Monthly Archives: February 2015

Police Mental Health Training Pays Off

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Great to see the Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) being provided to officers in San Mateo County on how to respond to individuals needing mental health assistance is making a difference. In a recent stand off with an individual who was distraught and threatened to harm himself and others, the San Mateo Police worked together with the County’s SMART team (San Mateo County Mental Health Assessment and Referral Team) to prevent the situation from ending in a tragedy.  Kudos to the San Mateo Police for the sensitivity shown in handling a situation that could have easily gone sideways. Read the full story here.

Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Three-Year Plan Approved

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On January 27,  the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors reviewed and approved the MHSA Three-Year Plan & Annual Update, which has now been submitted to the State of California.

What does this mean for San Mateo County?  State funding, from the passing of Proposition 63 in 2004 imposing a 1% tax on personal income in excess of $1M, has been prioritized for the next three years of services, programs and efforts to reduce the long-term impacts resulting from untreated serious mental illness in San Mateo County.

Thank you to the close to 300 stakeholders, consumers/clients, families, community members, partner organizations and BHRS staff that participated in the planning process!

A few key highlights:

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Creating Partnerships to Increase Access for African American San Mateo County Residents

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In honor of Black History Month, this Saturday, February 21st the African American Community Initiative (AACI) of the Office of Diversity and Equity, in partnership with the African American Community Health Advisory Council (AACHAC), will host its 7th annual Black History Month Summit with the theme “Mental Health Wellness: The Key to Complete Health.”  The event will take place at the East Palo Alto Community Church on 2201 University Avenue in East Palo Alto.  The goal of this event is to help increase access to behavioral health and recovery services among African American residents in San Mateo County.

Join us for the keynote address as Dr. Donna Barnes, Ph.D. speaks about barriers to treatment, suicide awareness, and surviving and thriving after treatment. We hope you’ll join us for this free event!

For more information about the Summit or AACI, contact Amina Burrell, Co-Chair, at (650) 573-2610 or email her at amburrell@smcgov.org

AACI meets every 2nd Tuesday from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at 225 37th Ave, San Mateo.

Mills High School and Chinese Health Initiative Offer Parent Education Workshop

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To help parents understand the importance of mental wellness during their child’s stressful high school and college years, Mills High School and the San Mateo County Chinese Health Initiative will present the workshop “Achieving Success and Balance in the Modern Day.”

Clinicians and service providers from Behavioral Health and Recovery Services and Stanford Psychiatry will educate parents on adolescent development, parent and adolescent relationship and communication, identifying signs and symptoms, and where to seek help. Two workshops will be presented simultaneously – in English/Spanish and Cantonese/Mandarin. The workshop will be held at the Mills High School Theater on Thursday, February 26, from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm and is open to the public.  See the flyer for more info.

For more information contact Sunny Choi at 650-573-2403 or email him at c_sjchoi@smcgov.org

Notre Dame De Namur University Hosts Photovoice Exhibit

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Last November, eighteen freshman from Notre Dame De Namur University completed Photovoice projects that explored student perceptions and experiences around mental health and substance abuse in an effort to shed light on stigma and other issues that create barriers to accessing services. The workshop took place during the freshman year seminar titled Social Justice Through Poetry and Literature and was facilitated by Joe Balabis and Kathy Reyes from the Office of Diversity and Equity.

One student describes her family’s story by photographing her late grandfather’s clean and sober chip.

Kathy

Photovoice is a community-based research method where community members whose voices are often unheard, get to photograph their experiences and identify important social issues around mental health and substance abuse that impact their everyday lives. Photovoice leads to important discussions around actions that can take place to address these issues. Projects are exhibited at various public locations throughout San Mateo County.  See all of the students’ completed projects are on display at the university’s library and can be viewed in-person now through February 27th, 2015. Read more

ODE Hosts First Youth Mental Health First Aid Instructor Summit

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On January 28, 2015, the Office of Diversity and Equity (ODE) hosted the first Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) Instructor Summit. A total of 14 YMHFA Instructors were present for the 2.5 hour event. School personnel, community-based organization employees, community members, San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE) staff, San Mateo Medical Center and Behavioral Health and Recovery Services staff comprised the instructor group.

Topics discussed included the unique partnership between ODE and SMCOE to provide free, 8-hour YMHFA trainings to school personnel and other youth-serving adults of our county through Measure A tax funds; highlights and outcomes reports of the program since the kickoff in October 2013; continual instructor support from ODE staff; and ways to strengthen the community of instructors not only in San Mateo County, but neighboring counties as well.

Presentations were provided on topics of Non-Suicidal Self Injury, Cultural Humility as well as SMCOE’s work on the Coalition for Safe Schools and Communities. ODE plans on hosting Instructor Summit meetings on an annual basis to support, inspire and thank instructors for their efforts. Through these meetings, ODE will offer continual learning and support for instructors to facilitate trainings confidently while taking a culturally humble approach and furthering the vital work in reducing stigma related to mental health and substance abuse.

For more information about this Summit or YMHFA, please contact Lauren Getuiza at c_lgetuiza@smcgov.org or 650-372-8548.

VOICES OF RECOVERY RECRUITING PART TIME RECOVERY COACH II

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Voices of Recovery San Mateo County (VORSMC) is currently hiring a new Part-time Recovery Coach II. VORSMC is a recovery community organization that offers peer-to-peer recovery guidance and volunteer opportunities to the community. The non-profit encourages and supports personal, family and community recovery by offering non-clinical and peer-driven assistance to foster resilience, prevent relapse and promote effective public policy. For additional information regarding this employment opportunity, see the job posting.