Behavioral Health Management articles from November 2005

Behavioral Health Management archives from November 2005

Cutting Medicaid is no quick fix: reductions in federal behavioral health funding will increase costs in other areas.(EDITORIAL)
November 1, 2005... "For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong." --H.L. Mencken The country is on the brink of making some momentous changes to Medicaid. Unfortunately, lawmakers are about to permit states to make...

EHR adoption challenged by obstacles: daunting issues abound; will financial incentives ultimately spur interest in a universal electronic health record?(WASHINGTON INSIGHTS)
November 1, 2005... A universal, simple, portable electronic health record (EHR) is one of the most promising potential benefits of the information age. An ATM card provides standardized access to information on a bank customer's financial accounts; it's no great...

New benefit management models.(Cover Story)
November 1, 2005... High healthcare costs are forcing all aspects of the behavioral health field to reexamine how they do business. Managed behavioral health organizations such as APS, Magellan, ValueOptions, and United Behavioral Health have reacted by...

Recognizing the recovery perspective: new joint commission standards address this emerging approach to service delivery.(ACCREDITATION)
November 1, 2005... For the estimated one in five American adults who suffer from a diagnosable mental illness in a given year, (1,2) the recovery vision of hope, healing, and empowerment offers a new perspective on the challenges of mental illness. The...

Hispanics' mental healthcare plight: a look at the numbers illustrates Hispanics' poor access to mental healthcare in the United States.(CULTURAL COMPETENCY)
November 1, 2005... Since World War II, the United States has witnessed significant migration from all regions of the world, especially from Latin America. (1) This situation has not been unique to the United States; other industrialized or developed nations also...

Thirteen ways to achieve cultural incompetence.(CULTURAL COMPETENCY)
November 1, 2005... Yes, you read the title correctly. Why emphasize incompetence instead of competence? In the history of considering culture in community mental health, we perhaps have learned best from our cultural blunders. I've certainly made my share. Since...

Magellan's response to the 'baby blues': an overview of the MBHO's perinatal and postpartum depression programs.(DEPRESSION)
November 1, 2005... Perinatal and postpartum depression are gaining recognition as major health concerns for women in their childbearing years. According to estimates in the literature, after delivery approximately 12% of women will develop a depressive illness....

Changes at the top: are you ready? In the years ahead, a wave of CEO retirements will challenge organizations to effectively prepare for the next generation of leaders.
November 1, 2005... For many CEOs who have dedicated their careers to the mental health field and also might have spent 25 or more years with one organization, planning for retirement is akin to writing a will. Consequently, formulating a succession plan to guide...

Managing the risk of tardive dyskinesia.
November 1, 2005... BASED ON AN INTERVIEW WITH WILLIAM M. GLAZER, MD Modern mental healthcare wouldn't exist without antipsychotics. These drugs led to a revolution in treatment delivery: Many patients with severe mental illnesses were able to throw off the...

Making residential treatment work: effective communication is crucial.
November 1, 2005... For many adolescents, entering residential treatment may be the first sustained time away from family, home, or familiar geography. Adolescents with psychiatric issues severe enough to need residential treatment often have attachment problems...

A model screening program for youth: Columbia University's TeenScreen program brings kids' mental health issues to light.(ADOLESCENTS)
November 1, 2005... "I think that the survey that I just took was very helpful... and it gave me a chance to let someone know how I feel." "I think about little stuff like that just about everyday, but I have no one to tell." "This interview made me feel...

Keeping drug prevention for kids 'real': a culturally grounded substance abuse prevention curriculum makes kids and their input part of the program.(ADDICTIONS)
November 1, 2005... On any given day, young people in this country are presented with difficult choices. Simply saying no to offers of drugs and other risky behaviors can be an act of bravery and highly precarious. How can our youth turn away from these risks...

Drug abuse's costly toll on workers: addiction is a family disease that, if left untreated, affects the bottom line of businesses everywhere.(ADDICTIONS)
November 1, 2005... A 2005 Hazelden workplace survey helps assess substance abuse's impact on employees. According to the survey, more than two-thirds (69%) of American workers said that if a family member were struggling with alcohol or other drug problems, it...

Seeing the world through 'dry' eyes: avoiding alcohol leads to a greater awareness of the difficulties faced by people in recovery.
November 1, 2005... It has been a little more than two years since I decided to stop drinking. I was never a heavy drinker (I had two drinks on my 21st birthday), and since making this decision I have had a cocktail on very rare special occasions (mainly because...

Big or small, EHRs benefit all: the smaller behavioral health players stand to gain from electronic health records, too.
November 1, 2005... In September, SAMHSA and the Software and Technology Vendors' Association (SATVA) hosted the National Summit on Defining a Strategy for Behavioral Health Information Management and Its Role Within the Nationwide Health Information...

Marijuana counseling manual.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... SAMHSA has released Brief Counseling for Marijuana Dependence: A Manual for Treating Adults. The manual is designed for counselors, social workers, and psychologists in both public and private settings. It details a ten-session course of...

Behavioral incident charting tool.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... QBS, Inc., has released Quality Tracking Solutions (QTS), a Web-based behavioral incident charting tool. QTS allows providers to instantly access and chart real-time behavioral incident information, which can be used to conduct comprehensive...

Electronic medical records system.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... Sigmund Software, LLC's electronic medical records system has been progressively developed and used for more than a decade. Its market strategy is controlled growth. A subsidiary of a behavioral healthcare organization, Sigmund aims to be...

Medicare Part D web resource.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... Leading mental health organizations have joined together to create a central resource on Medicare Part D at www. mentalhealthpartd.org. It offers easy-to-understand information for psychiatrists and other physicians, providers at community...

Brain injury rehabilitation.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... The Florida Institute for Neurologic Rehabilitation, Inc., (FINR) provides rehabilitation, educational, and vocational services to children and adult survivors of brain injuries. Through the provision of individualized assessment, restorative...

EAP Compendium.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... The third International EAP Compendium presents essential information on the status of EAPs from more than 35 countries. It includes current contact information for important field experts, as well as discussion of The European Forum, The...

Community Child psychiatry book.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... Mental health practitioners working in the public sector where limited funds, poverty, social environments, and bureaucracy add to the daily challenges--can now turn to Community Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: A Manual of Clinical Practice...

Laboratory testing.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... Dominion Diagnostics, LLC, is a national medical laboratory that provides complete clinical testing, toxicologic analytic testing, clinical and technical services, and data systems management for healthcare centers dedicated to wellness....

Diversity magnet.(PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2005... The Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists (AGLP) is selling bumper magnets to raise awareness and develop funds for a video project entitled "Can I Change?" a documentary on so-called "reparative" therapies (AGLP says the film will tell...

The field's EHR starts to come together: many issues have yet to be tackled, but progress is being made.(electronic health record)
November 1, 2005... Less than a year ago, the Software and Technology Vendors' Association (SATVA) and SAMHSA explored bringing BH movers and shakers together to discuss the myriad of issues surrounding an electronic health record (EHR) for the BH field. The...