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SAMHSA has assembled an Expert Panel on Trauma to meet May 24th in Rockville, MD. The objective of this meeting is to arrive at a definition of trauma and a set of standards for approaches to trauma-informed care. The panel’s contributions to the field will be instrumental in shaping SAMHSA’s ongoing commitment and next steps in moving trauma-related initiatives forward. Robyn Boustead, of MIMH has been invited to be one of the panel members.

Over the past decade, SAMHSA has supported grant programs and national technical assistance centers focusing on the development of trauma-specific interventions and trauma-informed approaches to care. Due to these efforts, as well as other ongoing initiatives in the field of trauma, there is a plethora of trauma definitions and approaches to trauma-informed care. Increasingly, SAMHSA is requested to provide support and training for these efforts in other non-behavioral health systems, such as primary care, schools, criminal and juvenile justice, child welfare, etc. In an effort to ensure quality and consistency, SAMHSA is working to coordinate its work across its various funded centers and initiatives to develop a broadly applicable definition of trauma and a set of standards for trauma-informed care. SAMHSA has also made Trauma one of its key strategic initiatives, recognizing the central role of trauma in many mental and substance use disorders.

 

"MIMH has 80 faculty and research staff. That team provides research, evaluation and training expertise to the Missouri Department of Mental Health and other state organizations seeking information related to mental health services and policy. The institute became a unit of UMSL in 2010 after being operated by the University of Missouri–Columbia for many years." read more ...

The Missouri Institute of Mental Health seeks to train individuals who possess the qualifications, skills, and passion to help us spread Mental Health First Aid across Missouri.
Please contact LaToshia Boyd-Lee at 314-877-6481 or LaToshia.Boyd-Lee@mimh.edu for an application packet or additional information. read more ...

USA Today reports, "Research paints a compelling argument. Adults with serious mental illness like schizophrenia die about 25 years earlier than the general population, according to a 2007 report from the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors. They're 3.4 times more likely to die of heart disease or diabetes, 3.8 times more likely to die in an accident, 5 times more likely to die of respiratory ailments, and 6.6 times more likely to die of pneumonia or flu, found the team led by Joseph Parks, director of the Missouri Institute of Mental Health." read more ...

"The number of African American women infected with HIV/AIDS in America is staggering. According to 2009 figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the rate of new HIV infections among black women was 15 times that of white women, and over 3 times the rate among Hispanic/Latina women." read more ...

Spring Training Institute
May 31 and June 1, 2012
www.mimhtraining.com

Early registration fee is $165 until April 19, 2012

The Missouri Department of Mental Health’s Spring Training Institute brings professionals together in the fields of substance abuse, mental illness and developmental disabilities to share evidence-based practices. This will be two full days of presentations and workshops with 60 separate sessions that will broaden your knowledge and enhance the understanding of the critical services provided to the citizens of Missouri.

 

The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare will pilot test its MHFA youth course designed for adults who work with youth March 6, 2012 here in St. Louis. This is an initiation only training and will last from 8am until 5:30pm. Interested individuals should contact Brendolyn Bailey-Burch at Brendolyn(dot)Bailey-Burch(at)mimh.edu.

The Missouri Institute of Mental Health (MIMH) will host its first 5-day MHFA instructor training April 2-6, 2012 at ITenterprises, University of Missouri-St. Louis. Interested individuals should contact LaToshia Boyd-Lee at LaToshia.Boyd-Lee@mimh.edu for an application packet. Applications are due March 10, 2012.

 

Jermine D. Alberty, BSB/M joins MIMH as the Mental Health First Aid Training Director in the Child and Family Mental Health Services division. He will be working from Kansas City through May, then he and his family will move to St. Louis.

Jermine received his undergraduate degree at the University of Phoenix, and is currently working towards a Master of Divinity at Central Baptist Theological Seminary. He has over 20 years of experience in human service-oriented positions within non-profits, churches and the city of Kansas City, Missouri. He has worked in the mental health field for seven years and worked for Comprehensive Mental Health Services as the Coordinator of Staff Development and Community Education before joining MIMH. He is a statewide trainer of Cultural Competency in Mental Health Services and a National Trainer of Mental Health First Aid.

 

MIMH’s Girls Holla Back! is seeking African-American girls ages 12-17 years old for a free, eight week prevention program. Girls Holla Back! is devoted to reducing new cases of HIV/AIDS, as well as reducing substance abuse among black females living in the St. Louis Metropolitan area. read more ...

MIMH Director, Joe Parks, was presented with the Silver Key Award at the annual Snow Ball gala held by Mental Health America of Eastern Missouri on December 9, 2011. The Silver Key Award is presented to individuals or organizations whose contributions to the mental health field demonstrate a devotion to the eradication of stigma that often prevents people from seeking treatment. read more ...

"A survey last year of Missouri students by the Missouri Institute of Mental Health found that nearly 13 percent of those surveyed said they had considered ..." read more ...