550 Attend Children's Mental Health Research & Policy Conference in Tampa
Over five hundred fifty researchers, administrators, policymakers, family members, youth, clinicians and other stakeholders from all over the nation (and internationally) gathered in Tampa Florida in early March to attend the 23rd Annual Children’s Mental Health Research & Policy Conference.
For the past 23 years this conference has provided a national forum for advancing new research and policy ideas in the field of children's mental health.
“It goes without saying that there is much to be accomplished,” said Dr. Mario Hernandez, Chair of the USF Department of Child & Family Studies, which hosted the conference. “In the past fifteen years, the number of Americans under care for mental illnesses has nearly doubled, and among the numbers are the rising rates of mental and emotional problems among children and teenagers. They are increasingly faced with depression, anxiety, conduct disorders, suicidal thinking, and other serious psychological and behavioral challenges.”
Speakers this year included Dr. Fran Butterfoss, one of the most highly sought-after coalition and community empowerment consultants today. Dr. Butterfoss has helped numerous coalitions and partnerships reach their potential to be a force for positive change in the health of their communities. After her presentation, Dr. Butterfoss participated in a book-signing of her step-by-step guide for building durable coalitions to improve community and public health.
A special panel of presenters discussed the accomplishments of the past 25 years and the partnerships that have helped change the attitudes, values and practices in the children’s mental health field.
“I enjoyed how passionate the conference presenters and attendees were about improving mental health services for children and families,” said Kiara Alvarez, one of four APA Minority Fellows invited to the conference by Dr. Hernandez. Alvarez is a doctoral student in the School Psychology program at the University of Texas at Austin. “Since the conference included a number of sessions looking back on the last 25 years of systems of care, it also provided a historical perspective that I very much appreciated as a student.”
Alvarez added that the content was extremely useful to her area of focus, since she is particularly interested in how mental health services can be made more accessible to Latino children and families. “Many of the sessions gave me a sense of how the provision of mental health services can be embedded in the experiences and values of a community,” said Alvarez. “What was most important about this to me was that the presentations were not based solely on theories about what would work best for a community, but on the lessons learned from years of experience working to improve mental health services within a community.”
Gary M. Blau, PhD, Chief, Child, Adolescent, and Family Branch of the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) discussed the current focus of the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children and Their Families Program (CMHI).
“We are moving toward more of a public health approach, about a spectrum of care,” said Dr. Blau. “Shouldn’t we be promoting wellness – even if an individual has a diagnosis? When you have a serious mental illness, you can reclaim a wellness status.”
According to Dr. Blau, additional priority areas for SAMHSA include youth involvement, family-to-family support, eliminating mental health disparities, and a look into how technology is affecting our lives and how best to communicate through it.
"We must continue our quest to develop policies and services that are community-based, culturally competent, family-driven, and youth-guided,” said Dr. Hernandez. “The conference offers an excellent opportunity to share what works, and this year’s attendance level is certainly testament to the fact that many are concerned for the 42.5 million children who have a serious emotional disturbance.”
Handouts to many of the conference sessions are available online.
(Photos by Steve Denninger: Top - Opening Presentation at the 23rd Annual Children's Mental Health & Policy Conference Middle - Dr. Fran Butterfoss at book-signing Bottom - participants at Sunday night poster session)
The Department of Child and Family Studies (CFS) at the USF College of Behavioral & Community Sciences is committed to improving the well-being of individuals, children, and families within communities across the country through promoting respect, inclusion, development, achievement, mental health, and an optimum quality of life.