Tips from the American Psychiatric Association Awards Presented at APA's 49th Institute on Psychiatric Services
AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC ASSOCIATION NOVEMBER 1997
TIPSHEET TWO
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 23, 1997 Melissa Saunders Katz Release no. 97-51 (202) 682-6142 /[email protected] www. psych.org
In the November issue of Psychiatric Services: (Note: All Items Embargoed until November 1, 1997)
OUTSTANDING MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMS HONORED BY APA APAFastFAX #6928
The APA Gold Achievement Award
Project Respond, Portland, OR - Project Respond's 12-person mobile team provides an innovative community service by working with police in locations frequented by homeless people with mental illnesses to get patients in need of ongoing mental health and support services into treatment. Project Respond offers programs to educate retail business employees, landlords, and others about how to interact with people with mental illnesses. Project Respond is part of Mental Health Services West, a private nonprofit community mental health center in Portland. For more information, contact David Pollack, M.D., medical director of the center, at 503-228-0373.
APA Significant Achievement Awards The Soft Environment Program, Walter P. Reuther Psychiatric Hospital, Westland, MI - This innovative program was developed for frail elderly patients who fall frequently to "soften" the environment in which they live, virtually eliminating the use of restraints among patients in the program who fall frequently.
Medication Compliance Improvement Program at the Riverside County Inpatient Mental Health Facility, Riverside, CA - The program devised new ways to deal with psychiatric inpatients' refusal of medication by streamlining the process for filing a petition for a court hearing -- required in California when a patient refuses medication. Within a year, medication noncompliance was cut in half, and the average hospital stay of noncompliant patients was reduced by 30 percent.Project BASIC (Better Attitudes and Skills in Children), of the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation, Nashville, TN- The program provides prevention activities and early intervention for children at risk of serious emotional disturbances by promoting a wellness theme with activities to encourage recognition and identification of feelings, maintenance of positive relationships with family and friends, and development of a healthy self-concept.
The winner of the Gold Award, presented on October 24 at the Institute on Psychiatric Services in Washington, D.C,. receives $10,000 made possible by a grant from the Roerig division of the U.S. Pharmaceuticals Group, Pfizer, Inc.
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The American Psychiatric Association is a national medical specialty society, founded in 1844, whose 42,000 physician members specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of mental and emotional illnesses and substance use disorders. APA objectives include the advancement and improvement of care for persons with mental illnesses through nationwide public information, education, and awareness programs and materials.
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