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An electronic circular of the Coalition's Center for Rehabilitation and Recovery
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No. 61, May 2010
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The Center for Rehabilitation and Recovery provides assistance
to the New York City mental health provider community through
expert trainings, focused technical assistance, evaluation,
information dissemination and special projects.
THE DIRECTOR’S NEW YORK MINUTE “Revolutionary Rehabilitation” Edward seemed stuck way back on the road to recovery. His clinical team had tried all sorts of rehabilitation Edward had been diagnosed with schizophrenia years earlier. With such a diagnosis, several things had happened to his brain function but ironically no one had ever taken a snapshot of his thinking processes. Many people with that diagnosis struggle with memory, learning, attention, vigilance, information processing, and executive functioning (reasoning, judgment, problem-solving, anticipation, planning, and decision-making). Imagine how those abilities or lack of them affect rehabilitation. What were Edward’s cognitive strengths and challenges? No one had ever thought to ask. The consultant neuropsychologist had been trained to use the MATRICS (Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia). Over the past several years, MATRICS has been an NIMH initiative developed as a 63 minute instrument battery across multiple sites across the U.S, and eventually it has been translated into 10 languages. MATRICS was hoped to help distinguish the ways that new drugs in the pipeline might help each of these cognitive areas in ways not accomplished by current psychopharmacology. However, since rehabilitation efforts need the person to use all of these areas as well, wouldn't it be a good idea to use MATRICS to devise a cognitive remediation plan for Edward to bolster his levels of cognitive function? Long ago, neuropsychologists had been administering 8 hour protocols barely tolerated by people such as Edward and then wrote lengthy reports. Such reports were considered to be only somewhat helpful and often in language unintelligible to the average rehabilitation worker. The new consensus battery has been beta tested and normalized in the community. Each test takes about 5 minutes or less with one exception (13.5 minutes). These tests provide a flash profile of an individual’s cognitive capacity, and have demonstrated a relationship to community functioning and success in psychosocial rehabilitation. After Edward was tested, it was found that he had difficulties in some areas and not in others. He was provided with some evidence based cognitive remediation programs and afterward his brain became much more responsive to other forms of rehabilitation. It has seemed to me that this kind of scientific approach is similar to getting the results of a breast biopsy first to determine the type and level of cancer before deciding whether the person needed surgery, radiation, and/or chemotherapy. The science is now available to increase the efficacy and effectiveness of psychiatric rehabilitation. Some Resources for Discussion www.matrics.ucla.edu Getting Back Online Again
Through RECOVERe-works, he plans to showcase recovery stories he has collected from agencies around New York City in hopes of revealing that recovery from mental health issues is very much possible and expected. Some have told her that she would not do well in school. Others have told her that she was “no good.” Yet, Yvette Henderson did not lose the will to pursue her hopes and dreams. Born in 1968 in Queens, New York, Yvette started to face problems with a learning disability at a young age. While going through school, she had trouble forming close friendships and on top of that her father passed away when she was 15 years old. Despite these obstacles, Yvette was able to graduate from college with a major in computer science and a certificate in electronic engineering. Yvette’s perseverance enabled her to prove her naysayers wrong. After graduating from college, Yvette soon met a boy and they began dating. The abuse, both emotional and physical, started a couple of months into their relationship. “He would get mad at me and I would’t know why,” Yvette lamented. Although the abuse continued, Yvette was in love with him and they got married within two years. But the abuse became worse. For the next 12 years of her life, Yvette suffered from low self-esteem and a lack of confidence, and her husband did not let her leave the house. She soon started seeing and hearing things, strange voices that told her she was “no good.” Her therapist diagnosed her with depression, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder, and gave her medication. When she finally could not take it anymore, Yvette filed for divorce after 12 years of marriage. “That was like a prison,” Yvette sighed. Yvette’s life quickly began turning around. In 2008, she moved back in with her mother and then started attending the Continuing Day Treatment program at Goodwill Industries in Queens, New York. At first, she was afraid of going because she felt that people were spreading rumors about her. Yvette, however, started speaking up for herself and slowly became more comfortable interacting and sharing with others. She also became more involved with the program and volunteered in the computer room. “It’s what you make of the program,” she pointed out. Yvette took advantage of the group sessions to learn more about herself, form a close community, and progress towards recovery. Today, Yvette is living with two other roommates. She uses medication and is becoming more self-sufficient and independent everyday. “I'll be going back to work within the next year,” she proudly stated. She is in another relationship and is hopeful that this one will be better. Yvette’s road to recovery, though, did not happen overnight. What she has achieved today took days, weeks, months and years of consistent hard work. Step by step, as she found the courage to believe in herself, express her feelings, and become motivated, Yvette has reclaimed her life back.
Comprehensive Benefits Management Training Three days of FREE intensive training for direct service staff whose positions require expertise in benefits counseling, such as providers working in PROS programs. Facilitator: Ed Lopez Introduction to Benefits Management FREE half day training offered in various locations across the city designed for clinicians and other staff interested in learning the nuts and bolts of benefits management. The latest changes in SSA guidelines will also be discussed. Facilitator: Margie Staker and Patricia Feinberg, MS Fourth Annual Peer Specialists Conference in NYC As Peer Specialists we act with passion and experience, as guides in people's recovery process. We are change agents in the transformation of the mental health delivery system in New York City. How can our experiences, creativity and ideas continue to improve recovery-oriented services? How can we take the lead in this process? How can we, as Peer Specialists grow into positions of leadership in our jobs and our careers? Date/Time: June 15, 2010, 8:30am-4:30pm To register for any Center training or presentation, please go to: www.coalitionny.org/the_center/training/ Note: If you are typing the URL in your browser, the space between “the” and “center” is in reality an underscore symbol “_”.
The Mind Your Health Peer Coaching Program Description: This program will train peer specialists to help consumers set and achieve health and wellness goals, encourage health promotion activities, and empower consumers to develop and maintain self-management skills and play a more active role in managing their own care. It is accepting 25 applicants who are committed to being a change agent and advocate for healthy lifestyles in the workplace and community. Organization: Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NAMIWALKS NYC To Stomp Out Stigma Description: More than 4,000 people expected to raise awareness and vital funds for free programs at the National Alliance on Mental Illness of New York City Organization: NAMI-NYC Venture Forward with Youth I.N.C. Description: The conference is designed for leaders of New York City’s most promising youth-serving nonprofits and will provide the access, knowledge, and power to build upon their success through guidance from experts in the field, collaborations within the sector, and links to the corporate community. Organization: Youth I.N.C. Fundamentals of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security Description: Representatives from Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security have designed a program especially for YOU – agency staff, advocates and organizations – who serve disabled populations Organization: NYC & Westchester Implementation of The Children’s Plan, The New York Regional Office, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services May Work Incentive Seminar Events Description: If you are interested in learning about the Ticket to Work Program or other Work Incentives, you can attend a FREE Work Incentive Seminar Event (WISE). WISE are community events held by local organizations for beneficiaries to learn more about available Social Security Work Incentives through accessible, informal, learning opportunities. Organization: CESSI Division of Axiom Resource Management, Inc. 4 Applicants Vie to Take Over St. Vincent’s Services Two hospital chains, including Continuum Health Partners, an independent hospital and a handful of health clinics responded to New York state's call for applications. http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20100423/FREE/100429900 How to Quit Smoking for Good! Dr. Lloyd Sederer provides a brief but comprehensive overview of ways to quit smoking and encourages the use of medication and counseling. http://www.omh.state.ny.us/omhweb/resources/newsltr/2010/apr/#med Join the Voices for Recovery: Now More Than Ever This show will examine the relationship between homelessness and substance use disorder treatment from both a program perspective and a policy perspective. http://www.samhsa.gov/shin/ Mind Over Meds Daniel Carlat writes in the New York Times about how psychopharmacology is doing damage to the field of psychiatry and to its patients. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/25/magazine/25Memoir-t.html New York State Office of Mental Health Transformation Transfer Initiative 2009 OMH has completed the final report for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s 2009 Transformation Transfer Initiative Grant. This grant served as a catalyst for system improvements through the development of peer-operated recovery centers and increased access to evidence based supported employment. http://www.omh.state.ny.us/omhweb/news/ |
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strategies including some of the promising and evidence based practices. Nothing happened. Everyone was frustrated especially Edward. Then his agency hired a neuropsychologist as a part-time consultant and magic began to happen. 
Eric Lu is a Junior Fellow in Behavioral Health at the Coalition’s Center for Rehabilitation and Recovery. The Coalition Home | Center for Rehabilitation and Recovery | Site Map
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