Geriatric Mental Health Alliance News
A bi-weekly email to brief you on issues important to geriatric mental health
February 11, 2008 - Vol 2, Issue 3
February 11, 2008 - Vol 2, Issue 3
Action Alert: Contact Key Legislators
As you know, The Governor's Executive budget request did not include additional funding for geriatric mental health. Now is the time to advocate with the Legislature for additional funding!
We urge you to send in letters to the Chairs of the Aging and Mental Health Committees in the Assembly and the Senate asking them to support funding for:
- Additional state-of-the-art mental health and chemical dependency service demonstration programs for $3 million; and
- A Center for Excellence that would disseminate best practices in geriatric behavioral health and provide technical assistance for $1 million.
Click on and print the following letters - Letter to Senator Golden, Letter to Senator Morahan, Letter to Assemblymember Dinowitz, Letter to Assemblymember Rivera. You can simply fill out your name and addresses, sign below, and mail them in. We also encourage you to put them on agency letterhead and send them on behalf of your organization.
The budget season is in full swing and your letters are critical for us to get funding put into the NYS budget for geriatric behavioral health. Please send in the letters as soon as possible and let us know when you do!
We also encourage you to write and send in letters to you own local legislators.
In addition, we would also greatly appreciate it if you would reach out to your organization's network through a similar action alert and ask all of your organization's advocates to send out the letters.
Thank you for your support!
The budget season is in full swing and your letters are critical for us to get funding put into the NYS budget for geriatric behavioral health. Please send in the letters as soon as possible and let us know when you do!
We also encourage you to write and send in letters to you own local legislators.
In addition, we would also greatly appreciate it if you would reach out to your organization's network through a similar action alert and ask all of your organization's advocates to send out the letters.
Thank you for your support!
------------------------------------------------------------------
Bill to Amend Geriatric Mental Health Act
Assemblymember Dinowitz, Chair of the Aging Committee has introduced a bill to amend the Geriatric Mental Health Act to (1) broaden the geriatric service demonstrations program to include chemical dependency services and (2) to expand the scope of and rename the Planning Council to the "Geriatric Mental Health and Chemical Dependence Planning Council". The Commissioner of the Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services would become co-chair of the Council along with the Commissioner of the Office of Mental Health and the Director of the State Office for the Aging, and the Adjunct General and Director of the Division of Veterans Affairs will be added to the Council.
Demonstration programs for older adults with chemical dependency needs will be contingent upon additional funding. To read the bill, click here.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Addendum to OMH Assessment
On January 14, 2008 a group of minority and geriatric mental health advocates met with Lloyd Sederer, M.D., Medical Director of the NYS Office of Mental Health, to discuss the OMH Assessment on major mental health issues that he submitted to Commissioner Hogan in the Fall of 2007. The advocates noted that the report omitted key issues related to demographic changes in NYS--in particular the growth of minority and elderly populations. Dr. Sederer graciously acknowledged the oversight and agreed to write an addendum to the report that includes many of the issues raised at the meeting. We are very pleased by his responsiveness and hope that it signals growing awareness of mental health policy issues related to the march of demography. To read the Addendum click here.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Support Gov. Spitzer's Housing Opportunity Fund
Voice your support for Governor Spitzer's proposed $400 million Housing Opportunity Fund to address New York's affordable housing crisis. The fund will be used to develop affordable, supportive and workforce housing across New York State. It will help house homeless families and individuals, working families, seniors, people with disabilities and men and women who are just starting their careers in education, health care and public safety.
If you would like to express your support, please add your name to a list of groups supporting the fund through the Coalition for the Homeless or you can personally contact your Senators and Assemblymembers to embrace and approve the initiative.
For more information, please contact Shelly Nortz at (518) 436-5612 or snortz@cfthomeless.org
------------------------------------------------------------------
GMHA Upcoming Events
February 19, 2008 - Save the Date -- Mental Health Issues Of LGBT Elders: A Best Practices Presentation in Geriatric Mental Health hosted by the Geriatric Mental Health Alliance of New York and the Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging and Longevity of Hunter College. The event will be held from 3:00 - 5:00PM at the Hunter College School of Social Work - Auditorium, 129 East 79th Street, NYC, (Between Lexington and Park Avenues). Please register by clicking here. If you have any questions, please email or call Yusyin Hsin at yhsin@mhaofnyc.org or (212) 614-6356. The event is free but pre-registration is required.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
May 22, 2008 - Save the Date: 2nd Annual Geriatric Mental Health Alliance Conference
BRIDGES TO BETTER MENTAL HEALTH:
Merging Research and Practice for Improved Integration of Services to Older Adults
Location: Hotel Pennsylvania, 7th Avenue at 33rd Street New York, NY
Keynote: Robert Butler, M.D., Physician, Gerontologist, Psychiatrist, and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. President and CEO, International Longevity Center USA, NY; Professor of Geriatrics at the Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Adult Development, Mount Sinai School of Medicine; Founding Chairman, Dept. of Geriatrics, Mount Sinai School of Medicine; Founding Director, National Institute on Aging, National Institute of Health.
More details to come shortly.
------------------------------------------------------------------
NYS Bar Workgroup on Geriatric Mental Health
The New York State Bar Association Elder Law Section has established a workgroup on geriatric mental health. For more information, contact Martin Petroff of Petroff and Bellin, LLP at (212) 962-2400 or mailto:mbpetroff@aol.com
------------------------------------------------------------------
Housing Needs Survey for Mental Health Consumers and Their Families
NAMI-NYC Metro is conducting a survey to measure the consumer demand for private pay housing designed for individuals with serious and persistent mental illness across all five boroughs and in the greater New York metropolitan area. You can help by taking 5 minutes to complete their housing questionnaire. All information will be confidential and will only be used to determine housing needs - type of housing needed, the kind of support services required, and the ability of you and/or your family to pay for appropriate housing.
To take the survey, click here!
------------------------------------------------------------------
Other Upcoming Events
February 20, 2008 - Annual Community Open House & Survivor Celebration hosted by the Arts Den New York. They will be saluting survivors of cancer, war, prejudice, and discrimination with a special invitation to older adults and their caregivers. Also featuring an open rehearsal/presentation of the award-winning, critically acclaimed one-man play, Four One-Legged Men. The event will start at 7:00pm at the Studio Theater, 410 West 42nd St. between 9th and 10th avenues. Free admission. Please RSVP to artsdenwelcomesu@yahoo.com.
February 27, 2008 - Save The Date: Livable Communities Press Conference presented by the Westchester County Dept. of Senior Programs and Services and AARP. The event will be held from 10:00am - 12:00pm at the Westchester Marriott, 670 White Plains Road, Tarrytown, NY. Lunch will be served. Following will be an online seminar from 1-3pm on Ways to Create Aging-Friendly Communities: Engage with national experts and explore aging-friendly initiatives from around the country. To participate, please call 914-813-6406 or email bab6@westchestergov.com
March 6, 2008 - The Comprehensive Approach to Dementia: A Practical Update for Practitioners in Mental Health, Primary Care, and Long- Term Care Settings sponsored by the Montefiore Medical Center. The event will be held 8:30am to 4:00pm at Hosak Hall Auditorium, NY Academy of Medicine, 1216 Fifth Avenue.
Please click here for brochure. There is a reduced registration fee of $25 for Alliance members. You must mention your membership when you mail in your registration or at the registration desk at the day of the event in order to receive the discount.
March 19, 2008 - The Future of Gerontological Social Work in NY: Licensing & Workforce Development hosted by NASW & Fordham University Graduate School of Social Services. The event will be from 8:30am - 1:00pm at the Pope Auditorium at Fordham University. More details to be announced.
March 26-30, 2008 - Aging in America 2008 Conference hosted by the American Society on Aging and the National Council on Aging in Washington DC. One of the largest gathering of diverse, multidisciplinary professionals from the fields of aging, healthcare and education, along with business leaders from across the US, this five-day conference in our nation's capital will be an opportunity to network, discuss the issues and leave with new ideas, insights and connections that will make you more effective in serving older adults. For more information, please visit the conference website at http://www.agingconference.org or call 1-800-537-9728
April 17, 2008 - Save the Date: Second Annual Brain Injury in the Community Conference: Giving Voice to the Silent Epidemic sponsored by ICD, AHRC- NYC, and the Brain Injury Association of NYS. Featured speakers will be Jean A. Langlois, Sc.D., MPH from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Wayne A. Gordon, Ph.D. from Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. The event will be held from 8:30am to 4:00pm at OMRDD, 75 Norton Street in NYC. More details to follow.
June 17-18th, 2008 - Save the Date: 12th Annual Aging Concerns Unite Us Conference at the Desmond Hotel and Conference Center, Albany, NY.
Educational Activities for Healthcare Professionals Focusing on Older Adults sponsored by the Consortium of New York Geriatric Education Centers. Programs include reinventing senior centers and senior programs, new trends in discharge planning, falls prevention and more. Programs are from 8:45am -4:30pm and registration is $50.
Educational Seminar Series at Service Program for Older People (SPOP) This training opportunity features SPOP clinicians who have extensive experience with older adults and mental health. It is offered to the professional geriatrics community and all who work with seniors. Each seminar is held at: 302 West 91st Street at West End Avenue, New York, NY. Seminar fee: $15. Discount for 3 or more attendees from the same organization. Space is limited. Please register in advance by mail or online at www.spop.com or call: 212-787-7102 ext.515.
For topics, dates, and registration information, click here.
HIV/AIDS and Older Adults Trainings The AIDS Community Research Initiative of America (ACRIA) and the Council of Senior Centers and Services (CSCS) is offering a citywide HIV training program funded by the New York City Council. These free trainings will help senior service providers address HIV prevention issues and understand better the needs of those aging with HIV. Each seminar is held at various locations.
For dates and registration information, click here.
------------------------------------------------------------------
In the News
"Aging in place" movement helps seniors stay in their homes
From The Journal News
By Len Maniace
February 7, 2008
For 40 years, home for Dorothy and Arthur DeRuve has been a co-op on DeHaven Drive in Yonkers, a place that's close to family, friends and the cultural attractions of New York City.
Though the retired couple are still healthy, they've watched friends age and leave the northwest Yonkers neighborhood for assisted-living facilities and nursing homes. The DeRuves want a different kind of future.
"One neighbor moved to an assisted-living place in Florida and then she came back," Dorothy DeRuve said. "She wasn't happy there."
After spending much of her life as a community volunteer - including six years on the Yonkers Board of Education - Dorothy DeRuve once again is a volunteer, this time helping to pioneer an experiment in senior living called DeHaven on the Hudson.
DeHaven on Hudson, designed to keep seniors in their homes and out of institutions, is part of a grass-roots movement to create what are being called "aging-in-place" communities - a concept that's kind of a cross between a commune and a senior center.
Unlike most facilities that cater to elders, seniors themselves form and run these communities. Some tap existing government services for seniors, others provide private services, and still others may have a mix. Their menus of services can be as different as the communities they represent: health and fitness programs; meal and dining-out programs; volunteers to look in on members; transportation, not only for shopping and doctor visits, but also for cultural outings; and shared lists of recommended home- repair contractors such as carpenters and plumbers.
To read the entire article, click here.
February 7, 2008
For 40 years, home for Dorothy and Arthur DeRuve has been a co-op on DeHaven Drive in Yonkers, a place that's close to family, friends and the cultural attractions of New York City.
Though the retired couple are still healthy, they've watched friends age and leave the northwest Yonkers neighborhood for assisted-living facilities and nursing homes. The DeRuves want a different kind of future.
"One neighbor moved to an assisted-living place in Florida and then she came back," Dorothy DeRuve said. "She wasn't happy there."
After spending much of her life as a community volunteer - including six years on the Yonkers Board of Education - Dorothy DeRuve once again is a volunteer, this time helping to pioneer an experiment in senior living called DeHaven on the Hudson.
DeHaven on Hudson, designed to keep seniors in their homes and out of institutions, is part of a grass-roots movement to create what are being called "aging-in-place" communities - a concept that's kind of a cross between a commune and a senior center.
Unlike most facilities that cater to elders, seniors themselves form and run these communities. Some tap existing government services for seniors, others provide private services, and still others may have a mix. Their menus of services can be as different as the communities they represent: health and fitness programs; meal and dining-out programs; volunteers to look in on members; transportation, not only for shopping and doctor visits, but also for cultural outings; and shared lists of recommended home- repair contractors such as carpenters and plumbers.
To read the entire article, click here.
