SOCIAL WORKERS LEADING FOR JUSTICE
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Hello,
Wow, April was a truly inspiring month. It was great to meet and re-connect with so many of you at both LEAD and Symposium, our two biggest events of the year. See pictures from both in the header above. Thank you to NASW staff, interns, and volunteers for so much incredible work to make these events so successful!
Registration is OPEN and we encourage you to sign up today for
our upcoming "
Health Care Transformation and the Future of Social Work" conference in Randolph (
5 CEUs), featuring keynote speaker Stephanie Brown, Director of Behavioral Health at MassHealth. There will be a panel and workshops covering topics related to behavioral health integration, the new Accountable Care Organization (ACO) model, and more.
There is an agency discount to attend.
Email the chapter
for more information.
For those who missed the announcement at Symposium,
Therapy Matcher (formerly SWTRS), our therapy referral service, is now open to all social workers in private practice regardless of membership status. Learn more and check out the new and improved website here:
www.therapymatcher.org.
Please reach out to me any time with questions or concerns, and I hope you'll
join us for our Open House at our offices at 11 Beacon St, Suite 509, Boston, on May 9 from 5:30 - 7:30 pm!
Happy Spring,
Rebekah
Rebekah Gewirtz
Executive Director
617-227-9635 x116
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IN THIS ISSUE:
- Membership Hub
- Continuing Education & Events
- Social Work Action Center
- Private Practice
- Notes from the Field
- Licensing Test Prep
- National News
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We're Hiring! Seeking Dynamic, Motivated Membership & Inclusion Coordinator and Northeast Regional Coordinator
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The
Membership and Inclusion Coordinator
is a part-time staff person responsible for coordinating Chapter recruitment and retention initiatives. This position is also responsible for advancing and monitoring the racial justice component of the NASW-MA strategic plan in coordination with the Executive Director and other staff.
Read more
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The
Northeast Regional Coordinator
is a part-time, 4 hrs/week position collaborating with members to expand and sustain the Northeast Regional Council and organize members for action on priority issues. The coordinator maintains regular contact with Regional Council Chair(s) to determine key topics for meetings and events in the region and fields member questions about NASW and regional activities.
Read more
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Social Work CE Institute "FOCUS Continuing Education Courses" in Your Mailbox
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Love
Social Work Voice but miss the continuing education inserts from FOCUS? You should have received a newspaper of four text-based continuing education courses in the mail in early May.
Complete some or all of these courses at your leisure to earn up to 6.5 CEUs! Check the image to the right to see what it looks like.
Did not receive the mailing? Contact the Chapter: 617-227-9635 or
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In Your Mailbox:
Social Work Voice
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The May/June issue is all about Criminal Justice Advocacy and Reform and includes:
- Race, Incarceration, and Voting: The Ugly Truth - Empowering Voices through Removal of Felony Voter Bans
- Treating Addicted Clients Involved in the Criminal Justice System: Clinical Considerations
- Are Social Workers the New Face of Community Policing?
- Social Workers Join Campaign to Educate Voters on the Importance of District Attorneys
- Managed Care News
- Regional Calendar, Continuing Education, and Events
- ...and more!
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Have an upcoming event, job opening, or other opportunity to share with the social work community?
Advertise with us! All ads appear on our website and are published in
Social Work Voice.
The ad deadline for the upcoming July/August issue is June 22. Contact Jamie Klufts for more information:
jklufts.naswma@socialworkers.org.
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Become a CE Reviewer and attend NASW CE Programs FREE
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The Collaborative, our Chapter's CE program approval program, is seeking NASW members to be reviewers of continuing education programs.
Qualifications: LICSW or LCSW with 5 or more years of experience. Understand professional continuing education and be able to evaluate whether programs meet the needs of licensed social workers. Must be available by email.
Responsibilities: Process 15 to 20 applications a month and return results in 10 business days.
Reviewers earn vouchers to be used in lieu of payment for any NASW CE program.
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Seeking Macro Interns for 2018-2019 Academic Year
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Are you (or do you know) a second year or advanced standing MSW student looking for a dynamic, exciting placement? If you are seeking a macro-placement for the upcoming school year, please see what types of projects and opportunities we offer our students (subject to change each year). Read more about NASW-MA's internship program and how to apply
here
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CONTINUING EDUCATION & EVENTS
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Common Factors - What Causes Change in Psychotherapy?
1.5 CEUs Available!
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May 10, 2018
Common Factors - What Causes Change in Psychotherapy?
Smith College
Dewey Common Room
Northampton, MA
7:30 - 9:00 pm
with Jim Drisko, PhD, LICSW, Professor, Smith College School for Social Work
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Free for NASW Members; $10 for non-members. Advance Registration is not necessary.
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Central MA Film Program:
The Glass Castle
3 CEUs Available!
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May 6, 2018
Central MA Film Program:
The Glass Castle
Elm Draughthouse Cinema
35 Elm Street
Millbury, MA
1:00 - 4:00 pm
with Lynn Perlman, PhD, Dean of Graduate Studies, Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis
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Therapy Matcher (SWTRS) Open House - All Are Welcome!
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May 6, 2018
Therapy Matcher Open House
Newton, MA
3:00 - 5:00 pm
All clinicians in private practice welcome! Will take place in Newton. Please RSVP to Therapy Matcher (SWTRS) Director Barbara Burka:
info@therapymatcher.org
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NASW-MA Open House at our New Office on Beacon Hill!
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May 9, 2018
NASW-MA Open House
11 Beacon St., Suite 509
Boston, MA 02108
5:30 - 7:30 pm
All social workers welcome! Come network with NASW-MA chapter and regional staff and fellow colleagues. Refreshments will be served.
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Health Care Transformation and the Future of Social Work
Earn 5 CEUs!
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May 18, 2018
Health Care Transformation and the Future of Social Work
The Lantana
43 Scanlon Drive
Randolph, MA
9:00 am - 3:15 pm
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Keynote Speaker:
Stephanie Brown, MS
Director of the Office of Behavioral Health, MassHealth
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Panelists:
- MassHealth Changes and the Impact on Vulnerable Populations - Kate Audette, MSW, Director of State Government Relations, Boston Children's Hospital
- Integrating Health Care and Behavioral Health - Marie Pierre-Victor, LICSW, Codman Square Health Center
- Accountable Care Organizations: Roles for Social Workers - Sally Bachman, PhD, Director of Center for Innovation in Social Work & Health and Professor, Boston University School of Social Work
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Workshops:
- Social Workers Leading for Change - Melissa Canuto, LICSW
- Tele-Mental Health: A New Frontier - Kate Audette, MSW, Director of State Government Relations, Boston Children's Hospital; Mike Langlois, LICSW
- Private Practice and ACOs - Erica Kirsners, LICSW
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Inmate Services at the Berkshire County Jail and House of Correction
1.5 CEUs Available!
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Free for NASW Members; $10 for non-members. Advance Registration is not necessary.
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May 23, 2018
Inmate Services at the Berkshire County Jail
and House of Correction
MA Dept. of Mental Health
333 East St., 4th Floor
Pittsfield, MA
12:00 - 1:30 pm
Featuring Mark Massaro, MA, LMHC, CCHP, Assistant Deputy Superintendent of Mental Health and Corrections, Berkshire County Jail and House of Correction.
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Working Effectively with Sexuality, Intimacy, and Diverse Gender
3 CEUs Available!
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June 1, 2018
Working Effectively with Sexuality, Intimacy, and Diverse Gender
Parish of St. Michael
90 Concord Rd.
Bedford, MA
9:30 am - 12:45 pm
with Charles Strauss, LICSW. This workshop is sponsored by Therapy Matcher.
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This program will cover topics related to gender and sexuality including: LGBT concepts and terminology, working with queer people, how sexual orientation and gender affect sexuality and intimacy, polyamory / consensual non-monogamy, kink and BDSM, intimacy and eroticism, sex, biological and cultural aspects of gender, and communication skills around boundaries and consent.
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Nursing Home Committee's 36th Annual Conference:
"Celebrating Nursing Home Social Workers"
6/7.5 CEUs Available!
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June 7, 2018
8:15 am - 4:30 pm / 6:00 pm
LaCava Center
Bentley University
North Waltham, MA
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Featuring:
- The Ed Alessi Keynote: Celebrating Our Successes | Mercedes Bern-Klug, PhD, MSW, Director of Aging and Longevity Studies, University of Iowa School of Social Work
- Panel: Successful Integration of Community Services
- Plenary Session: Making A Difference: Advocating for Ourselves and Others | Ed Alessi, LICSW
- Advanced Practice Intensive (1.5 CEUs): The Conversation Project: Using the Conversation Starter Kit to Encourage Advance Care Planning | Rev. Rosemary Lloyd, BSN, MDiv.
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Workshops:
- Admissions to End of Life Care: Innovative Social Work Approaches | Lucille Haratsis, MEd, LCSW, and Vanessa Plantz, MSW, Boston Home
- Understanding and Welcoming Transgender Older Adults | Lisa Krinsky, LICSW, Director of LGBT Aging Project, Fenway Institute
- Building Quality Relationships with Residents, Staff, and Family Members | Mary Ellen Walsh, MSW, LSW, Director of Social Services, Deutsches Alteneim German Centre
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SOCIAL WORK ACTION CENTER
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Criminal Justice Bill Signed into Law
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On April 13th, Governor Baker signed historic Criminal Justice reform legislation into law. This bill was a culmination of years’ worth of efforts led by the formerly incarcerated, families of the incarcerated, and advocates. Our Criminal Justice Committee often acted as the NASW-MA representative on various working groups within the coalition to ensure the social work voice was vocally at the table.
In the final bill, there are several areas where compromise was made, and areas to improve, but overall this bill
is a major step in the right direction. You can look forward to the May/June issue of
Social Work Voice, entirely focused on criminal justice, with a deep dive into what was included in this 122-page bill.
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Lift the Cap on Kids Passes in House Budget
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The House consolidated amendment on Social Services released last week and supported unanimously in the House included language that will
repeal the welfare family cap effective 7/1/19. This is a huge victory for our campaign and for the poorest kids in the state. The budget bill is now headed to the senate where our advocacy work continues.
In the meantime,
please call, email, tweet thanks, or re-tweet the thanks from @LiftCapOnKidsMA to:
- Speaker Robert DeLeo
- Ways and Means Chairman Jeffrey Sanchez
- Our amazing lead sponsor in the House, Representative Marjorie Decker
- Assistant Majority Leader Byron Rushing
- Chairwoman Kay Khan
- You Representative! See list of House sponsors here.
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Improving Patient Confidentiality - PATCH Signed into Law
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On April 2nd, Governor Baker signed the PATCH (Protecting Access to Confidential Healthcare) bill into law which closed a privacy loophole for the state of Massachusetts. Now individuals can safely access sensitive healthcare services without fear of these services being made known to the subscriber of the insurance. This is most often a problem for those in violent relationships, LGBTQ youth, and young adults still on parents’ health insurance. NASW-MA was proud to be a member of the PATCH Alliance and we appreciate the work of our members who made the calls to their legislators to make this win happen.
Want to receive alerts to help pass legislation?
Join the Legislative Alert Network here
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March with Us at Boston Pride on June 9th!
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NASW-MA will have a visible presence at this year's PRIDE Parade on Saturday, June 9
th from 12:00 - 4:00 pm. We'd love for you to march with us! If you are interested in marching and holding the NASW banner, please RSVP as this year’s organizers need an approximate head count.
Please RSVP
to Sophie Hansen using the form linked below
by May 15
th
!
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Upholding Transgender Rights in MA
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On
November 6th, Massachusetts will be the first state in the country forced to defend basic protections for transgender people at the ballot. NASW-MA is proud to support Freedom for All Massachusetts, the broad coalition working to uphold these protections.
We need your help to spread the word—and spread it early:
A “Yes” vote this November is a vote for dignity and respect for our transgender neighbors and friends.
For more information and to get involved in canvassing efforts,
email Sophie
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NASW MA Political Action for Candidate Endorsement (PACE) has been hard at work interviewing candidates for elected office. In 2018, every senator and representative is up for re-election and so far we have made ten endorsements, with many more seeking our support! Want to get involved in the action in this exciting election year? We meet monthly at our Boston office and offer an option to call-in remotely. If you’d like to learn more, please contact Sophie Hansen,
shansen.naswma@socialworkers.org.
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NASW-MA's Political Action for Candidate Election (PACE) Endorsements
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- Cindy Friedman - State Senator for 4th Middlesex District
- Jamie Eldridge - State Senator for Middlesex & Worcester District
- Sal DiDomenico - State Senator for Middlesex & Suffolk District
- Mike Connolly - State Representative for 26th Middlesex District
- Natalie Higgins - State Representative for 4th Worcester District
- Sean Garballey - State Representative for 23rd Middlesex District
- Sabrina Heisey - State Representative for 36th Middlesex District
- Jim Hawkins - State Representative for 2nd Bristol District - Election WON!
- Tami Gouveia - State Representative for 14th Middlesex District - NASW Member!
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Therapy Matcher (formerly Social Work Therapy Referral Service) Now Open to ALL Social Workers in Private Practice
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The Social Work Therapy Referral Service (SWTRS) is now Therapy Matcher!
With a new name and a new logo comes a new tier of membership. Now non-NASW members can join! Know a social worker in private practice who is not an NASW member and looking to expand their referral base? Connect them to
Barbara Burka, Therapy Matcher Director.
We're offering a $20 CE Credit for those who make a successful referral to a new member!
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AND... Join us for the Therapy Matcher Open House - May 6th
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Are you a clinician in private practice? Come network with other clinicians and learn more about Therapy Matcher, a referral service for social workers.
The Open House will take place on Sunday, May 6, from 3:00 - 5:00 pm in Newton. Please RSVP to
Barbara Burka for more information and location details.
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Valuable Member Benefit: Join the NASW-MA Private Practice Google Group
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The Private Practice Google Group is an exclusive member benefit powered by social work colleagues from across the state and NASW-MA. By signing up you'll receive timely updates from your colleagues about ethics, billing and insurance, and other critical private practice issues. You can also pose your own questions to the group to crowd source answers from colleagues. NASW-MA also uses this platform to send important clinical alerts to members.
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NASW National: "An Hour with Private Practice" Schedule
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An Hour With Private Practice: Questions & Answers is a free question and answer session for NASW members. The monthly call-in sessions focus on a specific private practice subject and are led by Mirean Coleman, LICSW, Clinical Manager at NASW national. There is no registration and members can join in the discussion, ask questions, and make comments.These sessions provide members with important clinical social work updates impacting the delivery of mental health services.
There are two sessions left for the spring:
- May 16, 2018 - A Look at Informed Consent in Private Practice
- June 20, 2018 - What to Expect From an Audit: Tips to Prepare
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What All LICSWs Must Do to Comply with MassHealth Requirement
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All Licensed Independent Clinical Social Workers (LICSWs) in Massachusetts are required to register with MassHealth as either billing or non-billing providers. This requirement was put in place to ensure that MassHealth is complying with the Affordable Care Act.
The MA Board of Registration of Social Work REQUIRES ALL LICSWs to meet this requirement by September 30, 2018! Failure to do so could result in the suspension or loss of your license.
If you are a QMB (Qualified Medicare Beneficiary) provider, and can receive payment from MassHealth for the copay for your Medicare clients, you are already registered with MassHealth and do not need to do anything; however, if you are seeing MassHealth beneficiaries and billing their insurance (MBHP, Beacon, THPP, or Celticare), this does NOT make you a MassHealth billing provider. You must complete the form and register as a MassHealth Non-Billing Provider.
Read more and access step-by-step instructions
here
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Domestic Violence Training Requirement Update
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The required training on Domestic & Sexual Violence* for all licensed social workers is
POSTPONED until 2020! The 2020 requirement for all licensed social workers (LICSWs, LCSWs, LSWs, and LSWAs) is to participate in an
approved Domestic and Sexual Violence training program.
This training was originally to be completed in 2018, but the MA Board of Registration of Social Workers extended the deadline to September 30, 2020. NASW MA
will develop an approved training to meet this requirement. Stay tuned for more information in the coming months. For more information on this requirement see:
Acts of 2014, Chapter 260, “
An Act Relative to Domestic Violence
,” Section 9.
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New LGBT Online Bereavement Support Group
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Join other lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender adults across Massachusetts
who are coping with the loss of a loved
one for a free seven week online
The LGBT Bereavement Groups are funded by the Mass Department of Public Health and facilitated by The LGBT Aging Project, a Program of Fenway Health. All groups are free and facilitated by a licensed independent clinical social worker specializing in LGBT Bereavement. All groups require pre-registration. For more information, contact Bob Linscott at 857.313.6578 or
blinscott@fenwayhealth.org.
Wednesday evenings, 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm, May 9 through June 20.
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Licensing Test Prep Happening in Your Neck of the Woods!
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NASW-MA Licensing Test Prep courses include:
- FREE Social Work ASWB Exam Guide
- Access to online ASWB exam guide portal
- Full-day Test Prep course (9 am - 4 pm)
Upcoming exam dates and locations:
- May 12 | Boston
- June 16 | Northampton
- July 20 | Bedford
- More May and June dates being added as you read this! Check the NASW MA website for updates.
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NASW National Conference -
June 20-23, 2018
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The 2018 NASW National Conference will be held June 20-23, 2018, at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Join more than 2000 social workers and like-minded professionals for the national meeting of the profession.
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