November
2019
Join the "30 for 30" Campaign
Become a Grassroots Supporter Today!
The NFFCMH is excited to be celebrating its 30th Anniversary this year! To mark the occasion, we invite you to participate in our "30 for 30" Campaign by making a donation of $30 to honor our 30 years of service representing the national voice of children, youth, parents and families. Participants attending the 30th Annual Conference this month will be recognized with a special 30 for 30 nametag.
All supporters will be listed in our end-of-year report .
Become a 30 for 30 grassroots supporter today!
"If I had a dollar for every time my child was struggling and I didn't know what to do, I would be rich. But, if I had a dollar for every time another parent supported me, I would have $30 many times over. The help and support of my parent peer specialist and local family run organization has been invaluable to my family and me. Thank you NFFCMH for promoting family voice and supporting these organizations. I am proud to give $30 to celebrate the anniversary. What you do for families is priceless."
- A 30 for 30 Grassroots Supporter
Conference News
Session Highlights
Whether you are an organizational leader looking to increase sustainability, a parent looking for support with a specific mental health challenge for your child and strategies for self-care, a youth looking to connect with peers and develop leadership skills or a parent/family peer support partner looking for professional development opportunities - our dynamic annual conference agenda is for you! Below are a few highlights from the upcoming 30th Annual Conference agenda.
Children and youth who are moving toward or have achieved adoption and guardianship often have diverse unmet mental health needs that can affect family stability and wellbeing. A contributing factor is the shortage of specialized permanency and adoption child welfare and mental health professionals - fully qualified and skillful professionals who understand complex adoption/guardianship related issues such as trauma, attachment, grief and loss, and identity formation. National Training Initiative (NTI) is a new generation of web-based training with two complementary curricula - one designed for child welfare supervisors and one designed for mental health professionals. Join us to learn more about this free, evidence-based training which will launch nationally in January 2020.

Friday, November 15th
Demonstrating worth is critical for any organization. As integrated care and value-based contracts permeate the behavioral health landscape, non-profit Family-Run Organizations who have the technology tools and resulting quality data will have the opportunity to thrive. This workshop will highlight key strategies to success, using current market metrics and standard performance measures while balancing traditional missions and managing cost margins.

Friday, November 15th
Saturday Morning Plenary: FUNdaMENTALs of the YOUth Movement with Featured Guest Andrew Ecker
Andrew Ecker’s Drumming Sounds, is an evidence-based drum circle facilitation organization based on a healing protocol called HealthRHYTHMS . Drumming Sounds empowers individuals and groups by giving them opportunities to utilize drums and other instruments in a way that promotes unity and cultivates a sacred space where demographics fade and people connect on a deeper level. Through the use of the Drumming Sounds intentional drumming protocol, groups and communities of all kinds come together to promote connection, love and gratitude, while bringing us back to the basic rhythm of life. We are excited to share that Andrew will be participating in the conference plenary on Saturday morning.
Keynote Speakers
We are excited to share that Sue Badeau and Mia St. John will join us
 as keynote speakers at the 30th Annual NFFCMH Conference in Phoenix, AZ
on November 14th-16th. Learn more about Sue and Mia below.
Watch the clip of Sue above to hear about her family's adventures which inspired the toolkit she developed to support other parents and families.
Watch the interview above to learn more about Mia and her family's story which led her to become a mental health advocate for all families.
National Family Caregivers Month
National Family Caregivers Month - celebrated each November - is a time to recognize and honor family caregivers across the country.
Celebrating Family Caregivers Month helps all of us:
  • Raise awareness of family caregiver issues
  • Celebrate the efforts of family caregivers
  • Educate family caregivers about self-identification
  • Increase support for family caregivers
As part of Family Caregivers Month, the Caregiver Action Network created a "Blueprint for Families of Loved Ones with Mental Health Issues" that includes helpful links and information for caregivers of individuals affected by mental illness.
Legislation and Advocacy
News and Updates
For the latest news and updates, see our most recent National slide show below.
If you haven't already, sign up to receive legislation and advocacy updates, alerts and calls to action. In the meantime, find our most recent updates as well as news, tools and resources that can assist in your efforts to represent the voice of children, youth and families on our Legislative and Advocacy web pages .
Submit your state's advocacy and legislative news and updates to our
Legislative Liaison, Michelle Covington, at mcovington@ffcmh.org.
Webinars and Events
When: Every Friday in November at 3:00 pm ET - except Thanksgiving Week

Nevada PEP offers weekly webinars covering a variety of topics that support parents, caregivers, families and their children as well as the professionals who support them. Click the button below to view their calendar and to register for this month's webinars.
Navigating the Digital Era: Social Media and Mental Health
Date: Tuesday, November 5, 2019 Time: 12:00 pm EDT

Current technological advances allow people to be increasingly and constantly engaged in a variety of social media platforms. This engagement has been studied to assess if and how interactions on these social media platforms may affect mental health, particularly depression and anxiety. In this webinar, Dr. Brian Primack, MD, PhD and Dr. Jeff Cain, EdD, will discuss the nuances of emerging data on social media and mental health as well as discuss the future . Note: Registration with PsychU is free and required to participate in their webinars. Click the button below to sign up and register for the webinar.
Supporting Children and Youth with Trauma in School
Date: Thursday, November 7, 2019 Time: 7:30 - 9:30 pm EDT

This workshop will help parents and others learn positive interventions for youth who struggle with trauma and challenging behaviors, including the role of Section 504 and special education.
Family Participation on Committees and Councils
Date: Monday, November 25, 2019 Time: 7:30 - 9:30 pm EDT

Parents of children ages birth to five who are on Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSP) or Individualized Education Programs (IEP) will be prepared to actively participate on committees at the local, regional, and state level.
The TA Network operates multiple Learning Communities (LC’s) that are available to any and all participants on various topics. The LC’s were assembled with the most pressing needs of the children's behavioral health field in mind, and are facilitated by a diverse group of content experts. Opportunities for peer examples and interactions
are also provided in addition to robust resources and tools.

Their November Webinar Line Up includes:

  1. Implementing Wraparound in Rural Communities - Friday, November 1, 2019 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm EDT
  2. National Adoption Competency Mental Health Training Initiative: Advancing Practice for Permanency and Well-Being - Thursday, November 14, 2019 1:00 - 2:30 pm EST
  3. Operationalizing Family Voice and Leadership in Systems of Care - Wednesday, November 20, 2019 2:30 - 4:00 pm EST
  4. Direct Connect Learning Community: Lessons Learned from the Field - Thursday, November 21, 2019 3:00 - 4:30 pm EST
  5. A Grand Plan: ZERO TO THREE’S National Survey of Grandparents Who Care For Grandchildren - Friday, November 22, 2019 12:30 - 2:00 pm EST
Resources and Opportunities
From Child Mind Institute
 Research shows that more time spent online is linked to more mental health symptoms. But the internet can also make teens feel less lonely and more confident. Add in the rapid increase in apps for youth struggling with mental health symptoms, and the landscape can be overwhelming for families. The Children’s Mental Health Report: Social Media, Gaming and Mental Health offers practical easy-to-understand information on the positive and negative mental health effects of social networking, messaging, photo sharing and multiplayer gaming. It also includes clinically supported guidelines for social media and Internet use and partner essays from Common Sense Media, Center on Addiction, the Jed Foundation and Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD) on specific areas of concern like suicide, ADHD, and substance use.   Learn more here .
From the Health and Human Services Administration
Looking for other free e-learning programs on cultural competency? The U.S. Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health (HHS OMH) announced a new, free and accredited e-learning program: Improving Cultural Competency for Behavioral Health Professionals . The program, available via OMH’s Think Cultural Health website, is designed to develop behavioral health providers' knowledge and skills related to culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS). Cultural and linguistic competency is recognized as an important strategy for improving the quality of care provided to clients from diverse backgrounds. The goal of this e-learning program is to help behavioral health professionals increase their cultural and linguistic competency. Learn more here .
From the Health Resources and Services Administration
Data from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) 2018 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) is now available. A brief overview and new estimates of key child health indicators, are found in the NSCH Fact Sheet . This voluntary survey, funded and directed by HRSA’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), provides annual national and state-level estimates of key measures of children’s health and well-being. The survey collects information on critical topics including the prevalence of health conditions such as allergies, attention deficit disorder/attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, and asthma; the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences; the availability of accessible and coordinated health care, including for children with special health care needs; family health and activities; and parental health status. HRSA MCHB works with the U.S. Census Bureau to conduct the survey, oversee sampling, and produce a final data set for public use. Access the survey data free of charge here .