Mental illness is more prevalent than most people realize. One in five adults in the US lives with a mental illness; in Santa Clara County, that’s about 340,000 adults—or enough people to fill Levi’s Stadium five times. Mental health parity requires that commercial insurance plans provide the same level of coverage for mental health services…
Dr. Po Wang will cover the course of illness for bipolar disorders (emphasizing the depressive component) and will discuss the newest medication options, and how they differ from earlier treatment options. Bipolar disorders treatment has come a long way since the discovery of lithium in 1949. Treatment options and outcomes for bipolar disorders were limited and similar to schizophrenia prior to the 1990s’ “decade of the brain.”
The Independent Living Empowerment Project (ILEP) is a new program to Santa Clara County by the Independent Living Association (ILA) and Community Health Improvement Partners (CHIP). Independent Living Homes provide a shared living environment for individuals with mental health challenges, various disabilities, and low income. The mission of the ILEP is to support Independent Living…
Receiving a diagnosis of a mental health condition can be a traumatic experience. It can leave a person feeling hopeless and alone. However, recovery is possible! Studies have shown that in addition to medical treatment and psychotherapy, social connections play a significant role in recovery. NAMI-Santa Clara County’s Community Peer Program (CPP) is a 4-month…
CARE is a compassionate civil court process that provides individuals with schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders with a clinically appropriate, community-based set of services and supports that are culturally and linguistically competent. Stephanie Welch, Deputy Secretary of Behavioral Health for the California Health and Human Services (CalHHS) Agency, will provide an overview of CARE,…
On July 27, 2022, the County of Santa Clara launched the Behavioral Health Navigator Program, intended to help individuals and families find information about mental health and substance use services in the county. Any resident in Santa Clara County can call the behavioral health non crisis line at 800-704-0900, option 4, and a peer navigator…
Bindu Khurana-Brown will be presenting on the wide continuum of services offered by Momentum for Health. Momentum for Health is the largest provider of behavioral health services to adults in Santa Clara County and understands the complexity that comes alongside working with those who have serious mental illness. The program offerings include a wide variety…
My family member has been arrested. What do I do? This question, along with others, will be answered in the presentation on September 13: Jail and Court Family Support. Kathy Burden and Carol DeCarvalho needed to answer this question after their loved ones were arrested. Both of their sons have underlying mental health issues that…
The Social Work Law Enforcement (SWLE) Project, a pilot program launched in August 2020, was created by Dr. Isabel Logan, an Assistant Professor of Social Work at Eastern Connecticut State University, and Lt. Matthew Solak of the Willimantic (Connecticut) Police Department. The Project has evolved into a statewide collaboration that may serve as a national…
When sorting out public benefits for your loved one with mental health challenges, there are plenty of barriers and landmines. It is essential to have a basic understanding of the “alphabet soup” of public benefits to maximize the available benefits. For instance, how do you define “disability” for public benefits purposes? What is the…