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Behavioral Health
Highlights
Social workers have been involved in the behavioral health field
for nearly as long as the profession has been in existence. Social
work is represented in this field in a variety of ways,
providing services to clients in many mental health settings. According
to a report released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (1998), the majority of direct mental health services in
the U.S. are
provided by social workers. Therefore, it is imperative that the
profession be involved in advocating for clients at a variety of
levels, be involved in key
policy activities, and keep abreast of new and emerging best practices.
During the past quarter, NASW staff were involved in a number of
activities relevant to advancing the profession’s role in a variety
of behavioral health arenas:
- NASW was a national planning partner for the 14th Annual
National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month sponsored
by the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), which occurred in
September 2003. This year’s theme, “Join the Voices for Recovery:
Celebrating Health,” encouraged everyone to help incorporate
community treatment and recovery services as integral parts of
the public health system. NASW provided kits that could be used
to plan activities during Recovery Month to chapters and to members
of the ATOD Specialty Practice Section.
- NASW was an organizational sponsor of the 13th Annual
National Depression Screening Day held on October 9, 2003.
The goal of this year’s program was to promote mental wellness
and the ability of individuals and communities to bounce back
from difficulties by ensuring that those who are at-risk or who
are already ill become healthy and productive. In addition to
providing materials to screen for depression, post-traumatic
stress, generalized anxiety disorder, and bipolar disorder, information
was included on how to manage stress and recognize the physical
symptoms that often go hand-in-hand with mental health disorders.
- NASW is a co-sponsor of the SOS Suicide Prevention
Program developed by Screening for Mental Health, Inc. (SMH).
This program is a school-based suicide prevention program that
has been selected for the national registry of effective programs.
The SOS program has demonstrated a significant increase in help
seeking by depressed students, according to a paper published
in the August 13, 2003 issue of Adolescent and Family
Health. For more information about this program contact SMH
via their Web site at www.mentalhealthscreening.org
- The Practice Research Network (PRN) is a collaborative
project funded by the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT)
that provides resources to a variety of provider associations,
including NASW, to obtain important information about the social
work profession’s role in providing substance abuse treatment
services. The goal of the PRN project is to collect data from
social work practitioners, and to use the data to potentially
develop best practices, inform policy, and improve service delivery.
Prior to the PRN project, little data existed about social workers’ employment
characteristics and the profession’s involvement with substance
abuse treatment. The second survey was administered September
through November 2002. Some of the results from the survey have
been put into datagrams and are available on the NASW Web site at www.socialworkers.org/naswprn/default.asp.
A summary of the results is being developed. A
third survey will be conducted during this fiscal year.
Two new practice updates are available:
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