New York State Conference
of Local Mental Hygiene Directors
|
 |
October 31, 2013
Samhainophobia is an intense and persistent fear of Halloween that can cause panic attacks in sufferers. Other relevant phobias for this time of year: wiccaphobia (fear of witches), phasmophobia (fear of ghosts), and coimetrophobia (fear of cemeteries).
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!
|
|
|
 |
|
|
WEBINARS & Resources:
Webinar:
New Health Insurance Options for Former Foster Care Youth Coming in January
Monday, October 28th at 10:00 am
Register
|
|
NOVEMBER:
Officers and Chairs
November 6th
Mental Hygiene Planning
Children & Families Committee call w/Donna Bradbury Presenting on Chidren's Managed Care, MRT & HH's - open to ALL DCS. November 18th 10:30 - 12:00
CLMHD Committee Day
November 19th
10:00 - 4:00
Officers and Chairs
December 11th
8:00 AM (call in)
Mental Hygiene Planning
December 12th 11:00-2:00 Go To Meeting TBD
Director's Meetings December 17th 10:30 - Noon Executive Committee Meeting
12:30 - 2:00 41 State Street Suite 505 Albany, NY 12207 |
|
|
|
Bellevue Hospital Opens New Inpatient Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Unit
 (New York, NY) Bellevue Hospital Center, a member of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC), today announced the opening of a new, 15-bed inpatient psychiatric unit for adolescents that expands the inpatient capacity and enables the hospital to address the growing need for inpatient mental health services for children and adolescents. Read more.
|
|
|
Strategies to Reduce Costs and Improve Care for High-Utilizing Medicaid Patients: Reflections on Pioneering Program
| |
Across the country, Medicaid stakeholders are exploring new ways to address the needs of the program's highest-utilizing patients. Super-utilizers make up only five percent of the Medicaid universe, yet these patients with complex needs account for more than 50 percent of overall program spending.
This new Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) brief offers important insights for states, health plans, and providers looking to improve care delivery for Medicaid's sickest, costliest patients. Author Thomas Bodenheimer, MD, MPH of the University of California San Francisco reports on a national review of 14 super-utilizer programs undertaken to help guide the San Francisco Health Plan in designing better ways to care for high-risk, hard-to-reach patients. The majority of the programs analyzed involve Medicaid patients, but the review also examined programs for employed individuals and those in Medicare that offer potential relevance to Medicaid.
The resulting brief outlines 10 key factors for success for high-utilizer complex care management programs and details core features as well as available cost and utilization data for the programs analyzed. While much remains to be done to understand how to best structure care approaches for Medicaid's high-utilizing patients, the findings in this brief add to the emerging body of evidence regarding high-touch, tailored approaches for this population. Read the brief
|
|
|
F.D.A. Urging a Tighter Rein on Painkillers
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday recommended tighter controls on how doctors prescribe the most commonly used narcotic painkillers, changes that are expected to take place as early as next year. The change would reduce the number of refills patients could get before going back to see their doctor. Patients would also be required to take a prescription to a pharmacy, rather than have a doctor call it in. Prescription drugs account for about three-quarters of all drug overdose deaths in the United States, with the number of deaths from narcotic painkillers, or opioids, quadrupling since 1999, according to federal data. Drugs containing hydrocodone represent a huge share - about 70 percent - of all opioid prescriptions, and the looser rules governing them, some experts say, have contributed to their abuse. Read more. Related: Editorial Putting More Controls on Painkillers |
|
Few Problems With Cannabis for California
 At a time when polls show widening public support for legalizing marijuana, California's 17-year experience as the first state to legalize medical marijuana offers surprising lessons, experts say. Read more.
Is Suboxone a Wonder Drug that Helps Heroin Addicts Get Clean--Or Just Another Way to Stay High?
 Five months ago, Chris resolved that it was finally time to get clean. Sort of. The 34-year-old Brooklyn real estate broker (who declined to be identified by his real name; "Chris" is a pseudonym) had begun using heroin and quit once before, in his late teens. But family problems and a few tough months caused him to relapse, and soon he was snorting the drug two or three times a week. Read more. |
|
 Imagine if scientists discovered a toxic substance that increased the risks of cancer, diabetes and heart, lung and liver disease for millions of people. Something that also increased one's risks for smoking, drug abuse, suicide, teen pregnancy, sexually transmitted disease, domestic violence and depression - and simultaneously reduced the chances of succeeding in school, performing well on a job and maintaining stable relationships? It would be comparable to hazards like lead paint, tobacco smoke and mercury. We would do everything in our power to contain it and keep it far away from children. Right? Read more. |
|
|
|
|
|
The New York State Conference of Local Mental Hygiene Directors advances public policies and awareness for people with mental illness, chemical dependency and developmental disabilities. We are a statewide membership organization that consists of the Commissioner/ Director of each of the state's 57 county mental hygiene departments and the mental hygiene department of the City of New York.
 | | Affiliated |
|
|
|
