April 8th, 2016
 
In This Issue
 

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  Happy Friday Readers! 

Yesterday, NAMI-NYS sent out our response to the state budget agreement budget and our legislative priorities for the reminder of the session. You can click here to read the alert.

This week's E-News has several stories detailing the problems within the systems which deliver mental health care. We also feature how NAMI-NYS affiliates and members are making their voices heard and raising awareness through the ribbon campaign, NAMI Walks and by submitting op-ed pieces to local newspapers. We hope reading about this will inspire you to 
Take Action and become a voice of change and awareness in your community.

                              Hope Starts With You!

NAMI-NYS News
NAMI-NYS Participates in 
Families Together Conference
Clockwise from upper left: Stephanie Orlando Director of Youth Power, unidentified Youth Power staff member, Paige Piece, Director of Families Together in New York State, Chaku Mathai, Director of NAMI's Star Center, and Matthew Shapiro of NAMI-NYS; Matthew at exhibit table, Neville Morris, Nancy Shelton and Lenora Reid Rose of  NYS Success and CCSI with Matthew Shapiro and Geraldine Burton, President of Families Together and NAMI-NYS Family-to-Family and Homefront State Trainer

On April 3-4, NAMI-NYS participated in Families Together in New York State's annual conference in Albany. Among the speakers were Chaku Mathai, Director of NAMI's Star Center. Along with participating in workshop sessions, NAMI-NYS had an exhibit table with resources on NAMI Signature Programs for Young Adults and families, materials on adolescent mental health issues from NIMH and information on our five NAMI Walks. 

Former NAMI-NYS Board Member 
Pens Op-Ed on HR 2646

Many of you may have seen our alerts on social media a few weeks ago stating that former NAMI-NYS boardmember Barbara Biasotti's daughter, who has serious mental illness, was missing. Thankfully, her daughter was found safely, but this was obviously a major ordeal for Barbara and her family.

This experience led Barbara to write an op-ed piece using her personal story to explain the fractures in the mental health system, the lack of funding for community resources and the need to reform the HIPAA so families and caregivers can know immediately if their loved is missing or in possible danger. Barbara's pleas represent many of the priorities of NAMI's Care for Caregivers initiative.

We applaud Barbara for using her painful experience as a tool to bring about reforms and to try to prevent other families from having to live through these types of situations. As we've been stressing, letters to the editor and op-eds can be a powerful advocacy tool and we encourage all of you to make your voice heard. Use your stories to explain how we can make a more mentally healthy New York.  Click here to view templates for letters to the editor on legislative issues we are advocating for. Please let us know if you get a letter published so we can put a link to it in the E-News.

Click here to read Barbara's letter.

NAMI Staten Island Gears Up for the Ribbon Campaign as Executive Director Speaks at the New York State WOMEN, Inc. Annual Luncheon
Top Jack and Linda Wilson with 
Helen Napoli
Linda Wilson, Executive Director of NAMI Staten Island, recently was the guest speaker at the New York State WOMEN, Inc. annual luncheon honoring Women of Distinction. Linda spoke about how women have played an integral role in the development of NAMI and how attendees can get involved and raise awareness through the NAMI-NYS ribbon awareness campaign. The affiliate is gearing up to hang ribbons throughout Staten Island

NAMI Queens Nassau Holds Bowling Fundraiser

NAMI Queens/Nassau board member Carol Ann Viccora and her husband Bill held a bowling fundraiser in Farmingdale for NAMIWalks Long Island/Queens. In addition to bowling and great food, there were 37 raffle prizes including a grill and a 40" television. A bowling outing is just one of the great ways you could support a NAMI Walks, other ideas include hosting a house party or having  a movie night. In 2016, New York State will have five NAMI Walks; we encourage all our readers to start a walk team. Help raise awareness about mental health issues and help support NAMI-NYS and our affiliates. It is this type of fundraising which allows NAMI-NYS affiliates to offer education and support at no cost to members of the public. Join the team today. Visit the Walks section of this E-Newsletter to learn more.
NAMI Mid-Hudson Leads
 Children's Mental Health Matters Initiative
John Allen of New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH),  Mae Lum   Associate Commissioner of State Operated Facilities, Tom O'Clair of OMH and Tina Lee of NAMI 
Mid-Hudson

For the last ten years, The Children's Mental Health Awareness Week Committee of Dutchess County has come together to plan a week of free events that will honor children and their mental wellness with an emphasis on early intervention prevention education. Each year, they celebrate Children's Mental Health Matters with more than a week of events, workshops, media, outreach and other awareness raising activities, focusing on educating the community concerning children and families that experience a social,behavioral, or emotional challenge. They also take this opportunity to celebrate families.

This committed committee consists of Mental Health America Dutchess County, Dutchess County Department of Behavioral & Community Health, The National Alliance on Mental Illness Mid-Hudson Chapter, and Taconic Resources for Independence. This committee reflects how successful systems of care involves an entire community of  grassroots organizations, clinicians, and County involvement.

Click here to learn more about the initiative.


May is Approaching:
Have You Started Your Ribbon Campaign?
Partner with Local Governments, Businesses and Schools



May is Mental Health Awareness Month and as many of you know, NAMI-NYS is launching our statewide Ribbon Awareness campaign. The campaign is designed to raise awareness of  mental illness and mental health issues as well as demonstrate how NAMI is a resource for support and education and a place for people to find help and find hope. Engaging in the ribbon campaign will also help you grow your affiliate's identity in your community by providing you an avenue to establish or strengthen a relationship with your local governments and businesses. 

Another community partner to involve in the ribbon campaign is schools. Students need to participate in community service projects and the ribbon campaign is a great opportunity to do so. This will also allow you to help raise mental health awareness in schools and for young adults. In the pictures above you will see Linda Manzo, a NAMI Queens/Nassau member and a teacher at Port Washington Middle School, as well as her students who participate both in the Ribbon Campaign and the NAMI Queens/Long Island Walks. 

We encourage all of our affiliates to participate in the campaign. If you haven't already, now is the time to start planning the campaign in your community. Click here to view the Ribbon Campaign resource page on our website.  

NAMI News
#Act4MentalHealth
NAMI Urges You to Take Action and Address the Lack of Hospital and Crisis Beds for Psychiatric Disorders


People in the middle of heart attacks are rarely-if ever-told that there are no hospital beds. People with heart disease aren't told that they can't be treated for diabetes on the same day they are treated for high blood pressure. People with mental health conditions face these barriers every day.  This is health care inequality at its worst.  Ask your Senators to take action to:

1.     Stop limiting payment for psychiatric hospitalization for people covered by Medicaid or Medicare

2.     Stop limiting Medicaid payment for mental and physical health conditions that are treated on the same day and in the same place

Help end health system inequalities for people with mental illness. 

Click here to email your Senators today!!!

NAMI Media Watch: 
Hacking Brains, Looking to the Future

The Washington Post recently published a three-part series titled "Brain Hacking," written by Pulitzer Prize winning science and health reporter Amy Ellis Nutt. Hacking in this case doesn't refer to criminal activity but to skilled scientific research using innovative technologies-and computers. Part one of the series focuses on The Mind's Biology, in which doctors seek to "fix" electrical circuits in the brain. The approach uses combinations of DNA biomarkers, brain imaging, neurofeedback and electrical stimulation.

Click here to read as NAMI details this next wave of research.


NAMI Offers Five Tips for Fundraising Online for Mental Health

The key to a great fundraiser is to make it stand out. Also, it's important to foster both discussion and engagement into the cause. There are many different ways to get involved and raise money for NAMI. Here are five tips:

1. Pick a Catchy Name, you want something that will stand out and stick in peoples' minds. Also, something that is inclusive and easy for people to join. 

2. Create a Visual Representation. Think about an image that can epitomize your efforts. 

3. Choose an Easy to Use Site as Your Vehicle. There are many different platforms to use for your fundraiser

4 . Take Advantage of All the Social Media Platforms; Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat are all great for this. 

5. Stay Active with the Online Community.

Click here to learn more.

New York State News
New York Post States:
 Nation Needs to Face Mental Illness

In the NAMI-NYS News section we detailed Barbara Biasotti's op-ed piece explaining why we need to pass HR 2646-The Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act. This bill aims to address many of the problems causing people with the most serious and persistent forms of mental illness to fall through the cracks and end up on the streets, in emergency rooms on in jail. The bill's sponsor Rep. Tim Murphy (R-PA) spoke in New York City last week to explain why the nation needs to take the right steps to repair the services for people with mental illness.

The New York Post covered the appearance and detailed the struggles that individuals with serious and persistent mental illness and their families face. The article includes quotes from NAMI-NYS members.

Click here to read the article.

Read the Latest Edition of 
New York State Office of Mental Health's OMH News

Click here to read the latest edition of  New York State Office of Mental Health's OMH News. This edition focuses on Quality Assurance: Helping New Yorkers Get the Care They Deserve. It contains information on initiatives such as telepsychiatry and a new self-assessment tool.

National News
Can a Blood Test Diagnose Mental Illness?

Today, clinicians have to use observable symptoms and patients' self-reports to diagnose a disorder. Then they start testing treatments from there, a technique one scientist called the "shotgun approach" in a recent article   in Scientific American

Done this way, it takes longer to get it right, and patients with severe mental illnesses that are not receiving proper treatment can become a risk for harm.  Scientists are searching for biomarkers to more reliably diagnose and treat mental illness. A quick blood test could help a clinician diagnose a disorder, or find the right treatment more quickly. A number of scientists are working to find these biomarkers for psychological conditions, and some are getting close. 

Click here to read more.

I Took Antidepressants While I Was Pregnant:
 It Wasn't a Choice

Melisma Cox writes of her decision to have a baby while on psychiatric medication. She was very worried about the effects her medication would have on her baby's health. Before she planned her pregnancy she decided to give it a trial run of how she would be off her medication. The result was a relapse of her psychiatric disorder.

When she and her husband planned the pregnancy, her psychiatrist said that remaining on the medicines while pregnant was a question of weighing the benefits against the risks. Given her prior experiment, the risk for her stability without the medicines was clearly greater than any benefit for her child's health if she stopped taking them. If she were not healthy,  she might not make good decisions for her own, or her baby's, health. Once Melisma gave birth and her son was given a clean bill of health, the worries subsided. 

Click here to read more.  

Death by Incompetence
Hospital and Jail Staff Looked the Other Way as a Young Man Starved to Death in Virginia

Last summer, Jamycheal Mitchell, a mentally ill young man who was  arrested in Virginia for shoplifting a soda and two snacks worth $5 from a 7-Eleven, wasted away and died behind bars. Jail staff looked the other way or remained oblivious as he starved himself in plain sight. A judge had ordered that Mr. Mitchell be transferred to a psychiatric hospital not far away, but no one at the jail, or at the hospital, seemed to notice or care. A file containing the judge's order was found stuffed away in a drawer at the hospital in late August - several days after Mr. Mitchell died. Mr. Mitchell was never placed on the hospital's waiting list for a bed.

Click here to read more.

NIMH News
NIMH Twitter Chat

Save the date! In recognition of National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day on May 5, NIMH is hosting a Twitter chat on disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD) and severe irritability with NIMH expert Dr. Ellen Leibenluft from noon to 1 pm ET. Stay tuned for more info!


NAMI WALKS 2016

NAMI-NYS NAMIWalks-Saturday September 24th, Jennings Landing Albany. Click here for more information.

NAMI-NYC Metro NAMIWalks-May 7th at the South Street Seaport. Click here for more information

NAMI Rochester NAMIWalks-May 7th at Village Gate.  Click here for more information.

NAMI Queens/Nassau NAMIWalks- May 7th at Jones Beach. Click here for more information.

NAMI Westchester NAMIWalks- May 21st  at Rye Town Park. Click here for more information,
 
Save the Dates

April 6-   W ednesday April 6, 2016: Join NAMI of Central Suffolk for their Monthly Educational/Informational program at Mather Hospital, Port Jefferson at 7:30 p.m. in Conf Room 2. Program will be the famous Jim Ryan's MAKING HAPPINESS HAPPEN; Simple Steps for a Happier Life DVD 3 part Series April through June! April's Part One session is:
Getting Started and Creating a Vision for the Future! Hope you can join us to start your Spring season of renewal and learn how to create the life you want! For more information contact Deb (631) 675-6831 LighteOfLove@aol.com
 
April 11- Join Achieve for a free webinar.  Emotional Intelligence- Responding to the Emotions of Others from 1-2pm.  For more information: www.achievecentre.com.

April 12 - Join  Brain & Behavior Research Foundation for their webinar on Schizophrenia.     

April 13 - Join NAMI Westchester for their next speaker series at 7:15pm at St. Vincent's Hospital, 274 North St., Harrison, NY.  The Subject is: Marijuana, K2 and Spice.  How Times Have Changed.  Speaker: Robert Anderson, Executive Director, The Counseling Center at Yorktown Heights, LLC.

April 15-  Join NAMI Westchester for their next fundraising event "Tune Up" Friend and Fun Raiser at the Risko Music School in Ossining on Friday at 6:30pm.  In preperation, we are calling all musicians interested in preforming to contact Ann Dealy via email adealy1011@gmail.com.  We hope to see everyone as we raise fun and "tune up" for the walk.  The suggested donation for the event is $10.  Appetizers will be served.

April 29- Brighter Day Event at Glenn Peter Jewelers Centre, 1544 Central Ave. Albany, NY on Friday April 29, 2016 from 5-8. Join us in Celebrating Mental Illness Awareness. There will be a silent auction, hot and cold buffet, cash bar and cupcake desserts.

M
ay 2
- Join Achieve for a free webinar.  Respectful Workplace- Strategies for a Healthy Environment from 1-2 pm. For more information: www.achievecentre.com.

May 3- What's Great in Our State at New York State Library, 222 Madison Ave. Albany, NY 12230 on Tuesday May 3, 2016 from 2-4. 

May 5- NAMI Syracuse Children's Conference: Addressing Challenging Behavior in Children & Youth.  9am to 9pm at Rosamond Gifford Zoo, Syracuse, NY.  Presenters: Adrienne D. Allen, MD, Children & Youth Services, HPC Outpatient Clinic, Regina Canuso, NYS Council on Children & Families, Coordinator, Hard to Place/Hard to Serve Unit, Bridget Hier, Ph.D, Assistant Professor, School of Psychology, University of Buffalo, and Panel of Family Members sharing what has worked for their child.  

May 5- In anticipation of the walk and Mother's Day, NAMI Westchester is "charmed" to announce the date for our annual Alex & Ani event.  The event will be held at the Rye Alex & Ani store, 52 Pirchase St., on Thursday, from 3 to 6pm.  A percentage of purchases made by phone or in the store will go to NAMI Westchester.

May 7 - The American Foundation For Suicide Prevention presents Hike For Hope at 11am, FDR Park in Yorktown.

May 10&11 The Association for Community Living will host its 2016 Annual Management Symposium - Critical Information and Strategies for a Changing World (Open to All) on Tuesday, May 10th - Wednesday May 11th at the Saratoga Hilton, Saratoga Springs, NY. Visit http://aclnys.org/aclnys_events/acl-management-symposium-2/ for more information.

May 18-NAMI Queens/Nassau will be sponsoring another FaithNet event this year topic will be:  Clergy's Role in Psychiatric Hospitals. Some of the questions that will be answered by them are:  How did you come to be a chaplain of an inpatient psychiatric hospital?  What do you feel is your most successful approach when dealing with patients that have a mental illness and their families? Can you share a story about a particularly meaningful relationship or impact you had on a psychiatric inpatient? The event will take place at Zucker Hillside Hospital's Sloman Auditorium beginning at 7:30

June 8 - Join NAMI Mid-Hudson for their Annual Fundraising Gala 2016.  At The Grandview, 176 Rinaldi Blvd, Poughkeepsie.  5pm to 9pm.  To Honor: Andrew O'Grady, Executive Director, Mental Health America Dutchess County and Michael P Hein, Ulster County Executive.  With Special Guest Dr. Xavier Amador author of: "I'm Not Sick.  I Don't Need Help!".  For more information, please visit: www.namimidhudson.org

October 15The American Foundation For Suicide Prevention presents Out Of The Darkness Walk 10am, FDR Park in Yorktown.  Harbor Island Park in Mamaroneck.  They need volunteers or for more information contact Maria Idoni (914) 610-9156 or midoni@afso.org.
 
Signature Programs

March 19&20 - NAMI In Our Own Voice training to become a Teacher.  NAMI Rochester.
 
March 21 - NAMI Family-to-Family by NAMI Mid-Hudson.  March 21st through June 13th, 6:30pm to 9:00pm.  MidHudson Regional Hospital, 241 North Road, Poughkeepsie, 12601.  Pre-registration Required: Jo Ann Brown at programs@namimidhudson.org or (845) 832-6368.

March 22 NAMI Peer-to-Peer by NAMI NYC Metro. Tuesdays, March 22nd - June 7th, 6 to 8pm, NAMI NYC Metro, 505 Eighth Ave., New York, NY. To Register: Call our Helpline (212) 684-3264.

March 26 NAMI Family-to-Family by NAMI NYC Metro. Saturdays, March 26th - June 25th, 10am to 12:30pm, NAMI-NYC Metro, 505 Eighth Ave., New York, NY. To Register: Call our Helpline (212) 684-3264.

April 2 - NAMI Basics by NAMI Mid-Hudson.  April 2, 9 & 16.  9am to 3pm.  Arlington High School, 1157 NY-55, Lagrangeveille, 12540.  To Register: call Jo Ann Brown (845) 832-6368 or email programs@namimidhudson.org.

April 4 -May 16 NAMI Basics by NAMI of Central Suffolk.  10am to 12:30pm, Mondays, at the Farmingville Mental Health Clinic.  For more information to to register please call Beth (631) 697-6097 or bethsramme@gmail.com.

April 4 - NAMI Family-to-Family by NAMI Putnam.  6:30 pm to 8:45pm at the Mahopac Library.  Call for information or to register Wanda Crowley (914) 522-3812 or www.NAMIPutnam.org.

April 7 - NAMI Peer-to-Peer by NAMI NYC Metro. Thursdays, April 7th - June 23rd, 12 to 2pm, NAMI NYC Metro, 505 Eighth Ave., New York, NY. To Register: Call our Helpline (212) 684-3264.

April 11 NAMI Family-to-Family by NAMI NYC Metro. Mondays, April 11th - June 27th, 6 to 8:30pm, NAMI NYC Metro, 505 Eighth Ave., New York, NY. To Register: Call our Helpline (212) 684-3264.

April 12 - June 28- NAMI Family-to-Family by NAMI Saratoga & NAMI Schenectady.  6:15 to 8:45pm, at the New Saratoga Mental Health Clinic, 135 South Broadway, Route 9, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.  To register contact Dotte at (518) 429-5047 or dottecoon@aol.com or contact Cynthia at 518) 344-9177 or cwseacord@hotmail.com.
 
April 15-17 - NAMI Family-to-Family training to become a Teacher.  NAMI-NYS.  Contact your local affiliate.

April 18 - NAMI Family-to-Family by NAMI NYC Staten Island.  Starts at 7pm and continues for 12 weeks at Fr. Dominic-Espifano Parish Center at Holy Roasry Parish, 85 Jerome Ave., Soluthy Beach, NY.  Registration is required.  Contact (718) 477-1700 or linda@namistatenisland.org.

April 21- Join NAMI Rockland for NAMI Basics.  10am to noon, Rockland Independent Living Centrer.

May 3 - June 7 - NAMI Basics by NAMI of Central Suffolk.  10am to 12:30pm, Tuesdays at the Sagamore Childen's Center in Dix Hills.  For more information or to register please contact Beth (631) 697-6097 or bethsramme@gmail.com.

May 9-July 18 - NAMI Peer-to-Peer, 6:30 to 8:30pm.  At the Patterson room in Samaritan Hospital, Troy, NY.  To register call Christine Rickeman at (518) 462-2000 or (518) 506-6484, email rickemanc1@yahoo.com.  Or Gregory Hitchcock (518) 921-4146, email ghitchcockonline@gmail.com.
 
May 14&15 - NAMI Family Support Group training to become a Facilitator.  NAMI-NYS.  Contact your local affiliate.

May 16 - NAMI Family-to-Family classes by NAMI Greene.  Twice a week for 6 weeks on Monday & Thursday nights.  Windham Hensonville United Methodist Church, Windham, NY.  6pm to 8pm.  To Register: call Jackie at (518) 734-4383.

June 2- NAMI Family-to-Family classes by NAMI Greene.  Twice a week for 6 weeks on Monday & Thursday nights.  Windham Hensonville United Methodist Church, Windham, NY.  6pm to 8pm.  To Register: call Jackie at (518) 734-4383.
 
June 25&26 - NAMI Family Support Group training to become a Facilitator.  NAMI-NYS.  Contact your local affiliate.
 
July 16&17 - In Our Own Voice Training to become a Presenter.  NAMI-NYS.  Contact your local affiliate.
 
July 22-24 - NAMI Family-to-Family Training to become a Teacher.  NAMI-NYS.  Contact your local affiliate.
 
August 27 - NAMI Ending the Silence training to become a Presenter.  St. Vincent's in Westchester.
 
August 28 - NAMI Parent & Teachers as Allies training to become a Presenter.  St. Vincent's in Westchester.

August 30 - Family-to-Family by NAMI AMICO.  Tuesdays from 6;30 to 9pm, for 12 continuous weeks.  At First Presbyterian Church, 33 Park Place, Goshen, NY 10924.  Contact Catha Weiben (845) 551-1777.
 
October 7-9- NAMI Family-to-Family training to become a Teacher.  NAMI-NYS.  Contact your local affiliate.
   
To have your events and Signature Programs listed in the E-Newsletter contact Tammie Paradis at Tammie@naminys.org
 

NAMI-NYS | 99 Pine Street Suite 302| Albany, New York 12207 | (518) 462-2000