WUMH Update

Stay tuned for the launch premier of the Mental Health@Work training module. This has been in the ”works” for a very long time and we are excited to be partnering with YellowDog Productions to finalize this learning opportunity.

WUMH has been busy in the past month planning for the year’s activities. In February we had the Quarterly Steering Committee meeting and the minutes from the latest meeting are on our website. We are in the final stages of updating our Strategic Plan for the next 2-3 years.

Our grant project has begun. In 2010 through the UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health’s Wisconsin Partnership Program (WPP) Grant our project with Mental Health America (MHA) of WI and WUMH “Improving Employer Mental Health Practices to address mental health in the workplace has been initiated! The leadership team has been meeting with partners from The Alliance and the Business Health Care Group representatives. Soon we will be holding the first Leadership team meeting at Rogers Memorial Hospital, which includes meeting our principal investigator, Dr. Jerry Halvorson. This is exciting.

This is a reminder to each of you that “May is Mental Health Month” is quickly approaching!   Check the WUMH website for upcoming events with national awareness campaigns and outreach materials created for May is Mental Health Month. If you are hosting or know about an upcoming event please let us know. We would be able to promote your event or activity on our website and with our partners. Also if you’d like to utilize information about mental health and stigma reduction we encourage you to visit our website at www.wimentalhealth,org or contact Lauren Martin, Coordinator for more information and materials at (608) 251-1675.

Upcoming *** 2011 WUMH Quarterly Meeting Dates***
The WUMH Advisory Board and the Steering Committee (all partners) meet from 9-11:00 am at the WI Women’s Health Foundation in Madison.
All dates are the second Friday of the month.

• May 13, 2011
• August 12, 2011
• November 11, 2011

Status Report

Budget Repair Bill

The budget repair bill would give the Department of Health Services the ability to make changes to current Wisconsin law and rules affecting the Medicaid program with minimal Legislative oversight. This issue has been lost in the larger outcry regarding collective bargaining for public employees. With the release of the state budget it is now clear that the administration is looking at making significant changes to covered services, copays and eligibility for Medicaid. If the budget repair bill language remains unchanged it will mean these changes can be made without a democratic process, and without the opportunity for public hearings as part of that decision-making.

Many legislators may not be sufficiently aware of the implications of this provision of the bill. Because of the bipartisan support that Medicaid has enjoyed in the Wisconsin Legislature, many of them might not support this portion of the bill. But it is important for them to hear from their constituents. Removing this language from the bill does not mean that disability advocates are unwilling to work on changes to the Medicaid program; it just means that it will be elected officials who will make the final decisions on those changes that are currently defined in statutes and rules.

For more information, visit the Save BadgerCare Coalition website.


On March 7 and March 8, HealthWatch Wisconsin will hold public hearings in Madison and take testimony about the importance of BadgerCare and Medicaid to people in Wisconsin. People are welcome to share their stories and talk about how changes to the programs would affect them.
Testimony will be compiled and shared with Wisconsin’s elected officials.

A rally at the Capitol will follow the hearings on both days.
Dates: Monday, March 7 and Tuesday, March 8
Time: 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm each day
Location: Hall of Wisconsin Ballroom, Best Western Inn on the Park, 22 S. Carroll Street, Madison, WI

Testimony will be limited to about 3 minutes per person. Written testimony is also welcome and can be sent to HealthWatch Wisconsin, 32 N.
Bassett St., Madison, WI 53703 or e-mailed to info@healthwatchwisconsin.org. Please submit written testimony by March 11.

Further information is available from HealthWatch Wisconsin by calling
608-261-6939 ext. 204.

Comment on this and other DAWN alerts at: http://www.dawninfo.org/news4/archives.cfm/category/dawn-alerts
DAWN web site: http://www.dawninfo.org


Monthly Feature: Depression and Diabetes

Diabetes Alert Day: March 22, 2011, American Diabetes Association
(Source: Diabetes and Depression Associated with Higher Risk for Major Complications, NIMH)

Research has shown that depression is commonly associated with diabetes. People who have both diabetes and depression tend to have more severe symptoms of both diseases, higher rates of work disability and use more medical services than those who only have diabetes alone.
More research is needed to identify the underlying mechanisms for the association between depression and diabetes complications, and to develop interventions that treat both diabetes and accompanying major depression. In addition, better screening is needed to help identify those patients with diabetes who are at higher risk for developing major depression and other life-threatening complications.

More information about diabetes is available from the National Diabetes Education Program.  More information from WUMH can be found at our page: When Physical and Mental Illnesses Co-Occur.

Reference
Lin EHB, Rutter CM, Katon W, Heckbert SR, Ciechanowski P, Oliver MM, Ludman EJ, Young BA, Williams LH, McCulloch DK, Von Korff M. Depression and advanced complications of diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2010 Feb. 33(2): 264-269.


Other news/Partner Announcements

Waukesha Warrior Summit
March 24, 2011
8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Waukesha County Technical College

The Wisconsin Warrior Summit is dedicated to coordinating a comprehensive community response to the mental health needs of veterans and their families. Through keynote speakers and breakout sessions, which will feature the voices and perspectives of veterans themselves, the Summit will inform clinical professionals, veterans and their families, as well as the public on the needs of the veterans and their families. The Summit will also provide information on treatment and support programs available.  Register online at: http://wiwarriorproject.org/page/summit-registration


NAMI Wisconsin Annual Conference: Recovering Together: Growing Our Grassroots
April 15-16, 2011
Hilton Milwaukee City Center.
www.namiwisconsin.org or 800-236-2988


CRAZY: A Father's Search through America's Mental Health Madness
Monday, April 18, 2011
Fine Arts Center Main Theatre in La Crosse, WI

Join with others to listen to Pete Early tell his story about how difficult it is to get help for a family member with mental illness. He will specifically focus on how and why persons, such as his son, often end up in our criminal justice system and why that is wrong and will describe the results of a nine-month investigation that he conducted as a journalist inside the Miami Dade County jail where he followed persons with severe mental illnesses through the criminal justice system and out into the community to observe what services were available to them. Pete Earley was cited by Washingtonian Magazine in a cover story entitled, "Top Journalists: Washington's Media Elite," as one of a handful of journalists in America who "have the power to introduce new ideas and give them currency." He is the author of nine non-fiction books, including three national best-sellers, and three novels. His book, CRAZY: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness, was one of two finalists for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize and has won awards from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Mental Health America, the Washington Psychiatric Association, and the American Psychiatric Association.

 No registration is required and the event is free.