(FREE!) December 7th LGBT Awareness Training!

 

LGBT* AWARENESS TRAINING

 

               What:                            Introduction to LGBTIQQAP (and what it all means!)

 

               Where:              4343 Williamsbourgh Dr, Sacramento 95823 (Strategies for Change)

 

When:                            December 7, 2009              9:30 AM – 12:30 P

Why:                            To help increase awareness and competence when working with LGBTQ         clients

 

Who:                            Open to YSOC Collaborative partners free of charge (such a deal!)

 

 

            CEUs:                            Course meets the requirements for 3 hours of continuing education credit. CEUs will be offered for: MFT, LCSW &                                                                CAADAC.

 

 

 

        RSVP:                            To ensure available seating, please respond by December 3rd to Melody Hazzard at mhazzard@ac-ac.org or (916) 879-2569

 

 

 

Introduction to LGBTIQQAP (and what it all means!) is an interactive training session conducted by Poshi Mikalson, MSW.  Poshi is the LGBT Project Coordinator for the Mental Health America of Northern California and has conducted training sessions throughout Sacramento County. 

 

Feedback from past training sessions:

“The training was very informative and well organized.”

“Poshi was instrumental in dispelling the myths and revealing the reality of adolescent sexuality.”

“The time just flew by because the training was so engaging and fun!”

 

 

Sponsored by the Collaborative to Improve Mental Health Care for LGBT
Transition Age Youth in Sacramento County—funded by the California Endowment

 

* Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender

Stakeholders Meeting Next Week

Next week is our Stakeholders week, in which the YSOC Collaborative will present its Strategic Plan to the community. The event will occur Tuesday, November 17th, from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. at 7001-A East Pkwy in Conference Room 1. Bring a friend!

Client Resource: Free H1N1 Vaccination Schedule

Click here to view the free H1N1 Vaccination schedule from Sacramento County Public Health.

YSOC Collaborative Meeting Ideas

Ideas for YSOC Collaborative Meetings

December 2009—June 2010

 

Please add your ideas, comments, and suggestions and email to Melody at mhazzard@ac-ac.org.  Please note that the group decided that YSOC Collaborative meetings will continue on the third Tuesday of each month, from 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. at 4343 Williamsbourgh (Strategies for Change). Because the group has come up with so many ideas for future Collaborative meetings, it was decided at October’s meeting that additional events may be added to the Collaborative’s regular schedule of meetings. These extra events may take place at different times, days, and at different locations than the regular monthly meetings.  The following ideas are based on the group discussion at October’s YSOC meeting.

 

1. “Dialogs” (panels) with primary referring agencies, including: CPS; Probation; law enforcement; courts; and education. The purpose of these dialogs would be to 1) both parties identify barriers to optimum services for clients; 2) facilitate understanding, cooperation, and collaboration between providers and referring agencies; 3) recommend policy change(s) to referring agencies.

 

2. Trainings, including: gang violence (presented by Sacramento Police Department vice gang unit); cultural competency (LGBTQ, others); evidence-based prevention & intervention practices. Trainings would be free to YSOC Collaborative partners, and agencies would be able to bring staff. Will try to offer CEUs for AOD & Mental Health counselors. Will also focus on eliciting participation from referring agencies (CPS, education, probation, law enforcement, etc.).

 

3. Activities to meet grant work plan objectives, including: focus groups; brainstorming sessions; work groups (these could also meet outside of Collaborative meetings. Topics to include: 1) advocacy strategy for AOD & Co-Occurring issues (identifying local, state & federal policies to create a policy statement for YSOC Collaborative, participating in advocacy activities such as recruiting lobbying support from legislative liaison at NASW and attending hearings at State Capitol); 2) inviting county-contracted prevention providers to attend a Collaborative meeting to brainstorm ways to forge better connections between prevention & intervention; 3) “next steps” study session with Sacramento County Alcohol & Drug Services staff to prioritize “do-able” objectives from the YSOC Collaborative Strategic Plan; 4) work session to identify strategies for making data/information from County ADS’s YSOC more accessible for providers.

 

4. Your idea here!

 

 

October 21, 2009

Melody Hazzard, MSW, AOD/YSOC Project Coordinator

Leave a comment with your ideas, suggestions, and feedback!

October YSOC Planning Group Meeting Wrap Up

Hello All!

We had a great time at yesterday's YSOC One Year Appreciation Celebration! We had a tasty lunch of healthy foods, an awards ceremony, a demo of Valley Vision's exciting new youth development website YSP Connect, and changed our name to the YSOC Collaborative. You will find October's meeting summary, as well as the Draft Written Strategic Plan that will be presented to the community at next month's Stakeholders meeting under the YSOC Meeting Summary and Key Documents menu on the left-hand side of this site. Feel free to use track changes to make ask questions and make comments and suggestions to send back to me, this is your document so your input is much appreciated. I will also be sending you all a list of the group's ideas for future YSOC Collaborative meetings for your feedback and additions.

PEI Series Begins Today

The first of MHSA's Prevention and Early Intervention Phase II series of five meetings begins today. The schedule of meetings is as follows:

Meeting 1 (Orientation) Tue, Oct. 13, 3pm-6pm 7000 65th street
Meeting 2 (Stressors) Tue, Oct. 20, 3pm-6:30pm 7000 65th street
Meeting 3 (Trauma) Tue, Oct. 27, 3pm-6:30pm 7000 65th street
Meeting 4 (Discrimination) Tue, Nov. 3, 3pm-6:30pm 7000 65th street
Meeting 5 (Committee) Mon, Nov. 16, 3pm-6:30pm 7000 65th street

Parenting for Prevention Parent-Teen Series

People Reaching Out is holding two FREE Parent-Teen series at the Citrus Heights Civic Center Campus. The dates for the series are:

Wednesdays September 30 - November 18, 2009 from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Wednesdays February 3 - March 24, 2010 from 6:00 - 9:00 pm.

The series is designed to address:
--Key questions teens need answered
--How parents and teens can communicate more effectively
--Tools and techniques that build confidence and responsibility
--How to set and maintain limits
--Steps for good decision making

For more information and reservations call 576-3300 x 306. Check out their website here.

Free Resources for Military Families

Time To Talk has a new (free) kit out for children & families of military personnel. You can download the kit (for free!) here. Resources include: 10 Things Military Teens Want You To Know & Transitions & Teens: A Guide for Military Parents.

Bullying Prevention Task Force

The SCUSD Safe Schools Office, Integrated Support Services, and Youth Development are sponsoring an Anti-Bully Campaign, which will kick-off with the first meeting of the Bullying Prevention Task Force on Wednesday, October 7th at the Serna Center (5735 47th Avenue) in the Pennsylvania Room from 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. The goals of the Bullying Prevention Task Force are to engage a broad group of stakeholders in developing a strategic plan for bullying prevention at SCUSD focused on: programs and services; policies and procedures; education, awareness, and training. For more information, please contact Lawrence Shweky at (916) 643-9141, Zenae Scott at
(916) 643-7992, or Sonja Stires at (916) 643-7990.

LGBTQ Resource Line

Mental Health America (formerly Mental Health Association) of Northern California has partnered with Sacramento City Unified School District to create and implement an LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Questioning) Resource Line. The resource line is a warm line, meaning that adolescents can call, leave a message, and have their phone call returned within 48 hours by a social worker with experience in providing services to LGBTQ students and their families. Services include information/referral, short-term counseling, and advocacy. All calls are confidential and all services are provided free of charge. The LGBTQ Resource Line number is: (916) 643-7997

Other Resources for LGBTQ clients are:

Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA)
Student-run clubs that provide a safe place for LGBTQ students get support on campus. GSAs operate on the following campuses in Sacramento County: Burbank; Johnson; Kennedy; McClatchy; New Tech; Rosemont; The Met; and West Campus. For information contact the GSA Network at (415) 552-4229 or online at gsanetwork.org.



Trevor 24-hour Suicide Prevention Line:
1-800-850-8078

PFLAG (Parents & Friends of Lesbians & Gays)(916) 978-0410 or pflagsacramento.org

Sacramento Gay & Lesbian Center(916) 442-0185 or www.saccenter.org

October YSOC One-Year Appreciation Celebration

YOU’RE INVITED!

YSOC One-year appreciation celebration

Please join us for lunch in honor of your hard work in developing the Sacramento Alcohol & Other Drug Youth System of Care Strategic Plan!

October 20, 2009

1:30 – 3:30 p.m.

4343 williamsbourgh

Sacramento, ca 95823

*This event will take place during our YSOC Planning Group meeting

 

 

PLEASE RSVP TO MELODY AT mhazzard@ac-ac.org (or by leaving a comment), so I can get a headcount for the lunch. Thank you!!

September YSOC Planning Group Recap & Update

Hello Planning Group! At this month's YSOC Planning Group meeting, we discussed the upcoming November Stakeholders meeting and the suggested changes to the Strategic Plan as proposed by the Project Coordinator. You can find this month's meeting summary on the left-hand side of the blog under the YSOC Meeting Summary Archive & Key Documents section. You can also find each team's proposed suggested changes to the Strategic Plan and suggested Action Steps to focus on for the next six months, along with the updated Strategic Plan in full, in the same place. Please be sure to attend October's YSOC Planning Group meeting, as we will be doing a run-through for the November Stakeholder's Meeting, presenting the planning group with the narrative of the Strategic Plan, and having a "One Year Appreciation Celebration" to celebrate all the hard work of the planning group in developing the Sacramento Alcohol & Other Drug Youth System of Care Strategic Plan over the past year. We will also have a very exciting website demonstration from Chris of Valley Vision, who will give us a preview of the new Youth Service Provider website. Please help me by emailing me the names and contact information of people you feel should be invited to the Stakeholders meeting so I can send them a formal invitation. Email me at mhazzard@ac-ac.org or sacysoc@gmail.com. Thanks and see you next month!!

AOD Counselors, "Wake Up!" Your Clients

Every 37 is a Sacramento-based organization that promotes awareness and education about drunk driving. Their name "Every 37" comes from the statistic that every 37 minutes, an alcohol-related accident occurs in Sacramento County. Their website has (free!) printable materials, videos, and radio spots that would be great to share with clients.

Shared Resources on the YSOC Blog

There are some very helpful & valuable resources posted on the left-hand side of the blog under the Meeting Summary Archive, Key Documents & Resources menu! There is a Resource List that includes information about hot lines, free support groups, shelter programs, mental health services, counseling centers, hot meals, food banks/closets, free clothing, medical care, & AIDS. There is also a link to Co-Dependents Anonymous support groups, plus much more. I add to the list as people send the resources to me, so please make sure to check it out from time to time. These resources are great for the staff (AOD & mental health counselors, receptionists, etc.) in our agencies who need to find resources quickly for clients, so please pass it on!

Youth Development Network Monthly Update

I'm sure many of you are familiar with the Youth Development Network, a Sacramento youth service provider support organization providing trainings, networking, and advocacy. I met YDN's Co-director, Bina Lefkovitz, at Valley Vision's Youth Development Website (which I know many of you are eagerly anticipating!)steering committee meeting last week, and she was interested in connecting with the YSOC Planning Group. She wanted to communicate with all of you about YDN and what they do. Please check out their website here, and take a moment to check out the their monthly update. She also would like all of you to sign the Sacramento Region Compact for Children and Youth, which you can download and sign on-line by clicking here.

Young Adults' Need For and Receipt of Alcohol & Illicit Drug Treatment

"Nearly 7 million Americans age 18 to 25 were classified as needing treatment in the past year for alcohol or illicit drug use, according to a new SAMHSA report. But 93 percent of these young adults did not receive the help they needed at a specialty treatment facility."
--SAMSHA's Young Adults' Need For and Receipt of Alcohol & Illicit Drug Treatment Report (2007)

Click here for SAMSHA's new eye-opening report.

August YSOC Planning Group Meeting Recap

Hello Planning Group! This month's Planning Group meeting was chock-full as usual. Some highlights are:

1) The group decided to implement the Universal Referral Form created by our Evaluator Allison Burke. The form will be used in an inter-agency capacity and will come with training from Allison on how to input data into the corresponding database she is creating.
2) The October Stakeholders meeting is coming up soon! I am working on the mailing list for the invitations, but I need your help! Please send me your physical address, along with any other people at your agencies that you would like to attend the meeting (think supervisors and Deputy & Executive Directors; we want to show them what you have been doing in all these meetings!). We will prep for the stakeholders meeting at next month's YSOC meeting on September 15th, please be sure to be there!
3) I will be going through each team's section of the strategic plan to get rid of redundancies, clarify language, and come up with a game-plan to ensure success for each team in completing their action steps. Watch for my emails soon... :)

You can view the meeting summary on-line by clicking on the link in the "Meeting Summary Archive & Key Documents" menu on the left side of this blog. I have also added some events to the YSOC Calender, including two free mammogram clinics in September & November a workshop on August 27; you can view the details of these events by clicking on them in the calender. Maureen from Sac County ADS requested that the following resource about prescription drug abuse be posted: http://www.drugfree.org/notinmyhouse/. This is a free resource for parents/guardians/any adult who suspects a youth may be abusing prescription drugs. I want to thank all who showed up, including some new faces; I hope you will join us again next month and for the October Stakeholders meeting!

--Melody

Free Resource!

Mark Grip, Director of Access and Community Outreach at the Sutter Center for Psychiatry, sent me information about a FREE on-line resource for talking to kids about substance abuse. It's called the Time to Talk tool-kit, created by the Partnership for a Drug Free America. You can download the FREE tool-kit on-line by simply supplying your first & last name and an email address. The link to the tool-kit is: http://www.timetotalk.org/comcast/. Check it out!

Need A Helping Hand??

The following message is from Lori Vallone of Sacramento County's Alcohol and Drug Services Department and member of Team B:

Dear Youth Treatment Providers,

As part of the AOD YSOC goals/objectives I was working on with my team, I was researching being able to get interns for this project. The providers listed on the email were interested when we approached this idea in the past. If you are still interested in CSUS interns for the AOD YSOC or for your in-house programs, please contact:

Jill Kelly, LCSW
Director of Field Education
Division of Social Work
CSU-Sacramento

kellyj@saclink.csus.edu

Please also note that your agency must have either an MSW or LCSW on staff to provide supervision to the intern/s.

Team Presentations at Next Week's YSOC Meeting

At our YSOC meeting next week we will focus on how teams are doing with their sections of the Strategic Plan. I have emailed the team leaders, asking them to give a brief presentation about their team's progress. I will have the strategic plan up on power point for all to see, so that teams can share with the whole group their accomplishments, questions, and needs. This will be a great opportunity for teams to ask each other for help, get feedback, and clarify/refine their action steps. If you are a team leader, don't worry, this is an informal presentation--all we're asking is for you to explain your team's sections of the strategic plan to the rest of the group and to share how you've been progressing. You can find the strategic plan on the left-hand side of this blog under the "YSOC Meeting Summary Archive and Key Documents" section. See you all next week!

NCADD Prevention Community Potluck

Prevention Community Potluck

You’re Invited!

 

TIME: 1:00-3:00 PM

DATE: MONDAY AUGUST 17, 2009

 

Prevention is a community-wide practice that aims to support our kids and families with the tools to make it through challenging times. In order to create healthy kids and families, we have to support one another through our own challenging times. This will be an opportunity to rejuvenate and refresh while re-connecting with old friends and meeting new ones!

 

Swanston Park Activity Room 2350 Northrop Ave, Sacramento

RSVP: ANGELA DA RE

ANGELAD@NCADDSAC.ORG

OR

916-922-5110 EXT 211

 

Sponsored by the

National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Sacramento

Please bring a dish to share as well as a small raffle prize (if you can) from your agency. There will be games and activities or you can just sit and

enjoy the company!

Omni Youth Programs Family Fun Quest Event!

The following is an invitation from Cynthia Siegal, Executive Director of Omni Youth Programs, to participate in their First Annual Family Fun Fest event. I heard Cynthia describe the event in person this morning, and it sounds awesome. Omni Youth Programs is a prevention provider, and you can check out their programs and services, as well as download an even flyer on their webpage. Cynthia is looking for providers to participate in the event. Please read the below email and contact Cynthia if you are interested in participating. She is also looking for donations of your agency's outreach goodies (pens, pencils, small toys, etc) to make up goodie bags for event attendees. Please let her know if you can donate stuff, and she will pick the items up from your facility.

Cynthia's Email:

I would like to invite your organization to participate in “Omni Youth Programs Family Fun Fest” on August 15, 2009 at Fair Oaks Park . This fun, lively community event offers your agency a variety of ways to promote your services and reach out to even more people in the greater Sacramento area. Here’s how.

- Host a Booth at Event – Only $25 for non-profits!
- Event Sponsorship – Lots of positive publicity! Sponsorships start at $150.
- Provide Entertainment: Examples: Youth or adult performers
- Facilitate a Workshop at Event
- Provide a raffle prize – To be given away at event.
i.e.Gift basket, logo items, gift certificate.

Overview
The “Family Fun Fest” is a free day of wholesome fun activities where community members of all ages, including their pets, can enjoy each others company in a playful, safe and celebratory environment. The “Family Fun Fest” will also raise public awareness of community resources, local nonprofit agencies and businesses, and offer lots of diverse, free, fun activities and workshops for youth and families.

“Family Fun Fest” Highlights
-Family sports & games -Art Activities -Free Workshops -Food & Beverages -Pet Parade & Costume Contest -Bounce Houses -Live music & DJ -Craft Vendors -Face Painting -Youth Performers -Puppet Show -Carnival Games

About Omni Youth Programs
Omni Youth Programs is a community based non-profit organization providing free drug and gang prevention programs to youth and families in the Sacramento area since 1982. Omni Youth Programs is a Certified United Way Agency.

We hope your agency will join us! An application and sponsorship information is attached. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to call me at 916-482-7702 or email me at: cynthia@omniyouth.net.

Sincerely,


Cynthia Siegel, M.A., M.S.

Executive Director
Omni Youth Programs
E-mail: cynthia@omniyouth.net
Phone (916) 482-7702
Fax (916) 482-7723

Hello Fellow Bloggers!!!

Welcome to those of you have have recently joined the blog! This will be exciting!
Angela

July 21 YSOC Meeting

Hello All! Many of you are here for the first time after receiving the authorship invitation from sacysoc@gmail.com. We had a great meeting this Tuesday, with lots of new information, a few new partners, and the introduction of this blog. Please scroll down to the "YSOC Meeting Summary Archive & Key Documents" menu on the left-hand side of this site to view the meeting summary, the blog power point presentation, and other useful YSOC documents. I hope you will find this site a useful tool for networking, information sharing, and communication. If you need help using this blog, please call me at (916) 876-2569 or email me at sacysoc@gmail.com or mhazzard@ac-ac.org. I will be contacting all of you shortly to see how you are liking the site and how you are progressing with your goals.

New Educational & Vocational Program for Youth

Hello All,

It's me Tori Brown with Another Choice, Another Chance. I am very excited to post information about our newest program. We have opened a charter school and have 24 slots for youth. Please feel free to click the link below to get a copy of the flyer for more information. If you have an employment program this would be a great opportunity for your clients to get a high school diploma while gaining a trade. Call 916-879-7785. If you would like to fill out the flyer for a client, please feel free to print, fill out, and fax attn: Tori Brown at (916) 388-9273.

http://docs.google.com/View?id=dgkhbrx9_0c2ff8vf9

Helpful Newsletters Re: Adolescent Substance Abuse

Helpful Newsletters Re: Adolescent Substance Abuse located at:

http://www.recoveryhappens.com/monthly%20newsletter.html

Jon Daily, LCSW, CADC II
www.recoveryhappens.com

Sharing Work and Other Documents Using Google Docs!

Please take a moment to check out the new section in the left hand side of the blog, entitled "YSOC Meeting Archive & Key Documents." In this section you will be able to view our monthly meeting summaries (beginning with June, 2009)and other key YSOC documents, such as the YSOC Strategic Plan, YSOC Goals, and the YSOC Team Roster. This is possible via Google Docs. Authors to this blog can post Word and Excel files (and I believe PDF files as well)to this blog via Google Docs! If you would like to do this, please feel free to call or email me and I would happy to explain how. I would also be more than happy to post any file you'd like to send me as an attachment via email. I am very excited about the possibilities available to the group via Google Docs; we will be able to share our finished work (like Billee did last week), event flyers, and anything else we'd like to share. If you would like to add to the list of "Key Documents," feel free to email me and I will add to the site!

Work Finished by Team D!

I was excited to check the blog this morning and see that someone in the group (besides me) had posted! I was even more excited to see that the posts were awesome work completed! As you can see from the two posts below this one, Team D has been busy! Billee has posted some of her team's findings. Under Goal VII "Increased availability of treatment services for multicultural and special populations (e.g. pregnant teens, trauma, and transitional age)," she has posted a list of interpretation services in Sac County and an ethnicity and language distribution list by area. Many thanks to Billee for sharing her team's work, I hope the group will find it helpful, as well as an inspiration to keep moving on their Action Steps! You all work hard to serve your agency, your clients, and your community, I want to thank you for your above and beyond commitment to improving services for youth through your participation in the YSOC. I hope we will continue to inspire each other and share what we've learned through this process via blog posting, emails, and at meetings. Now that we see how easy it is to post, who's next?....

Ethnicity and Language Distribution

North Area
Citrus Heights, Elverta, McClellan, No. Highlands, Rio Linda, No. Sacramento, Marconi/Watt,
Arden Arcade, Natomas, Arena/Airport, Del Paso Heights, Foothill Farms & Antelope

Ethnicity (MA) (7): Latino 37%, White 26%, African American 12%, Russian 8%, Hmong 4%,
Asian Indian 2%, Laotian 1%, Filipino 1%, Ukrainian 1%, Vietnamese 1%, American Indian 1% Other 7%

Languages (ELL) (6): Spanish, Hmong, Russian, Ukrainian


Central Area
Downtown, Midtown, Oak Park, New Helvetia and East Sacramento

Ethnicity (MA): Latino 49%, African American 16%, White 14%, Hmong 5%, Chinese 3%, Other 13%

Languages (ELL): Spanish, Hmong, Cantonese, Mien, Vietnamese


East Area
Fair Oaks, Folsom, Mather, Orangevale, Rancho Cordova, Rescue, La Rivera/Jackson Highway,
Rosemont, Hagginwood & Carmichael

Ethnicity (MA): White 38%, Latino 26%, African American 11%, Russian 8%, Armenian 2%,
Vietnamese 1%, Other 12%

Languages (ELL): Spanish, Russian, Armenian, Ukrainian


South Area
Rio Vista, Courtland, Elk Grove, Galt, Herald, Isleton, Sloughhouse, Greenhaven, South Sacramento,
Fruitridge, Florintown, Jackson Highway/Sunrise, Pocket & Meadowview

Ethnicity (MA): Latino 42%, African American 14%,White 10%, Hmong 8%, Vietnamese 6%
Chinese 4% , Asian Indian 2%, Pilipino 2%, Russian 1%, Laotian 1%, Other 10%

Languages (ELL): Spanish, Hmong, Vietnamese, Hindi, Cantonese, Panjabi


Data Sources: (6) SY 07/08 CDE - Data Quest ELL; (7) May 09 DHA MA

Interpreter Services for the Sacramento County Division of Mental Health

Sacramento County Division of Mental Health
Interpreter Services

1. Eastern European Interpreters
7740 Polo Crosse AvenueSacramento, CA 95829Contact: Mary Meekay
(916) 682-8768
(Arabic, Afghani, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Cambodian, Chinese, (Cantonese, Mandarin), Farsi, French, German, Italian, Greek, Hindi, Hmong, Hungarian, Ilacano, Japanese, Korean, Lao, Mien, Polish, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Samoan, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, Tongan, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Serbo-Croatian, and others)

2. Carmazzi Global Solutions65 Quinta Court Ste GSacramento, CA 95823
Contact: James Carmazzi
(888) 452-6543
(Spanish, Lao, Tagalog, Farsi, Arabic, German, Punjabi, Portuguese, Romanian, Italian, Cambodian, Cantonese, Chinese, Mandarin, French, French Creole, Greek, Hindi, Hmong, Ilocano, Korean, Mien, Urdu, Russian, Swedish, Visayan, Vietnamese, Yugoslavian and others)
3. Language World Services
Contact: William Glasser
(916) 473-0100
(Arabic, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Bosnian, Chinese (Cantonese, Mandarin, Toishanese), Croatian, Farsi, French, German, Punjabi, Portuguese, Romanian,
Italian, Greek, Hindi, Hmong, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Lao, Mien, Polish, Russian, Samoan, Serbian, Sindhi, Spanish, Thai, Tongan, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese)

4. ATT Language Line LLC
(800) 752-6096
(Spanish, Lao, Tagalog, Farsi, Arabic, German, Punjabi, Portuguese, Romanian, Italian, Cambodian, Cantonese, Chinese, Mandarin, French, French Creole, Greek, Hindi, Hmong, Ilocano, Korean, Mien, Urdu, Russian, Swedish, Visayan, Vietnamese, Yugoslavian and others.

C. Limited English Proficient (LEP) and Deaf and Hard of Hearing Interpreter Services:

1. NOR-CAL Center on Deafness
(916) 349-7500 24 hour TTY line
Hours: Monday – Friday 8:00am – 4:30 pm (closed 12:00pm – 1:00pm) after hours Emergency 800-504-3009

2. Carmazzi Global Solutions 65 Quinta Court Ste G Sacramento, CA 95823
Contact: James Carmazzi
(888) 452-6543

3. ATT Language Line LLC
(800) 752-6096

Calling All Providers: Outpatient Treatment Schedules

Is your waiting list growing longer by the day? Do you need to refer a client to another provider, but don't want to spend time calling around to check availability and service schedules? At our last YSOC meeting, it was suggested that sharing outpatient treatment schedules (AOD, anger management, sibling and family support groups, etc.)would be helpful in referring clients and managing wait lists. If you would like to send your outpatient treatment schedule to me, you can email me at mhazzard@ac-ac.org or SacYSOC@gmail.com, or fax to (916) 388-9273. With everyone's information, I can create a comprehensive outpatient treatment schedule and distribute at our next YSOC meeting.

Referral forms, please!

As you all probably know, our evaluation consultant, Allison, is working on creating a universal referral form for the YSOC to present at July's meeting. She has collected several forms, but is still missing some. I know everyone is swamped with things to do, but if you have not sent Allison or I your referral form, could you please do so? You can email it to me at mhazzard@ac-ac.org or SacYSOC@gmail.com or fax it to me here at ACAC at (916) 388-9273. Thank you!

June 16th, 2009 YSOC Meeting Update

Here is a recap of the last YSOC meeting in the form of an annotated meeting agenda:

1:30 – 1:40 p.m. Welcome & Introductions
• Brooke explained that an “interim meeting” took place on 6/9 to discuss a shift in the direction of the planning group. The consensus was that the planning group had done an excellent job creating a strategic plan and the idea to transition into an “implementation group” should be brought to the group at the YSOC meeting. (Interim meeting notes also attached).
• The new YSOC Project Coordinator, Melody Hazzard, introduced herself to the group, noting that she is currently working on identifying, contacting, and inviting private pay, insurance, and non-medical funded providers to participate in the YSOC. Thus far, TerraNova and Safety Center have expressed interest in participation.

1:40 – 2:30 Focus Group Discussion, facilitated by Allison Burke (LPC Consulting)
• Allison posed a series of questions to the group for the purpose of evaluating the process of the planning group to date. Questions focused on successes, challenges, limitations, lessons learned, unmet needs, and ideas for moving forward.
• The overall consensus was that being part of a collaborative process has been positive, instilling group members with a sense of ownership in the YSOC. Group members noted that while it was sometimes difficult to maintain motivation to attend the YSOC meetings, they are committed to the goal of better serving youth in the county. Members also noted that in moving forward, they would like to see other providers (especially juvenile justice, CPS, and education), as well as upper-level management and EDs of currently involved providers, become involved in the process.

2:30 – 3:00 p.m. Next Steps Discussion
• Would like to see more mental health providers, such as Families First/EMQ and River Oak.
• The group would like the coordinator to “chase” them/check-in to see how they are doing on their action steps. The coordinator will be in touch with the teams in between meetings to see how she can be a resource/support to help teams complete their action steps.
• The group would like to retain copies of the action plan after they work on them. They would also like to see a date, as well as the team lead identified on the action plan.
• There will be a second YSOC Stakeholder’s meeting held in October, for which invitations will be sent out. The group hopes to elicit involvement from upper-level management, EDs, and local elected officials at this meeting. It was suggested that each participating YSOC agency identify a youth that has been particularly successful to give a testimonial at the meeting. It was also suggested that each team prepare a brief presentation about their progress and successes, as well as remaining needs to present at this meeting.

Resolutions
• Agency/organization presentations will continue, with TerraNova presenting at July’s meeting.
• Sacramento PD will continue to attend YSOC meetings.
• Coordinator will get the out-patient treatment schedules for participating providers so the group can better serve clients through referral.
• Planning Group will transition into Implementation Group.
• Coordinator will add title, date, designate team leader on Action Plan and send to group (also attached).

Advocate For Minor Consent Medical!

One of the most basic fundamentals of the services our agencies and organizations provide to youth is Minor Consent Medical. Recently some of the providers in the YSOC have been involved in a series of meetings with the county regarding Minor Consent Medical access at school sites. Due to budget cuts, the county had to look at ways to consolidate services areas within the county to continue going out to school sites. Given that it would be a huge loss for our clients if they were unable to sign-up for Minor Consent Medical at the place where they access services, imagine what could happen if the entire Minor Consent Medical program were to be cut in the on-going budget revision process.
Part of our strategic plan is to advocate for state, federal, and local policies to support the YSOC. Given the current budget crisis that has already had a huge impact on our field, now is a critical time to advocate for our cause. Let's tell our legislators that many of our clients need Minor Consent Medical in order to access services and to get their lives back on track. The following is an example of an advocacy letter I drafted. It is addressed to Senator Darrell Steinberg, one of our representatives. Our assemblyman is Dave Jones. You could also send your letter to the County Supervisors. Another idea is to have clients at your agency write letters; this could be done in groups, and the agency could collect the hand-written (un-signed) letters and send them to a legislator (or multiple legislators!) along with a letter of explanation as to who wrote the letters and why they are anonymous.

Example of Advocacy Letter:

Dear Senator Steinberg,

I am a social worker who works at a substance abuse and mental health services agency, Another Choice, Another Chance, for youth ages 12-19. Our agency not only provides valuable services to youth, but also to their families through various supportive services, including family advocacy, sibling support groups, and help finding employment. Many of our clients access our services via Minor Consent Medical. Many times, youth are unable to access the services they so desperately need, either because they are afraid to tell their parents they need help, or, because their parents refuse to allow them to access services. Minor Consent Medical allows youth who would not otherwise be able to access services to receive confidential treatment in mental health, alcohol and other drug, or both. Minor Consent Medical opens up a variety of treatment opportunities for youth, including on-site treatment at middle and high schools.

I am writing to you because during this budget crisis, while every sector of the economy is suffering, the area of social services has been particularly devastated by state budget cuts. While we as social workers work with the most vulnerable members of society, the youth we serve are especially vulnerable given their status as minors. Minor Consent Medical is a valuable and empowering resource for youth, allowing them to exercise agency in choosing what is best for them when their parents or guardians are unable to make the right decisions with regard to their treatment needs. Without Minor Consent Medical, many youth would be unable to access services that can help them end harmful behavioral patterns that limit their opportunities for successful futures.

The youth who access Minor Consent Medical resources and the workers that serve them need your support; I would like to ask you to please consider these youth during the process of revising the budget for next year.

Thank you for your support and consideration.

Sincerely,

Melody Hazzard

Contact Information for Local Legislators:

Senator Darrell Steinberg
State Capitol, Room 205
Sacramento, CA 95814

Assemblyman Dave Jones
State Capitol
P.O. Box 942849
Sacramento, CA 94249-0009

Sacramento County Board of Supervisors

Roger Dickinson (D-1), Jimmie Yee (D-2), Susan Peters (D-3), Roberta MacGlashan (D-4), Don Nottoli (D-5)
700 H Street, Suite 2450
Sacramento, CA 95814

Welcome to the Sacramento AOD Youth System of Care Blog!

Hello, YSOC Implementation Group! I sent you all an invitation to be an author of this blog; that means you can all post to this blog once you sign up to be an author. You need a google account to be an author, I hope you will take a few minutes to sign up as I think it is worth the effort! The purpose of this blog is to communicate, network, share resources, brainstorm, and anything else to help each other in the process of creating an AOD Youth System of Care for Sacramento County. If you use Google Reader or another reader application to organize and track your favorite websites, you can add the RSS feed for this site to your Reader and then you will know immediately whenever someone has posted something new to the blog.

As the project coordinator for the YSOC, I will be posting updates on what am I up to, including any new/useful information I come across, resources, new providers I have made contact with, policy updates, etc. I hope this will be useful for our group, if not, we can forget about it--but let's try it out for a while and see how we like it.