Today, in an email to its subscribers and supporters, Mental Health America announced a new website resource: Mental Health During Global Conflict.
Mental Health America shares:
As we bear witness to the horrific images and the bottomless grief emerging from Israel and Gaza, we fear the next global mental health emergency unfolding before us. Millions will carry the scars of this time for generations to come – it is unavoidable.
In the U.S., we see and hear the ongoing terror and trauma of those in physical harm’s way through the inescapable proximity of our social media feeds. The scale of fear and sadness is impossible for most to fathom – however for millions of Americans with direct ties to the regions, the pain can be acute to unbearable. And now close to home we worry for the safety of our friends and loved ones as hate-based and religious attacks spill over into our communities.
In our mission to support mental health and resilience for all and to prioritize those at disparate risk, Mental Health America is responding to this moment by offering a new collection of mental health resources for times of crisis. With the increasing frequency of collectively traumatizing events, such as war, we recognize the need for mental health-specific preparation.
The Mental Health During Global Conflict page includes information on common emotional responses and ways to cope. It also includes additional resources from MHA and its trusted partners regarding many challenges individuals face during war, which includes:
Supporting youth
Dealing with traumatic online and news content
Self-care during direct advocacy work
Community care
Understanding trauma
Coping with fear, anger, and grief
Sexual violence
Mental Health America President and CEO, Schroeder Stribling closes out the announcement saying:
Safety is a basic human need. Peace is protective. While we may be far from peace at present, for the sake of our collective mental health and that of our children, we must support ourselves and one another in understanding and coping with the impact of war, trauma, and crises.
We stand in sorrow with all who are grieving and in solidarity with all who are working for an end to violence.
According to information released by The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the 988 Formative Research Project began in summer 2022 as a collaborative effort led by the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention (Action Alliance), the Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC), and the Ad Council Research Institute (ACRI), supported by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). This project fills a critical research gap and supports more informed 988 messaging and implementation efforts.
In an upcoming webinar, they will preview findings of the 988 Formative Research. These findings can help form the basis of future culturally sensitive, responsive, effective, and successful 988 communications that will make more people aware of 988 across the country, and instill trust and confidence in the service so people will contact 988 when struggling with mental health, or in a moment of crisis, or in need of support.
The webinar will also preview resources developed by the project that can support behavioral health agencies and service providers’ communication efforts to increase awareness and use of 988 in their communities.
Date: Tuesday, November 7, 2023
Time: 2:30pm Eastern
CharityLogic, Inc. is not affiliated with this webinar but is promoting it as a public service to our customers and others who may benefit from the content.
All the data shows that it is critical for your organization to offer consumers more ways to reach you than just by phone. Phone calls are declining in popularity and offering SMS/Texting and Live Chat to connect with your services is crucial if you want to reach everyone in need, stay relevant, and help more people.
For a limited time, you can add a first or additional Live Chat or SMS/Text Portal to your iCarol system and save 50% off the usual setup costs!
When you integrate these important channels into their iCarol system, you can:
Reach populations of people who either can’t or prefer not to make phone calls
Build rapport and trust by offering a more private way for someone to share their story
Streamline data collection and reporting to include Live Chat/Text
Have complete control over Online/Offline times using your iCarol shift schedule
Access additional reporting on SMS/Text such as offline texts received and overall usage
Plug resource and referral information from your database into the messaging conversation
Triage Live Chat conversations using pre-conversation survey data
Use pre and post conversation information to measure your impact
And much, much more!
This offer is only valid for a limited time — If you haven’t checked out iCarol’s Messaging tools in awhile, now is the time! We have exciting new enhancements coming to Messaging at the end of this month so stay tuned for more information! Also check out these resources to learn more about iCarol Messaging:
After fifty years of serving the sector as the Alliance of Information & Referral Systems (AIRS), the organization has rebranded the organization as Inform USA to better reflect its commitment to its mission and members. The change was announced at its 50th Anniversary Celebration on the evening of July 31 at the organization’s annual conference in Orlando, Florida.
Among the reasons for the name change, Inform USA more closely aligns the organization with its Canadian counterpart and frequent partner and collaborator, InformCanada. The chat bubbles seen in the new logo visually represent the exchange of information its membership provides to the consumers and constituents they serve.
In the announcement, InformUSA explained the balance of the need to preserve the legacy and good works of the organization over the past 50 years, with needed changes around technology, access, and modernization. The organization’s overall mission remains the same, however members are promised greater ease of access to membership benefits, networking, and information via the new and improved website and Member Compass.
The iCarol team is very excited to see our friends at Inform USA take these steps to build a bright future for everyone in the I&R industry. We can’t wait to see what’s next, and offer our sincere congratulations and support!
iCarol is the technology provider for the National Council’s 24 hour 1-800-GAMBLER hotline services offered through Chat and SMS/Text. Through the use of NCPG affiliates, this national hotline is staffed 24/7/365 with all calls, chats, and text messages being routed to an affiliate organization serving the help-seeker’s region. Using iCarol’s common messaging queue, all chat and SMS/Text messages are routed to the designated center so that the proper affiliate organization can answer, respond, and provide assistance to those in need.
This industry has experienced a number of changes due to the proliferation of sports betting since 2018 when the United States Supreme Court struck down a law that had prevented most states from allowing sports betting.
Those treating compulsive gambling say calls to their hotlines seeking help have increased significantly in the five years since sports betting was legalized and made available on cell phones. Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling, says calls to the 800-GAMBLER help line have increased by 15% over the last five years as “states began the fastest and largest expansion of gambling in our history.”
The National Council on Problem Gambling does not take a position for or against legalized gambling, according to its mission and values. Instead, it serves as an advocate to mitigate gambling-related harm — advocating for those who are effected by problem gambling, promoting collaborative action of a broad range of people and organizations, treating those affected by problem gambling with respect, and striving to be an objective, accurate and reliable source of information for those who are concerned about problem gambling.
We look forward to the opportunity to support NCPG’s efforts and mission by attending the conference next week. iCarol is always happy to invite new NCPG affiliates to join the 1-800-GAMBLER network. If your problem gambling advocacy organization would like to learn more, please speak to us during exhibition hours at the conference, or schedule a meeting with us!
iCarol is very proud and excited to be an exhibitor at the upcoming USAging (Formerly known as n4a) conference and tradeshow from July 16-17.
This will be iCarol’s fourth year in attending USAging. We are excited to once again celebrate the work of Area Agencies on Aging, Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRCs), and other organizations providing services to older adults and their caregivers. In a now post-COVID world, these organizations are readjusting their services and offerings. Many services that quickly adapted to the needs of these populations during COVID-19 have now found that older adults and caregivers want to continue accessing services in the ways they did during the pandemic – virtually or through other new communication channels. And as always as the generation entering adulthood shifts, so too are those expectations from the population in how, when, and where they access services or information. Clearly, we are in a very interesting and exciting time in this industry.
At our booth we’ll have information to share about how iCarol empowers ADRCs, AAAs, and Senior Information Lines, and other services for older adults, individuals with disabilities, and their caregivers to:
Provide social connection and ease loneliness through Telephone Reassurance Programs
Collaborate with Community-Based Organizations to address Social Determinants of Health
Participate in Health/Community Information Exchanges and No Wrong Door initiatives
Provide comprehensive I&R, Closed-Loop referral and collect outcome data
Document information included on reimbursement requests
Meet people on preferred communication channels
Integrate with other software and systems
If you’re attending the conference, be sure to visit the iCarol booth to learn more, download the resources we have available, and contact us with your questions! We invite you to schedule a meeting ahead of time using our convenient online calendar here.
July Is Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, which is also known as BIPOC Mental Health Month.
July was first recognized as Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month in 2008, and was created to bring awareness to the struggles that underrepresented groups face regarding mental illness in the US.
Who was Bebe Moore Campbell?
Bebe Moore Campbell was an American author, journalist, teacher, and mental health advocate who worked to expose the mental health needs of the Black community and other underrepresented communities.
Each year Mental Health advocacy organizations launch their public education campaigns dedicated to addressing the mental health needs of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC).
Mental Health America‘s chosen theme for BIPOC Mental Health Month in 2023 is “Culture, Community, & Connection.”
Our lives are deeply intertwined with our environments, and these surroundings impact our mental health and overall wellness. Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) populations are faced with disproportionate amounts of historical trauma and displacement that can challenge their ability to thrive in their environments. However, culture, community, and connection are pillars that support and uplift BIPOC individuals in the face of oppression and systemic racism. Learn more in these resources about how BIPOC communities have thrived.
You can download Mental Health America’s free BIPOC Mental Health Month Toolkit here.
On June 30, the Canadian Minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations, Marc Miller, announced that nearly to $2 million in funding was allocated to five projects heeaded by four Indigenous women’s and 2SLGBTQI+ organizations. The funding will support the organizations in their work promoting Indigenous 2SLGBTQI+ voices and perspectives on how to effectively protect and empower Indigenous 2SLGBTQI+ people.
These projects span three provinces and aim to identify community needs and service gaps; provide culturally relevant, land-based programs; and foster connections through the creation of regional support groups for 2SLGBTQI+ people.
On June 27, Marci Ien, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, announced over $1.5 million for three Indigenous women’s and 2SLGBTQQIA+ organizations located in Ontario. The selected organizations are:
Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), issued a new advisory on the Identification and Management of Mental Health Symptoms and Conditions Associated with Long COVID.
According to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, “Long COVID has a range of burdensome physical symptoms, and can take a toll on a person’s mental health. It can be very challenging for a person, whether they are impacted themselves, or they are a caregiver for someone who is affected. This advisory helps to raise awareness, especially among primary care practitioners and clinicians who are often the ones treating patients with Long COVID.”
The advisory includes information on the epidemiology of mental health symptoms and conditions of Long COVID and provides evidence-based resources for their assessment and treatment. Long COVID has been associated with mental health conditions such as sleep disturbances, depression, fatigue, anxiety, cognitive impairment, obsessive compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder, and others.
Not all people are impacted by Long COVID equally. Social determinants of health can contribute to the negative impact for certain groups, including racial and ethnic minority populations, those with limited access to health care, those with pre-existing behavioral health conditions, individuals with physical and intellectual disabilities, and individuals who are LGBTQIA+.
The advisory is part of the whole-of-government response to the longer-term impacts of COVID-19, including Long COVID and associated conditions. According to HHS and SAMHSA, primary care providers can use some evidence-based approaches developed to treat conditions and syndromes with similar symptoms and provide referrals and access to resources specific to Long COVID.
