News

In order to highlight pockets of excellence across the country, the NNED selects an organization to highlight once a month. Special Service for Groups (SSG) has been selected as the Partner of the Month for December in honor of World AIDS Day (December 1).

SSG is a non-profit health and human service organization dedicated to building and sustaining community-based programs that address the needs of vulnerable communities.

SSG’s APAIT program’s mission is to positively impact the quality of life for medically underserved communities living with or at risk for HIV/AIDS and other health disparities through culturally competent and linguistically appropriate programs in Southern California. APAIT’s vision is to advocate, educate and achieve optimal health and well-being for medically underserved communities. Services offered under APAIT include:

• Behavioral Health Services including:
  • Benefits Assistance and Case Management
  • Individual, Family and Group Mental Health Counseling
  • Outpatient Substance Use Treatment
  • Occupational Therapy
• HIV/STD Prevention and Testing Services
• Capacity Building and Technical Assistance
• Community-Based Participatory Research

Additionally, SSG offers many programs for vulnerable communities:

• Health programs are designed to build healthier communities by addressing chronic disease and barriers to care. Health programming offers a continuum of prevention and health services for individuals and families.
• Mental health programs are designed to decrease mental health disparities and improve the quality of life for vulnerable populations. A variety of programs offer innovative, comprehensive and culturally appropriate services to advance the wellness of diverse communities.
• Substance abuse programs are designed to meet the diverse needs of the community through high quality and innovative services. Programs provide an array of services related to prevention, treatment and recovery.

Learn more about SSG’s dedication and action to provide community-based solutions to the social and economic issues facing those in greatest need.

View a list of previous NNED Partners of the Month here.

Globally, more than 300 million people suffer from depression, according to the World Health Organization. Depression is the world’s leading cause of disability and it contributes to 800,000 suicides per year, the majority of which occur in developing countries.

No one knows how many Zimbabweans suffer from kufungisisa, the local word for depression (literally, “thinking too much” in Shona). But Chibanda is certain the number is high. “In Zimbabwe, we like to say that we have four generations of psychological trauma,” he says, citing the Rhodesian Bush War, the Matabeleland massacre and other atrocities.

Yet those suffering from depression have few options due to a dearth of mental health professionals. Chibanda, who is director of the African Mental Health Research Initiative and an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Zimbabwe and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, is one of just 12 psychiatrists practising in Zimbabwe – a country of over 16 million. Such grim statistics are typical in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the ratio of psychiatrists and psychologists to citizens is one for every 1.5 million. “Some countries don’t even have a single psychiatrist,” Chibanda says.

In brainstorming how to tackle this problem, he arrived at an unlikely solution: grandmothers. Since 2006, Chibanda and his team have trained over 400 of the grandmothers in evidence-based talk therapy, which they deliver for free in more than 70 communities in Zimbabwe. In 2017 alone, the Friendship Bench, as the programme is called, helped over 30,000 people there. The method has been empirically vetted and have been expanded to countries beyond, including the US.

The programme, Chibanda believes, can serve as a blueprint for any community, city or country interested in bringing affordable, accessible and highly effective mental health services to its residents. As Chibanda puts it: “Imagine if we could create a global network of grandmothers in every major city in the world.”

Read more on BBC.com

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are an increasing area of interest among researchers, practitioners, and policymakers. As this field of study grows, an equity lens can facilitate a greater understanding of the structural, historic, and systemic contexts that relate to limited ACEs data for American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs), as well as disparate exposures to ACEs among this population. Three factors are important to consider in support of more equitable outcomes: AI/AN population characteristics, historical trauma and resilience, and tribal sovereignty.

First, characteristics of the AI/AN population require concerted efforts by researchers to include this population in the rapidly developing ACEs field. The population’s size and diversity, age distribution, and percentage of children living in poverty underscore this consideration. In the United States, an estimated 5.6 million people (1.7 percent of the total population) self-identify as AI/AN alone or in combination with one or more other races, and there are currently 573 federally recognized tribes.

Because the AI/AN population represents one of the smaller racial/ethnic groups in the United States, studies often do not include samples adequate for disaggregated AI/AN findings. Consequently, AI/AN data are typically grouped in an “Other” category, or not analyzed at all. Additionally, when AI/AN statistics are reported, they are often thought to represent a monolithic group, an assumption that overlooks the unique cultures, histories, and contexts of the many tribes in the United States. Meaningful inclusion of AI/ANs in future ACEs work will require oversampling, research and analyses focused on states or regions with large AI/AN populations, and direct partnership with tribes. Prior ACEs work in states like South Dakota and Minnesota and with multiple tribes can serve as examples.

The AI/AN population is also relatively young. In fact, in eight states children under age 18 are estimated to make up one-third or more of the AI/AN population. From a public health perspective, this means that a focus on ACEs among AI/ANs could deliver important long-term benefits—especially given that ACEs increase the level of risk for many of the same negative outcomes (e.g., alcohol and substance use, mental health disorders) that Indian Health Service (IHS) data indicate are concerns for AI/ANs nationally and in specific IHS regions.

AI/AN children are more likely to have experienced certain adverse childhood experiences, which can have negative effects throughout their lives.

ACEs have been linked with numerous negative outcomes, including alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, suicide, and poor physical health.

Second, researchers should consider concepts of historical trauma and resilience in their efforts to understand ACEs among AI/AN populations. Child Trends’ brief notes that there is “no single agreed-upon list of experiences that encompass what we refer to as adverse childhood experiences.” To address links between ACEs and AI/AN well-being, it is essential that we understand whether some adversities are uniquely important to AI/AN contexts. For instance, AI/AN scholars have written for decades about the concept of multi-level, intergenerational impacts of historical trauma. Some have even begun to incorporate measures that capture symptoms of historical trauma alongside standard ACEs measures to better understand health outcomes for AI/AN youth.

Read more on ChildTrends.org.

Pupilla, 53, is homeless and is staying at Waikiki Health’s Next Step Shelter until he can find permanent housing, which he hopes will be soon. The Long Island, New York, native comes from an affluent background and was well-adjusted until he was 17.

“Then I began to hear voices, but I learned to cope with it. But when I’d encounter high-stress situations after joining the military in 1986, those voices would come back.

“I wasn’t honest with the doctors about it and tried to handle it on my own, and that became a dead end.”

It’s been a long journey to recovery, Pupilla says. The former military medic says he served hard time in prison, tried to commit suicide multiple times and was dishonorably discharged – all due to being undiagnosed with a mental illness for years. He’s been chronically homeless and in and out of institutions. He was finally diagnosed in 2010 with schizoaffective disorder and acute anxiety and depression.

After a huge fight with his brother just before Christmas 2017, Pupilla says he was “forced” to come to Hawaii, and within weeks friends hooked him up with United Self-Help.

“When we get new people, we first try to get them into a group,” explains Bud Bowles, 70, USH executive director. “Then we talk, put them on the mailing list, then try to get them involved in our activities. I give them small jobs in the office or get them to lead classes to build up their confidence.

“They get better because they’ve got some- thing to do. We give them hope.”

The nonprofit has 16 consumer-run programs, says Bowles, a former advertising agency owner who’s been diagnosed with depression. “We’ve got our Bridges class. We have a self-esteem class. We’ve got a writers group, a schizophrenia group and a depression/ bipolar group. We have tennis and golf classes. We peer-mentor prisoners and others in support groups.”

Read more on HawaiiBusiness.com.

A new report lists multiple ways in which lawmakers and other thought leaders across the country can help Asian American communities obtain improved access to mental health services.

Nationally, about 37 percent of people of Asian descent indicate that they have poor mental health, according to a report just released by the Center for American Progress. This is defined by the Kaiser Family Foundation as having one or more of the past 30 days during which one’s mental health “wasn’t good.” Poor mental health includes depression, stress and emotional problems.

Moreover, Asians are three times less likely than Whites to seek and utilize mental health services.

Among the factors that result in such disparities is the misconception that Asian Americans are monolithic and don’t need such help, along with the pervasive Model Minority Myth.

The Center for American Progress report states that lawmakers should expand the collection and publication of fully disaggregated health data of the different Asian subgroups.

“Too many analyses currently rely on aggregated data that provide an incomplete picture of these diverse communities,” the report stated. “Collecting sufficiently large samples of data on Asian-American ethnic groups is difficult. However, it is essential for crafting truly responsive public policy, especially health policy.”

Because Asians come from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds, there is a “harmful and inaccurate narrative of homogeneity” in these communities stemming largely from too little disaggregated data, the new report states.

Previous studies have found significant discrepancies among the mental health needs of different Asian populations. For example, 33 percent of Korean American adults experience symptoms of depression, compared with less than 16 percent of Chinese Americans. Among Filipino American women, 78 percent describe their mental health as excellent or very good, compared with just 45 percent of Chinese American women and 50 percent of Vietnamese American women.

Meanwhile, too many Asian Americans still lack affordable access to mental health services, the report stated.

Read more on DiverseEducation.com

The following was written by and from the perspective of Jeannie Campbell, Executive Vice President & COO of the National Council for Behavioral Health.

On November 11, Veterans Day, we honor our heroes – the men and women who answered the call to military service. We remember their achievements, their courage and their dedication and say thank you for their sacrifices.

As a 22-year Navy veteran, I can tell you how much this day of remembrance means to veterans and their families. But as we celebrate, I urge you to take a few minutes to remember those vets who are struggling with mental health and substance use disorders. They are facing their own personal battles and we owe them the best we can provide.

But getting help isn’t always easy for veterans and their families. We know that approximately 50 percent of returning service members who need treatment for mental health conditions seek it, but only half of them receive adequate care. A study we recently released with the Cohen Veterans Network revealed that lack of access to mental health services is the root cause of the mental health crisis in America.

Our veterans and their families deserve more than they are getting. And, I know we have the will to provide it.

Too often, veterans fly under the radar and we miss the opportunity to connect with them, inform treatment planning decisions and help them access care and benefits. Five years ago, the American Nurses Association launched their “Have you ever served in the military?” campaign that not only encourages health care providers to ask the question; it provides guidance on how to ask and what to ask. I urge you to implement this dynamic program in your organization without delay.

One of our Strategic Partners, Relias Learning, in partnership with us and the Department of Defense Center for Deployment Psychology, is also working to ensure that providers are equipped to provide veterans and their families the level and quality of services they deserve with the Behavioral Healthcare Certification for Veterans Care Providers program. This series of 15 self-paced online courses is specifically designed to train civilian behavioral health and primary care providers about the nuances of military orientation and specific issues affecting veterans and their families.

We can start with a commitment to change how we talk to veterans and families and ensure that we’re equipped to recognize and respond to their needs – and that’s a good start, but much more needs to be done within our flawed system.

Read more on TheNationalCouncil.org.