oriented Services
and Clinic Restructuring across New York. 

Thursday, Plenary Round 6, 4:15 PM - 5:30 PM

Workshop Number #156      Track: community integration
Room: Hudson III

Understanding the NEW Ticket-to-Work Program: What's in it for Me?

Nathan Arnold, Social Security Administration, Washington DC

Kevin Nickerson, Challenge, Ithaca, NY

Frank Coco, VESID, Albany, NY

David Jones, CESSI, Division of Axiom, Ticket-to-Work, McLean, VA

Moderator: Mira Bowin, NYAPRS, Albany, NY

Join us for a look at the NEW Ticket-to-Work Program! This workshop is
designed for providers seeking new ways to fund employment services, and
for social security beneficiaries wishing to have a voice in choosing
their own employment services and receive long-term supports. This
workshop will explain the benefits for providers and beneficiaries of
participating in the Ticket-to-Work program, how to become and operate
an Employment Network, how the Ticket can complement VESID services and
support long-term career and economic self-sufficiency goals. In
addition, a representative from an Employment Network will share his
experience, successes and challenges in implementing Ticket-to-Work
services.

Workshop Number #161      Track:       administration and management
Room: Sansui

Advances in Rights Protection in the United States

Susan Stefan, Rutland, MA

Susan has long been regarded as one of the nation's most highly regarded
experts in mental disability law. She has litigated important ADA cases
and authored landmark books on disability rights, employment
discrimination and emergency room treatment. She is a former Board Vice
President and long time member of the National Association for Rights
Protection and Advocacy. This workshop will review the latest advances
in rights protection for people with psychiatric disabilities in the
United States.

Friday, September 24 

Workshops Round 7

Friday, September 24, 9:00 AM - 10:15 AM

Workshop Number #163      Track: administration & management
Room: Orange

Best Practices: Board Governance and Executive Compensation

John Rybaltowski and Rich Cicero, NYS Commission on Quality of Care &
Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities, Schenectady, NY

This workshop will present the Commission's most recent study on Best
Practices and Executive Compensation. The presenters will discuss the
process the Commission used in obtaining its information and how the
survey results can be used as a tool to assist agency boards of
directors in fulfilling their duty to establish and ensure the
"reasonableness" of compensation for agency executives.

Workshop Number #166      Track: exemplary practice
Room: Hudson I

Providing Person-Centered, Recovery Oriented Services to Older
AdultsNora Barrett, MSW, LCSW, CPRP, and Michelle Zechner, MSW,
University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey, Scotch Plains, NJ 

This workshop will explore key issues facing older adults with
psychiatric disabilities.  An overview of the experience of persons over
65 who live with psychiatric disabilities will be provided and current
strategies for providing services to this population will be reviewed.
The session will be primarily interactive with an emphasis on
participant input on best practices for this evolving specialty.

Workshop Number #172       Track: advocacy & empowerment
Room: Ballroom C

Choosing the Services You Want

Joseph Rogers and Erme C. Maula, RN, MSN, CRRN, CPS, MHA of Southeastern
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Robert M. Waters, MSSW, Magellan Health Services, Newtown, PA

Jonna L. DiStefano, County of Delaware Office of Behavioral Health,
Upper Darby, PA

Jennifer Tripp, Magellan Public Sector Solutions, Avon, CT

Round 8, Friday, 11:30am- 12:45pm

Workshop Number #174      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Sansui

Making Work Possible for a Reluctant Person

Neil Harbus, LCSW, CPRP, Pathways to Housing, New York, NY

Most Employment programs are structured to assist only those who have
made the definite decision to pursue employment. This excludes a large
number of people with psychiatric disabilities who can potentially work.
This presentation will demonstrate how active engagement and the use of
Motivational Interviewing Techniques coupled with Cognitive Behavioral
Interventions within a Stage Based framework that also provides
interventions in multiple life areas can prove extremely effective in
supporting  many of the people in this category to consider employment.

Workshop Number #175      Track: Advocacy & Empowerment
Room: Dutchess

Legislative Advocacy for the Average Person

Bill Gamble, Mental Health Empowerment Project, Albany, NY

This workshop will cover the 6 steps to basic legislative advocacy. It
will offer participants simple strategies to be more effective in
dealing w/ their elected officials. This is an interactive workshop.

Workshop Number #177      Track: administration and management
Room: Columbia

Who Controls Disclosure at Work for Peer Providers? Issues in Self
Determination

Lauren B, Gates, PhD, and, James M. Mandiberg, MSW, PhD, Columbia
University School of Social Work, New York, NY

Who decides when and if peer staff members disclose their mental health
service user and recovery histories? Through an interactive discussion,
this workshop will explore this issue, help workshop participants
develop strategies to affect the policies and procedures of their
employers on this issue, and investigate career implications of
disclosure

Workshop Number #180      Track: exemplary practices
Room: Ballroom C

Dialectial Behavior Therapy and Mental Health Recovery: How the Two Fit
Together

Amy Morgan, MSW and Heidi Trainor, BA, CPS, Advocates Inc, Framingham,
MA

People labeled with borderline personality disorder often carry the
burden of demoralizing and hopeless stereotypes such as "manipulative",
"difficult", and "hard to treat people with no boundaries". This
workshop will provide an introduction to Dialectical Behavior Therapy
and skills training as well as a hopeful message with real data
demonstrating the success of this model to support mental health
recovery. While providing an overview of the treatment and the skills
training modules, the experienced presenters will also share personal
accounts from both the perspectives of a provider of DBT and a person
with lived mental health experience who has engaged in DBT. The
presenters will use a PowerPoint presentation as well as an interactive
format to elicit audience participation.

Workshop Number #181       Track: exemplary practices
Room: Orange

ACT Transition Model: A Framework Supporting ACT Clients in Moving on to
Less Intensive Services

Molly Finnerty, MD, NYS Office of Mental Health, Albany, NY

Ruth Pasillas-Gonzales, NYAPRS, Bronx, NY

Candice B. Stellato, MSEd, NYS Office of Mental Health, Bureau of
Program Coordination and Support, Albany, NY 

Ana Zanger, MSW, ACT Transition Project, Division of Mental Health
Services & Policy Research, New York State Psychiatric Institute/NYS
Office of Mental Health, New York, NY

In this workshop participants will learn about this state-wide
initiative to support transition efforts of Assertive Community
Treatment (ACT) Teams, promote recovery for ACT consumers and ensure ACT
Services for those that most need it. The ACT Transition Model was
developed by a workgroup of stakeholders including administrators from
NYSOMH, OMH Field Offices, and NYCDOHMH and ACT Administrators,
providers, trainers and consumers. The model also draws from the
Critical Time Intervention model, an Evidence Based Practice that is
designed to offer intense but temporary support during periods of
transition.   

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