AVAILABLE IN-PERSON OR VIRTUALLY
Presenter: Matthew Felgus, MD, DFASAM, Board Certified in Addiction Medicine, Board Certified in Psychiatry
My intent is to engage the audience in a topic we all know about: how we receive treatment from prescribers. I would like to reframe the current discussion in the how the medical profession looks at treatment, both of SUDs and mental health, and how we utilize medications to treat these conditions. I will provide background on the history of medications being used to 'treat' various conditions such as anxiety, insomnia, PTSD, and opioid use disorder and how these medications can be used to help move individuals forward or keep them 'stuck.' Topics I will discuss include the use of cannabis, stimulants, psychedelics, benzodiazepines, and buprenorphine for therapeutic purposes and how these agents can be either 'healing' or 'dealing.' I will also incorporate the use of non-addictive medications such as anti-depressants in the discussion as such medications can be used in the same 'healing or dealing' manner. I will provide real patient vignettes (with identifying details changed) that illustrate an approach of healing as well as those that illustrate 'dealing' by prescribers.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify what it means to prescribe and be taking medications in a manner of 'healer' versus 'dealer.'
- Understand the ways in which the same substance or medication can be used in 'healer' or 'dealer' ways.
- Describe one way that an individual taking medication for a mental health issue or SUD can empower themselves even if their prescriber is utilizing a 'disempowering' approach.
Presenters: Allison Weber, Prevention Coordinator
Pahoua Thao
Dei Fleary Simmons
Grover Scanlan, Jr. MSW, CAPSW, SAC-IT, Assistant Director, Therapeutic Milieu, Dousman, Wis.
Amanda Maria Rodriguez, MS, CSAC, CS-IT, Community Programs and Integration Manager, Community Medical Services, Milwaukee, Wis.
This workshop will showcase an innovative approach to engaging new professionals from diverse communities in Wisconsin who work in the behavioral health field. The Emerging Leaders program aims to build diversity and capacity in the behavioral health workforce and give respectable representation among diverse populations. Furthermore, the program encourages Emerging Leaders (participants) to illustrate areas of concerns within their underrepresented communities, and present methods of how to address those concerns in a final project. Established leaders from these respective communities develop the curriculum of this program which focuses on cultural and community traditions, strengths, resources, and challenges. A panel discussion with a trainer, leaders from the 2021 and 2022 cohorts and a mentor will discuss how they experienced the Emerging Leaders program from varying viewpoints. This facilitated conversation will highlight how future leaders were connected in leadership, cultural, and historical training topics to better understand their potential as leaders in behavioral health in the state of Wisconsin.
Learning Objectives:
- Showcase a diversity, equity, and inclusion program that focus on four diverse populations to increase and strengthen the amount of behavioral health professionals from diverse communities in the workforce.
- Understand the scope, eligibility and application process, and expectations of the program.
- Learn the intricate balance between leadership, cultural, and historical topics that is essential for diverse emerging leaders to learn and how the training was developed.
- Understand the role that mentoring plays in supporting the emerging leader and the program.
AVAILABLE IN-PERSON OR VIRTUALLY
Presenters: Sheri Guenther, MSW, CAPSW, Behavioral Health Supervisor, My Choice Wisconsin
Zach Sullivan, MSW, CAPSW, Behavioral Health Specialist, My Choice Wisconsin
Jessica Tuchalski, MSW, CAPSW, Behavioral Health Specialist, My Choice Wisconsin
Major global events exacerbate mental health challenges, which can impact overall well-being, quality of life, and increase vulnerability of suicidality. Hear from three behavioral health specialists who work for My Choice Wisconsin, a managed care organization serving vulnerable populations. These specialists provide behavioral health consultation & education surrounding a variety of topics, most notably related to emotional dysregulation associated with mental health diagnoses, and suicidality. Learn about best practices associated with depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation from their experiences and education, adapting consultation to a global event. Increase knowledge of behavioral health, care management, and the collaboration this entails with community resources and stakeholders. Enhance knowledge of mental health diagnoses, treatment and care management modalities, and risk mitigation.
Learning Objectives:
- Participants will gain an enhanced understanding of improved coping as it relates to anxiety within the context of global events.
- Participants will enhance their understanding of characteristics associated with the presentation of depression, particularly as it relates to the impact of global events.
- Participants will enhance knowledge to identify risk and protective factors associated with suicidal ideation.
Presenters: Tracy Johnson, Psy.D., Co-Director for the Certified Peer Specialist Program in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections
Allyson Eparvier, Ph.D., Co-Director for the Certified Peer Specialist Program in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections
In this workshop, we would provide an overview of the CPS program in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. We would include information regarding the history of CPS in the Wisconsin DOC, dating back to our first CPS training in 2017. Program implementation and expansion across the prisons and custody levels would be discussed. An overview of partnerships with ATI and DHS would be provided. Barriers, challenges, and strengths of the program would be touched on as well. Positive contributions and impact on peers, the CPSs, the prison environment and culture would be discussed. Video interviews with incarcerated peers and CPSs can be provided. Future course and direction of CPS in the DOC would be discussed. The presentation would be very interactive, with much time for questions.
Learning Objectives:
- General understanding of how CPS in the Wisconsin DOC began and has evolved
- Challenges, strengths and benefits of CPS in the Wisconsin DOC
- Future direction and expansion of CPS in the Wisconsin DOC
Presenter: Jesse Heffernan, CCAR, HCE
Participants will learn how the language that is commonly used in treatment and recovery has negatively shaped public perception and alternative terminology that the field could employ. This workshop offers strategies that can be used within their programs and in the community to encourage a more person-centered mindset about addiction and recovery.
Learning Objectives:
1. Explain how the language that is commonly used in treatment and recovery has negatively shaped public perception.
2. Identify the terminology that has contributed most to worsening stigma, and alternative terminology that the field could employ.
3. Cite specific strategies that can be used within their programs and in the community to encourage a more person-centered mindset about addiction and recovery.
Presenter Biography
AVAILABLE IN-PERSON OR VIRTUALLY
Presenters: Luann Simpson, MSW, CAPSW, CPS
Lynelle Saunders, CPS
This workshop will introduce and provide a brief overview of the concept of the evidence-based practice of "informed care" by educating those who support individuals experiencing psychosis. Topics covered will include what is psychosis, what is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), what is cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis (CBTp) and how these skills can be useful for effective communication with individuals experiencing psychosis. This is NOT a workshop to train therapists or supporters to be CBTp therapists and is not intended to be a replacement for therapy or other treatments. This workshop will teach the concepts and skills of CBTp that when utilized may lead to a reduction in distress for the individual as well as the supporter.
Learning Objectives:
- Participants will know the definition of psychosis and identify myths regarding psychosis
- Participants will understand the concept of "informed care" as it relates to supporting individuals experiencing psychosis
- Participants will have the ability to utilize basic CBT skills to effectively communicate with individuals experiencing psychosis
Presenters: Jenny Lee, LCSW, Behavioral Health Therapist & Grant Coordinator, UW Health Behavioral Health Youth and Family, Madison, Wis.
Ben Janssen, CSW, BSW, Youth Justice Social Worker Portage County, Stevens Point, Wis.
Dannel Skalecki, Supervisor Youth Justice Services Unit, Brown County Human Services, Green Bay, Wis.
Heather Ross, MSSA, LCSW Rawhide Clinic and Community Resource Manager, New London, Wis.
Emily Boyea, MSW, School Social Worker, Washington Middle School, Green Bay, Wis.
An estimated 4.2% of Wisconsin youth aged 12-17 have had a substance use disorder in the past year and 13.7% have had a major depressive episode in the past year (National Survey on Drug Use and Health, SAMHSA, 2016-2017). According to the Wisconsin Youth Risk Behavior Survey (2017), 16% of students used marijuana and 16.4% of students drank five or more drinks of alcohol in a row in the past thirty days. 16% of students have seriously considered suicide in the last year (Wisconsin Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2017). In Wisconsin, nearly 40,000 youth under the age of 18 were taken into custody in 2017. (Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau 2019). National studies have found that 50% to 70% of adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system have a mental health condition; a rate two to three times higher than the general adolescent population and more than 60% of those have a co-occurring substance use disorder (Strategies to Divert Adolescents with Behavioral Health Needs from the Juvenile Justice System January 2020). DCDHS's intent is to provide trauma-informed and culturally responsive substance use and mental health services to Dane County youth whose unidentified and/or unmet needs in these areas place them at risk for future youth justice involvement. The population of focus includes high school adolescents who are involved in systems including the DCDHS Court Diversion Unit (CDU), DCDHS Child Protection Services (CPS), Madison Metropolitan School District's (MMSD) Truancy Court, Dane County Municipal Courts, and, students with substance use infractions or behavioral referrals or, who are otherwise identified as "at risk" within Dane County Schools. By targeting these sources, the intent is to divert youth from the justice system through implementation of more timely substance use and mental health interventions. Given Dane County's problematic racial disparities we also seek to positively impact Dane County's efforts to reduce disproportionate minority contacts. The following statistics were reported in the Cap Times on March 4th, 2020 – In Dane County black kids are arrested at seven times the rate of white kids; the population at the juvenile detention center is 86% black, up from 73% in 2011; and, in the first semester of 2019, black students, who make up 18% of Madison school's students, received 57% of all out-of-school suspensions (Elbow, 2020). The Seeking Safety modality, used with teens referred to the Community Partnerships for the Diversion from Youth Justice Initiative, is a present-focused therapy that helps youth attain safety from trauma (including PTSD) and substance misuse by emphasizing coping skills, grounding techniques, and education. It is a dual diagnosis treatment service. Studies conducted by organizations such as the American Psychological Association have shown Seeking Safety to be highly effective among those experiencing trauma and substance misuse.
Learning Objectives:
- Learn collaboration measurement tools and strategies among schools/school districts, mental and substance use health specialists, law enforcement, and youth justice officials at the local level.
- Develop a shared evidence-based process for screening, assessment, intervention, and treatment before delinquency; and avoid referring students with mental health and substance use disorders to law enforcement
- Learn about sustainability tools in Wisconsin counties and future funding opportunities