Webinar TODAY: "Recovery-Oriented Practice: Person/Family-Centered Recovery Planning" - Posted 9.12

September 12^th  from 1:00 - 2:30 p.m.

Person/family-centered planning has emerged as a recovery-oriented practice designed  to help people who have behavioral health conditions and their families by engaging them in the process of planning for desired services and supports. Defined as a process, person/family-centered planning is directed by a person in recovery and his or her family (or other supports) with the intention of identifying the person's strengths, goals, needs and preferences.

The purpose of this webinar is to present the practice and philosophy of person/family-centered recovery planning.  

Register for the Webinar

Disability Community Unveils Key Principles of Community Integration - Posted 9.12   

The Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law has unveiled consensus principles - signed by 26 major national organizations comprising and/or representing individuals with disabilities - which lay out a vision in which individuals with disabilities are afforded opportunities to live in their own homes, work in regular, non-segregated employment, and make their own choices. "While most states have expressed a desire to do the right thing," said Bazelon's legal director, Ira Burnim, "they have failed to implement these principles on a large scale." The document - "Community Integration for People with Disabilities: Key Principles" - is available at the following link: http://bazelon.org/portals/0/ADA/7.30.13%20Key%20Principles%20-%20Community%20Integration%20for%20People%20with%20Disabilities.pdf

In Celebration of Recovery Month 2013Announcing the 2013 "In My Own Words"Essay Contest! - Posted 9.12

The ATTC Network Coordinating Office, in partnership with  Faces & Voices of Recovery, Harm Reduction Coalition,  Hepatitis C Association and Help4Hep invite you to share
YOUR STORY OF RECOVERY from a  substance use and/or mental health disorder while coping with Hepatitis C.

Prizes for Essay Contest Winners*

1st Place:iPad mini

The Top 20 submissions will be included in a published compilation booklet.

Click Here for more information including submission guidelines, judging criteria and eligibility
Download an entry form and submission guidelines!

Next Central Peer Connect Meeting on Tuesday, October 8th at RAFT House in Hanover - Posted 9.12  

12:30 - 2:00 p.m.
14433 Washington Hwy, Ashland (23005)

Our program will be "Poetry Reading and Tea Time". Please bring an original poem or a poem you just like, if you would like to read aloud to the group. RAFT House wishes to offer lunch to our group but MUST HAVE an accurate head count, so if you plan to eat lunch there, please contact Betsy Brown at 804.798.4587 (RAFT House phone, ask for her) or by email :

From the National Coalition for Mental Health Recovery: "Getting Ready for the Health Insurance Marketplace: Enrollment and Coverage Information" - Posted 9.12

On October 1st, the Health Insurance Marketplace will open and individuals and families will be able to apply and enroll in quality, affordable health coverage.

With this date quickly approaching, it is essential that we all work together to make sure that people with lived experience of mental health labels and histories are aware of their new options for health care coverage and that they understand how to take advantage of these options.

To facilitate our efforts to educate consumers about the new Health Care Law, what the Law means for them, and how they can take advantage of the new options for better, more affordable health coverage, National Coalition for Mental Health Recovery (NCMHR) and National Empowerment Center (NEC) partnered with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and other national organizations to develop a 30-minute narrated training toolkit called Getting Ready for the Health Insurance Marketplace.

The toolkit is available online for you to access through the NCMHRwebsite: http://www.ncmhr.org/affordable-care-act/enrollment.htm

The toolkit provides an overview of the new Health Care Law and the Health Insurance Marketplace and how individuals with lived experience of mental health labels and histories might benefit from it. The toolkit also contains numerous outreach materials (including articles, brochures, fact sheets, and other resources) for organizations to use to inform uninsured individuals about their new coverage options under the Health Care Law. Many of the materials are available in multiple languages and customized for specific population segments, like different ethnic/racial groups.

NCMHR and NEC encourage peer-led organizations and individuals to view the toolkit training, incorporate the information it provides, and utilize the toolkit's communication materials to give people with lived experience a better understanding of their new health coverage options and how they can take advantage of them. While there is still much work to be done in transforming the mental health system to a truly person-directed, recovery-oriented model of care, healthcare reform provides the opportunity to promote such services and supports and achieve meaningful systemic change.

Free Webinar: "Understanding the Health Insurance Marketplace", Special Evening Session - Posted 9.12

Understanding the Health Insurance Marketplace

This webinar is for those who help people make informed health coverage decisions. The webinar includes a detailed review of the Marketplace (Exchanges), includes eligibility, enrollment, plan structure, Medicaid expansion, and the streamlined application. This session covers many of the same topics as the Health Insurance Marketplace 101 session, but it is provided in more depth.

You Are Invited to a Magellan Community Forum - Posted 9.12

Magellan Behavioral Health has been selected by the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) to serve as the Behavioral Health Services Administrator (BHSA). Beginning December 1, 2013, Magellan will work with provider organizations in the community to administer behavioral health services for members enrolled in Virginia's Medicaid and FAMIS programs. This means Magellan will be responsible for managing all behavioral health services for the individuals enrolled in these programs. We will also manage the behavioral health services not covered through DMAS' managed care programs.

We will hold six community forums across the state in September. These information sessions will focus on sharing information about Magellan. We will have information tables with representatives who will answer questions about behavioral health services and how we work with consumers and families. These sessions are open to all community stakeholders, members and provider organizations. Separate provider sessions will also be held on these dates at the same locations.

The goal of these sessions is to provide a broad overview to help all stakeholders understand the upcoming changes to the behavioral health system. Magellan and DMAS are committed to a smooth transition that is transparent to members, providers and others.

We welcome and encourage consumers, parents and families, providers and other stakeholders to take part in any of the sessions listed in the following table.

Advance registration is recommended but not required. 

Please register at the link below for the session(s) you wish to attend: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VA-Forums

We hope you will join us and share your ideas. We look forward to meeting you. Please share this information with others who are interested in the VA DMAS transition for the behavioral health system.

Please email VirginiaInfo@MagellanHealth.com with questions you may have about the sessions.  

An Informational Alert Prepared by Fifth Freedom: "Disability Disclosure and Self-identification Benefits, Barriers and Implementable Solutions"  Webinar - Posted 9.12

On October 10th, the Employer Assistance and Resource Network (EARN) will present a webinar on disability disclosure in the workplace. While this webinar is directed at employers, it can also benefit employees with disabilities to know how employers may address this complex issue.

Disability disclosure at the workplace can be greatly beneficial to both employers and employees with disabilities. With the recently released regulations strengthening Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and setting specific recruitment goals for workers with disabilities, the need for creating environments where individuals feel comfortable disclosing a disability has become critical. However, some people may fear repercussions and opt not to self-identify, and many employers do not know how to collect this information. 

Using recent research as a foundation, this webinar will examine:

• The benefits of workplace disclosure for employees with disabilities and employers
• The barriers and facilitators to disclosure from the perspective of individuals with disabilities
• Strategies employers have implemented that increase self-identification 

2:00 pm to 2:30 p.m.

Register here: http://askearn.org/ndeam_registration.cfm 

Free Seminar: "Preparing Your Peer Run Program for a Successful Audit" - Posted 9.9

VOCAL invites Executive Directors, Board Presidents, and other leaders of peer-run mental health nonprofits to a  special one-day trainingon Thursday, October 17^th from 10:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. in Charlottesville (address and directions will be sent to all registrants)

This training will be facilitated by Auditors of the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Disability Services.

We recommend attendance by   2 - 4 management staff and/or Board members from each organization. Lunch will be provided at no charge.

Space is limited! Please reserve your place(s) by Monday, September 16^th

Email Cynthia Evans, Program Director, VOCAL Co-Op: cynthia@vocalvirginia.org for more information and a registration form.

Updated Information: Community Forum/Town Hall Meetings  - Posted 9.5 

September 26^th at 1:00 p.m.

Fairfax

The Heritage Center, East Building

7611 Little River Turnpike, Annandale (22003)

Training Rooms A & B on the first floor

October 2nd at 10:00 a.m.

On Our Own of Roanoke Valley

429 Elm Ave SW # 100  

Roanoke (24016)

VOCAL Announces the Ask VOCAL Column - Posted 8.8

Do you have a question that you wish to direct to the Executive Director about VOCAL?  Now is your chance to do so; please direct your questions to askVOCAL@vocalvirginia.org.  Your submissions will be answered and published in the Network News following your submission. 

Link to Virginia Mental Health Conferences and Trainings Calendar for Opportunities to Attend Conferences and Trainings - Posted 4.11  

Go to:  http://tinyurl.com/VirginiaCalendar

Do you know of other things that could be posted on this calendar?? Email Yolande Long: yolande@vocalvirginia.org