CHICAGO, Aug. 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — CME Group Foundation today announced an initial $2 million in funding to expand its grantmaking program to support young women and girls impacted by trauma and violence in Chicago.

“We are pleased to make these initial grants that will bring high-quality mental health resources to young women and girls in Chicago’s underserved communities,” said Terry Duffy, CME Group Chairman & Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman of CME Group Foundation. “CME Group Foundation has always supported education from cradle to career, and this investment is the latest example of that commitment to our city.”

CME Group Foundation will also support local organizations and projects that increase the reach of mentors and mental health service providers to young women and girls, enhance innovation for trauma responsiveness and social-emotional learning to reduce the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and drive awareness and collaboration across Chicago’s public and private sectors.

Among the initial group of organizations to receive CME Group Foundation mental health grants are:

• Children’s Research Triangle
• Focus Fairies
• Girls Inc. of Chicago
• Juvenile Protective Association
• Ladies of Virtue
• Polished Pebbles
• Union League Boys and Girls Club
• Youth Guidance

CME Group Foundation makes grants to universities, school districts, and non-profit organizations that work to improve outcomes for underserved students. Since 2008, CME Group Foundation has contributed $66 million to local nonprofits that support students of all ages. For more information, visit www.cmegroupfoundation.org.

About CME Group Foundation

CME Group Foundation helps today’s students keep pace with dramatically evolving technology, creating a workforce for the future that is equipped with the skills to meet tomorrow’s global challenges. By bringing together the brightest minds in education to prepare students for kindergarten, provide robust opportunities in computer science, and support them with college and career success, we are sparking system-wide change that benefits all students, from cradle to career, with a focus on those who are typically underrepresented in the STEM fields. They will shape the future of the world’s most important industries, including our own, so we give them the tools they need to achieve their full potential.

About CME Group

As the world’s leading derivatives marketplace, CME Group (www.cmegroup.com) enables clients to trade futures, options, cash and OTC markets, optimize portfolios, and analyze data – empowering market participants worldwide to efficiently manage risk and capture opportunities. CME Group exchanges offer the widest range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural products and metals. The company offers futures and options on futures trading through the CME Globex platform, fixed income trading via BrokerTec and foreign exchange trading on the EBS platform.  In addition, it operates one of the world’s leading central counterparty clearing providers, CME Clearing. 

CME Group, the Globe logo, CME, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Globex, and, E-mini are trademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. CBOT and Chicago Board of Trade are trademarks of Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, Inc. NYMEX, New York Mercantile Exchange and ClearPort are trademarks of New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. COMEX is a trademark of Commodity Exchange, Inc. BrokerTec and EBS are trademarks of BrokerTec Europe LTD and EBS Group LTD, respectively. The S&P 500 Index is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC (“S&P DJI”). “S&P®”, “S&P 500®”, “SPY®”, “SPX®”, US 500 and The 500 are trademarks of Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC; Dow Jones®, DJIA® and Dow Jones Industrial Average are service and/or trademarks of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. These trademarks have been licensed for use by Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. Futures contracts based on the S&P 500 Index are not sponsored, endorsed, marketed, or promoted by S&P DJI, and S&P DJI makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in such products. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 

CME-G

SOURCE CME Group

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The state’s largest health plan is also hosting a free Bluebikes Spin Class as part of “Mindful Mondays” to celebrate National Wellness Month

BOSTON, Aug. 3, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — In recognition of National Wellness Month, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (“Blue Cross”) is sponsoring free Bluebikes Adventure Passes every Monday in August, beginning August 7, for its third annual “Mindful Mondays” initiative, and is also hosting a free Spin Class on August 28th – the last Monday of the month – to encourage people in the Metro-Boston region to exercise and take care of their mental health. The free Adventure Passes will be available across the system’s 13 municipalities, including Arlington, Boston, Brookline, Cambridge, Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Medford, Newton, Revere, Salem, Somerville, and Watertown. Blue Cross is the sponsor of Bluebikes, which is owned by the municipalities and operated by Lyft.

Riders can take advantage of complimentary Adventure Passes on “Mindful Mondays” by downloading and opening the Bluebikes App and entering the appropriate code. Each code will unlock one free Adventure Pass, which includes an unlimited number of two-hour rides during a 24-hour period. The codes for each Monday are as follows:

• August 7: BLUECROSS0807
• August 14: BLUECROSS0814
• August 21: BLUECROSS0821
• August 28: BLUECROSS0828

To honor their commitment to providing access to wellness-oriented experiences in support of whole health journeys, BCBSMA is also hosting a free 60-minute Bluebikes Spin Class on August 28th. The class will be first come first serve, open to the public, and will take place at Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park in Boston. Rev’d instructor, Alyssa Pannozzi, will be leading the class, who is also known for their dedication to enhancing mental and physical health.  

Biking can help put us in a mindful state – reducing stress, improving your mental and physical health, and even increasing your overall happiness in life, according to Health News. Taking 20-30 minutes away to concentrate solely on exercise can rejuvenate mood and lessen anxiety.

“National Wellness Month serves as a valuable reminder of the crucial role that mental health plays in one’s overall wellbeing,” said Jeff Bellows, vice president of corporate citizenship and public affairs at Blue Cross. “For the third year in a row, we’re promoting healthy communities and the power of mindfulness with our ‘Mindful Mondays’ initiative, and we hope Metro Boston residents can get outside, practice mindfulness and enjoy the whole-body benefits of a Bluebikes ride.”

Blue Cross has been the title sponsor of Bluebikes since its launch in May 2018. Through its partnership with the municipal owners of Bluebikes, Blue Cross continues to support system growth and accessibility, including station expansions, upgrades, and additional bikes.

About Bluebikes
Bluebikes is public transportation by bike. The system is jointly owned and managed by the Cities of Boston, Cambridge, Everett, Salem, and Somerville and the Town of Brookline. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is the system’s title sponsor. Riders can find 455 stations and 4,000 bikes across 13 municipalities in Metro Boston. Since 2011, more than 20 million trips have been taken by bike share. For more information about Bluebikes, visit bluebikes.com 

About Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (bluecrossma.org) is a community-focused, tax-paying, not-for-profit health plan headquartered in Boston. We are committed to the relentless pursuit of quality, affordable and equitable health care with an unparalleled consumer experience. Consistent with our promise to always put our members first, we are rated among the nation’s best health plans for member satisfaction and quality. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

SOURCE Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts

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WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Katie Meyer’s parents joke that their daughter would have taken a plane, a ferry, even “a trained dolphin” to be in the stands at this World Cup, cheering on the Stanford teammates who were so close they were more like sisters than friends.

Gina and Steve Meyer are certain their daughter is still riding with the U.S. women, thanks to Sophia Smith, Naomi Girma and other players using the biggest moment of their careers to make sure Katie isn’t forgotten and no one else has to feel a similar loss.

“It is so heartwarming. And heartbreaking,” Gina Meyer told USA TODAY Sports. “We’re just so proud of them. They didn’t have to do anything but to remember their friend, but they really want to talk about this subject, which is usually brushed under the rug.

“It’s such a beautiful thing that this whole team jumped on board and said, ‘We want to be a part of this.'”

MORE:The Americans dominated their Women’s World Cup opener. They face a tougher task against the Dutch

WORLD CUP CENTRAL: 2023 Women’s World Cup Live Scores, Schedules, Standings, Bracket and More

MORE:How Alex Morgan grew from USWNT rising star to powerful advocate and disruptor

Katie Meyer played with Smith and Girma on the Stanford team that won the 2019 NCAA title, and the goalkeeper was named MVP of the championship game after making two saves in the penalty shootout.

Meyer died by suicide in February 2022, a month after her 22nd birthday.

“It changed everything. It changed the whole way I view life,” Smith said last week. “I now don’t take things too seriously. I realize there are so many more important things happening.”

Girma and Smith had talked about how they could honor Meyer at the World Cup, their first. In an essay for The Players Tribune before the tournament began, Girma announced that she, Smith, Sofia Huerta and several other USWNT players would partner with Common Goal and Fox Sports on a mental health initiative.

Fox is devoting 1% of its airtime during the World Cup to discussions about mental health, while Common Goal will provide support to communities that don’t traditionally have access to mental health resources.

“I stand in awe of what they’re doing,” Steve Meyer said. “They could have just gone and played games. They stopped the train for a minute and said, ‘We want to do something that matters,’ and I commend them.”

Girma told the Meyers family about the partnership with Common Goal, and let them read her essay before it was published. But the Meyers didn’t know the players had planned another tribute to Katie until after it happened.

After Smith scored her second goal in the USWNT’s opener against Vietnam on Saturday, she drew her fingers across her lips. The “zip it” motion was the same one Katie Meyer had made after her first penalty save in that NCAA title game, her way of silencing the Stanford doubters. Video of it went viral after the Cardinal won the title.

“That was really sweet and really cute,” Gina Meyer said. “It just made us smile and warmed our hearts.”

Finding ways to continue honoring Katie is “really important” to her and Smith, Girma said. Katie Meyer was a huge presence in their lives, and they want the world to know the bright, bold and vibrant young woman they did.

They also want the world to know why she’s no longer here.

“Speaking out about mental health, we see this as an opportunity to shed light on a lot of things that are important to us,” Girma said.

Katie’s parents only learned after she died that she’d been the subject of a disciplinary action at Stanford that could have resulted in her diploma being withheld. According to court documents, Katie had received a written notice the night of her death charging her with “a Violation of the Fundamental Standard” for spilling coffee on a football player who’d been accused of sexually assaulting one of her teammates.

Through their “Katie’s Save” initiative, the Meyers want college students to have the option of designating an advocate who would be notified “when the student is involved in challenging circumstances where they may need extra guidance and support.” That could include student conduct issues, academic probation or emotional or mental health problems.

The Meyers are working with California state Rep. Jacqui Irwin to craft legislation that would require “Katie’s Save” to be implemented at the state’s public universities and are hopeful of it being considered as early as 2025. They’ve also had meetings with members of the University of Colorado’s Board of Regents, and have gotten interest from lawmakers and educators in other states.

“We’ve got to make a difference,” Gina Meyer said. “This is why we’re not curled up in a ball. We’re really trying to do something positive in Katie’s honor and her memory.”

That Girma, Smith and other members of the USWNT are, too, means the world to the Meyers.

The World Cup has a broad platform, as do the U.S. women. Whether they are calling attention to Katie herself, “Katie’s Save” or the broader issue of mental health, the Meyers know these young women are going to make a difference.

“There’s big difference between awareness and action,” Steve Meyer said, “and they’re taking action as an expression of love for Katie and others like Katie who we’ve lost.”

And Katie will be cheering them on, all the way.

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour.

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STEPHEN HEMELT — Safe Communities Initiative empowers mental health treatment and so much more

Published 12:16 am Saturday, July 8, 2023

Samaritan Counseling Center of Southeast Texas is looking to use an infusion of grant funds for Orange County and Southeast Texas mental health counseling services to help clients with anxiety and depression.

When we spoke recently, Brooke Loupe shared the stigma that prevented so many people from asking for mental health help is breaking down.

“Especially since COVID, we have seen a big rise in the number of people being willing and open to ask for help, receive that help and talk about mental health in our community,” she said.

Loupe, the community engagement coordinator for Samaritan Counseling, said the center serves anyone from the age of 5 years old and up.

“I think our oldest client right now is in her 80s,” she said. “Most of our clients, over 50 percent of them, are under the age of 18.”

It’s that focus on young people and the obvious need in the community that creates an opportunity for Samaritan Counseling to have the greatest impact through mental health or counseling services.

“We offer them in person or also do telehealth for them,” Loupe said. “A lot of young people are more comfortable with technology then face-to-face or maybe they don’t have a car. They can do it from the comfort of their house.”

Samaritan Counseling Center of Southeast Texas is a nonprofit counseling organization using the concept of mind, body and spirit to promote healing, growth and the reconciliation of couples, families and organizations.

The integration of behavioral sciences and faith traditions is the organization’s base for counseling.

Center officials work with major insurance providers and accept Medicaid.

“But if you don’t have either of those, we offer fee assistance,” Loupe said. “We have a fee-assistance application that helps people out with some of those things.”

Those interested in reaching out for help or learning about treatment and payment options are encouraged to call 409-727-6400 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

Center officials conduct a quick intake with the caller on the phone and call the potential client back to set up a best first-step approach.

The Samaritan Counseling Center’s main campus is located in Port Arthur, but there is a satellite office in Orange at First United Methodist Church, 502 N 6th St.
A administrator offices in Orange from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, and currently, a counselor is there all day on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Those interested in learning more are asked to contact 409-727-6400 for a quick intake call and scheduling plan.

Teletherapy appointments are available, as well as fee assistance.

I was able to speak with Brooke Loupe and learn a little bit more about the Samaritan Counseling Center during June 29’s Port Arthur LNG Safe Communities Grant Awards breakfast reception.

The second-year event honored 17 local organizations, including Samaritan Counseling, with grants to help their programs, services and initiatives keep our community safe and healthy.

During her opening remarks, Sempra Infrastructure External Affairs Director Kelly Prasser noted Port Arthur LNG’s “robust relationship” with area police, fire, sheriff, and all safety agencies and first responders.

She stressed the Safe Communities Initiative was built on the other part of safety, which is community safety.

“We know if you are hungry, cannot pay your bills, don’t have good mental health services, don’t have access to health care, can’t get free immunizations, just need some assistance and don’t have an organization that provides you with those types of services when you are really in need, you don’t have a safety community,” Prasser said. “So that is what the Safe Communities Initiative is about.”

Port Arthur LNG’s continued partnerships with grassroots leaders and support for job opportunities is setting an example for all Southeast Texas corporate entities to follow.

Stephen Hemelt is the president of Port Arthur Newsmedia, which publishes panews.com, The Port Arthur News and Greater Port Arthur The Magazine. He can be reached at stephen.hemelt@panews.com or 409- 721-2445.

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Retired Air Force Lt. Col. (Dr.) Jannell MacAulay, Ph.D., leadership and performance consultant, right, conducts a Warrior Heart workshop for McChord Field senior leaders at Joint Base Lewis-McChord June 5.
(Photo Credit: Airman 1st Class Colleen Anthony, 62nd Airlift Wing Public Affairs)

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Rebecca Aronson, left, 62nd Airlift Wing suicide prevention manager, listens to a guest speaker during a Warrior Heart presentation at Joint Base Lewis-McChord June 5.
(Photo Credit: Airman 1st Class Colleen Anthony, 62nd Airlift Wing Public Affairs)

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Retired Air Force Lt. Col. (Dr.) Jannell MacAulay, Ph.D., leadership and performance consultant, right, conducts a Warrior Heart workshop for McChord Field senior leaders at Joint Base Lewis-McChord June 5.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Zoe Thacker, 62nd Airlift Wing Public Affairs)

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JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. — Team McChord kicked off June with Warrior Heart, a new initiative that embodies Air Mobility Command Commander Gen. Mike Minihan’s directive to drive readiness. This keynote event launched the AMC-wide effort and introduced the concept of training your mind to Team McChord June 5.

“We hope to impart on McChord the idea that we can proactively train our minds to help ourselves out, and be more present,” said retired Air Force Lt. Col. (Dr.) Jannell MacAulay, Ph.D., leadership and performance consultant. “I want our military community to see that there really is a science to enjoying the spaces in between stress, to see the joy and laughter and know that professional success doesn’t have to be at the expense of our health and relationships.”

The Warrior Heart cultural effort, as designed by MacAulay and retired Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Anthony Brinkley, is rooted in bringing mindfulness, resilience and self-care skills to AMC Airmen through interventions at the leadership, family and individual level. The focus being not on building a program but breaking the stigmas and barriers that hinder the development of a mentally strong force.

“When you lead from the middle, your job is not to make everyone conform until they lose their identity,” said Brinkley. “Great leaders function as a conduit; they plug into you and there is a transfer of energy and knowledge.”

Throughout the eight workshops hosted at McChord, the Warrior Heart effort focused on taking leaders and teams through a transformational journey of self-reflection in order to engage actionable skills to master their internal

environment, command their mindset and elevate their performance.

“Our Airmen conduct operations on every continent of the earth, sometimes in harm’s way,” said Col. David Fazenbaker, former 62nd Airlift Wing commander. “Having skills that focus on self-care is incredibly important at home station and while deployed.”

These skill sets assist AMC personnel with learning to train their mind and heart – to fortify the will to win. Scientifically researched and evidence-based mindset skills can fill a vital training gap and function as mental rehabilitation in preparation for physical and mental stressors.

“You have people who sign up for something that most people never do, and they’ve signed up for the most stressful job in America,” said Brinkley. “If you’re leading them, you just signed yourself up for even more stress. Leaders are the people that everyone counts on by design, so when you are burned out, everyone that is plugged into you burns out, too.”

The Warrior Heart initiative will hit every AMC installation over the course of a two-year period.

“We led with McChord because we knew this base was already creating space for these types of efforts,” said MacAulay. “Not to mention, there are key warfighters and deployers at this location, and (Team McChord) was already starting this conversation, which made it that much easier for us to enhance it.”

By fine tuning mind, body and craft, AMC aims to fortify the will to win within the ranks. With a focus on eliminating stigma, lowering barriers and increasing access to key mental health amenities, Minihan believes Warrior Heart can help that happen.

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This year, the Illinois Legislature approved Senate Bill 724, allocating $22.8 billion to Gov. JB Pritzker’s Children’s Behavioral Health Transformation Initiative (CBHTI), which was launched last year and aims to reform and improve the state healthcare system’s approach to care for children with complex behavioral health issues. 

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The legislation paves the way for the state to begin developing its detailed blueprint for that transformation, which includes 12 strategies for centralizing and streamlining the coordination of service delivery, building service capacity, and promoting early intervention. 

Speaking at the 2023 Illinois State of Reform Health Policy Conference, a panel of experts outlined the strategic goals of that plan and the work ahead for its implementation. 

An inter-agency workgroup comprised of system advisors and led by Dana Weiner, PhD, the chief officer of CBHTI, will begin holding public meetings soon to develop the recommendations outlined in the governor’s plan. 

“I owe the governor’s office a detailed implementation plan by Oct. 1st,” Weiner said. “And as you heard [from previous panels] some of these things are already being implemented. But most of that will be a detailed plan.”

Weiner, a senior policy fellow at the University of Chicago’s Chapin Hall Center for Children, was enlisted by Pritzker in 2022 to assess the current system and its issues and develop the CBHTI plan. 

“This task of analyzing the children’s behavioral health service system is complicated because we don’t really have a system,” Weiner said. “We have a patchwork of solutions that are delivered by six state agencies that all operate different programs and services.” 

Weiner’s team analyzed data and policies to understand where the issues were and create a plan for addressing them. Her plan targets five areas of transformation: capacity, accessibility, earlier intervention, agility, and accountability. 

One of the key strategies is centralizing and streamlining the work between the Departments of Children and Family Services (DCFS), Healthcare and Family Services, Human Services (DHS), Public Health, Juvenile Justice (DJJ), and the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) is a foundational recommendation to rebuilding the system. 

Senate Bill 724 requires all residential and institutional providers to submit staffing and occupancy data to the state for children’s mental health, substance abuse, and developmental disability services. The information will be used to determine state needs and placement availability. 

The “transformed” system will centralize oversight of residential beds and provide clear guidance and referral options—pathways for children and youth with behavioral issues to navigate and receive intensive in-home and community-based services, acute crisis care, residential transition services, and residential placement. 

Pritzker’s CBHTI budget includes $9.5 million to build an IT system connecting the continuum of care and $2 million to expand DACA assistance for pediatric mental health training and consultation, and the Comprehensive Community-Based Youth Services program.

The new IT system will manage navigation to residential services for children and families. 

CBHTI will utilize two systems: a centralized care portal and mobile device resource/referral access. Illinois has already launched a test version of the portal, which manages the communication and coordination between state agencies. Weiner says when completely rolled out, the IT systems will provide a secure platform for state agencies and providers to coordinate care while generating the data to determine where the gaps and issues are.

Weiner said that while the state has many of the support systems to serve children and families already in place, navigating that system can be challenging for everyone involved. 

“[The recommendations] are centered on this idea of taking the complexity out of the family’s end of it and absorbing [it] as a state,” she said. “We’ll deal with it—the state agencies can manage the complexity on the back end so that families can have a clearer path …

I’ve talked to a lot of people about [navigating the system] and people have all different theories about what the problem is. There’s the capacity—we just don’t have enough. People said the processes are too difficult to navigate—it takes too long and it’s too complicated. People said the policies are misaligned—the laws create disincentives for providing kids with the level of servicing. People have said we don’t engage families well enough or clearly enough to provide the information they need.”

The number of children in the state who will have a mental health problem before turning 18 is estimated at 300,000, according to panelist John Walkup, MD, chair of the Pritzker Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. Lurie Children’s has a network of children’s hospitals serving the greater Chicago metropolitan area.

“We definitely need to increase the workforce, but when you think about the numbers, increasing the workforce is not really going to get the job done,” Walkup said. “We have to do something important around parity and payment because about half of psychiatrists choose not to be involved in any payer contracts—so they take cash …

There are about 47,000 general pediatricians under the age of 70 in the United States. If every one of those pediatricians was able to [manage] ADHD, anxiety, and depression—we might actually have enough resources in our mental health system to take care of the more complicated kids or the kids that those folks can take care of.”

Walkup, a population mental health expert, believes the solution lies in integrating mental health awareness into all aspects of health and social policy, health system planning, and delivery of primary, secondary, and general healthcare. 

He hopes that the initiative will get more pediatric providers to manage their own evidence-based mental health interventions.

The state implemented a requirement this year for health insurers to cover medically necessary services and treatment for mental and emotional conditions. 

Pediatric and primary care providers now have the ability to bill for mental health treatment and management but the state lacks the ability to implement evidence-based practice at the highest level by qualified professionals, according to Walkup. 

“We have good data about treatment but most of [it] is about treatment when you treat them—right when they start having the problem,” Walkup said. “Once people have had a problem for a while they accumulate impairment related to that problem. And then once they accumulate impairment, they also become at risk for complications in treatment like suicidal behaviors, self-injury, and substance use disorders …

We’re not talking about schizophrenia or bipolar disorder here—we’re talking about conduct disorder, poor educational attainment, unemployment issues, substance use, all of which, if you really have a population health system in the community you can get to, you can [address] those problems and prevent them over time.”

The American Association of Pediatrics has been pushing initiatives to improve mental health competencies in pediatric practices by providing training and guidance. CBHTI aims to improve the training and competency of healthcare professionals in pediatric mental health over the long term. 

Public schools are another access point where children can be screened. Weiner and her team will be meeting with school district officials in the coming weeks to benchmark programs for statewide implementation of universal screening and annual mental health screenings for grades K-12. 

The goal is to have schools and pediatric primary care providers equipped to conduct mental health and suicidality assessments in their own settings. Weiner says the implementation of some of the strategies will take years to build out, but emphasized the importance of implementing all 12 of the recommendations.

“There’s no one silver bullet,” Weiner said. “If we do just one of these things, we won’t get to where we need to go. We can’t improve care coordination unless we also change information sharing. We can’t expect a managed care organization to intervene earlier if they don’t actually have the data indicators. They need to know when problems are starting to worsen. So this is a complicated thing to try to fix and involves a lot of work, and we’re not going to get to all of these [recommendations] in the same timeframe.”

Weiner says her team is gathering information from those who want to participate in the development of the detailed plan (which will be submitted by October) and has yet to disclose details on upcoming meetings. Once approved, work on the detailed plan will proceed along four stages around stakeholder engagement, program and staffing development, testing, and implementation. 

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All home care, hospice, MLTC, FI/CDPAP and Waiver Program recipients encouraged to participate.

HCA, through the support of its Health Disparities grant from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, is launching a statewide health literacy initiative for patients.

The initiative will pilot test the efficacy of providing virtual health literacy education and information to home care and hospice care recipients through the Virtual Senior Center (VSC), in partnership with HCA member Selfhelp Community Services, operator of the VSC.

HCA is encouraging every certified home health agency, licensed home care services agency, hospice, managed long term care plan, PACE plan, long term home health care program, FI/CDPAP, and waiver program organization to identify recipients whom could benefit for participation in this initiative – and those should be substantial numbers from every organization.

Health literacy has been defined as “the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.”  (Ratzan and Parker, 2000)

Health literacy is key to positive patient experience, outcomes, effective self-care, and partnership with care professionals. It is also critical in breaking through health disparities.

With state and national policy and program prioritization on better addressing health disparities, including the state’s current work to secure a multi-billion dollar federal investment in NY to address disparities, your participation in this type of initiative will help equip you and your organization for advancement, and most importantly, will support your efforts to promote quality care and patient quality of experience, quality of life, independence and dignity.

What you need to know and do

This service will be provided without charge through Selfhelp’s VSC which HCA is able to partially support through our disparities grant.

All you need to do is identify individuals who can benefit and to assist them to enroll.

The VSC will make accessible a menu of informational and educational material to support health literacy for recipients that can be directly accessed by the individual once they are enrolled. Individuals you identify, and who wish to enroll, will just need your help to be signed into the VSC.

Once enrolled, the individual (solo or with the assistance of their caregiver or family members) can access the elements of health literacy on the VSC. There is no limit to access; recipients can sign-in according to a schedule that works best for them.

Watch this compelling example of a VSC participant:

There are no requirements other than to enroll, and to agree to provide feedback to HCA and Selfhelp as to the experience and benefit. Participating providers and organizations will be similarly asked to provide feedback and recommendations that HCA and the Mother Cabrini Foundation can use to evaluate and consider long-term support for the program.

The period of participation in the health literacy pilot will be nine months, permitting exploration and evaluation of the efficacy and experience under the program. Continuation will be open beyond that date at the preference of the recipient, provider/plan, and VSC.

Additionally, recipients (and providers and plans) are welcome to explore enrollment in VSC to access diverse classes and programs that combat social isolation and promote engagement for adults who are homebound or socially isolated. HCA is working separately to support this effort through a separate initiative with the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation and Selfhelp, and can separately inquire by clicking here.

At this link, you can enroll your client immediately by creating an account for them. The VSC team will keep HCA apprised (de-identified, no PHI) of the number of enrollees by organization and region.

HCA urges wide participation in this initiative! Be the first in and tell us the story of your patients’ experience! We will be sharing updates with the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, the Department of Health, the Governor’s Office, the Legislature, and health care partners.

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DULUTH — The Miller-Dwan Foundation announced a new, multi-phase initiative to combat unmet mental health service needs in the Duluth area during an event Thursday night.

HopeX, or Hope Multiplied, will include a workforce expansion and create new programs to fill in the gaps of area mental health services, according to Traci Marciniak, president of the Miller-Dwan Foundation. While the foundation did not release specific details of action HopeX will take, Marciniak and Rick Gertsema, senior mental health adviser, said the program will be innovative and community-oriented.

“We don’t have a lot for prime time right now, but what we have is a set of global partners that will be coming into our community that will be helping us implement something never before seen here,” Marciniak said.

Zak Williams, mental health advocate and son of late actor and comedian Robin Williams, center, Traci Marciniak, Miller-Dwan Foundation president, left, and Rick Gertsema, Miller-Dwan Foundation senior mental health advisor, share a laugh while answering questions from media members ahead of a launch event for the foundation’s new HopeX initiative on Thursday at The Garden Wedding and Event Center in Duluth.

Dan Williamson / Duluth News Tribune

The global partners include the World Health Organization, George Washington University, The New School, and Zak Williams, mental health advocate, entrepreneur and son of actor Robin Williams.

Williams addressed foundation donors and the media at The Garden on Thursday, stating the Miller-Dwan Foundation’s plans have him excited for the partnership.

“The more I learned about the Miller-Dwan Foundation, the more I understood that it’s a pioneer in innovating around existing models to establish new ways of reaching communities with care models that actually provide extended support that enables people to feel empowered,” Williams said.

Zak Williams, mental health advocate and son of late actor and comedian Robin Williams, speaks at a podium on Thursday at The Garden Wedding and Event Center in Duluth while discussing his involvement with helping to launch HopeX with the Miller-Dwan Foundation.

Dan Williamson / Duluth News Tribune

Williams said HopeX will use an evidence-backed approach to establish professional peer support members in the business community. These leaders will be trained to recognize and respond to signs of mental health distress and will ideally be able to engage with people who are struggling before they reach a point of crisis.

“Our systems are being overloaded,” Williams said. “There’s simply not enough care providers to support the needs of populations, so we need to figure out and resource new and innovative ways to reach people — ideally upstream — prior to them reaching a crisis.”

Marciniak said the coronavirus pandemic unquestionably exacerbated the already dire mental health crisis. She and the Miller-Dwan Foundation members recognize that while the region is doing its best to help the struggling population, a change in the care model is needed.

“Over the last few years, we’ve seen referrals to behavioral health across the lifespan more than double,” Marciniak said. “One local provider has a wait list of 1,000 people and it takes four to six weeks to get an appointment with a therapist.”

Gertsema said HopeX will include mental health advocacy to raise awareness through conversation, plus mobilization into the community to work with people in need.

“This is a time for opportunity,” Gertsema said. “A time to act, to be stewards of our region’s well-being, to relentlessly pursue solutions to the most challenging health needs facing its people.”

Rick Gertsema, Miller-Dwan Foundation senior mental health advisor, answers questions from media members ahead of a launch event for the foundation’s new HopeX initiative on Thursday at The Garden Wedding and Event Center in Duluth.

Dan Williamson / Duluth News Tribune

Joan Oswald, major gifts and grants specialists at the Miller-Dwan Foundation, said they’re listening for where the community lacks services, and pointed to parent and family therapy services as one example.

“We know there are really great programs out there that work, and we want to capitalize on those projects. We’re also researching gaps in care and how we can best serve our community to help eliminate those gaps,” Oswald said. “Expansion efforts will be determined based on our findings.”

Williams, who will be back in Duluth several times throughout the program’s rollout, will help the foundation work on strategy, awareness and messaging. He will be the featured speaker at the Miller-Dwan Foundation’s ARTcetera event in September.

Williams is a professional public speaker who has been a featured mental health advocate around the world. He and his wife also created PYM, or Prepare Your Mind, an amino acid supplement that’s targeted for mental hygiene.

Framed by people and video cameras, Zak Williams, mental health advocate and son of late actor and comedian Robin Williams, answers questions from media members on Thursday at The Garden Wedding and Event Center in Duluth at a launch event for the Miller-Dwan Foundation’s new HopeX initiative.

Dan Williamson / Duluth News Tribune

“Ideally, if I can inspire other people to focus on advocacy and the mission associated with engagement and awareness and stigma reduction, I’ll feel I will have succeeded as an advocate as well,” Williams said. “The power is within anyone to advocate.

“Just because I’ve experienced loss and had to find a path to healing through service, doesn’t mean that other people can’t activate and find their personal path to supporting causes they care about. It doesn’t necessarily have to be mental health, but anyone can do this and do it well if they’re passionate and mission-focused,” he said.

The Miller-Dwan Foundation’s HopeX logo projected onto a screen as seen on Thursday at The Garden Wedding and Event Center in Duluth.

Dan Williamson / Duluth News Tribune

Zak Williams, mental health advocate and son of late actor and comedian Robin Williams, second from left, chats with attendees at a launch event for the Miller-Dwan Foundation’s new HopeX initiative on Thursday at The Garden Wedding and Event Center in Duluth.

Dan Williamson / Duluth News Tribune

Laura Butterbrodt covers health for the Duluth News Tribune. She has a bachelor of arts in journalism from South Dakota State University and has been working as a reporter in Minnesota and South Dakota since 2014.

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This story discusses mental health and data related to suicide. For resources and support, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or text HOME to 741741 to connect to the Crisis Text Line.

The pediatric mental health initiative launched in 2022 to train primary care doctors to assess anxiety, depression and stress in the kids they treat. Sabrina Browne, an assistant professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern who also works in the behavioral health program at Children’s Health, headed up the initiative.

“Pediatricians and others in pediatric primary care are in such a great position to have those conversations with families and de-stigmatize mental health,” Browne said. “This is something we want to address as part of your everyday healthcare.”

The catalyst for this pediatric consultation model was in 2020, with the state’s Child Psychiatric Access Network (CPAN). Browne answered questions from doctors all over Texas who were looking for help diagnosing, treating and referring patients to psychiatry and psychology services.

“We had an epidemic in children’s mental health before the pandemic, but once the pandemic hit, it just really opened up the floodgates,” Browne said. “There’s just not enough child psychiatrists out there.”

Lack of mental health care services in Texas

The nonprofit Mental Health America ranks Texas among the 11 states in the country where youth have higher rates of mental health issues and less access to care.

According to data from the federal Health Resources & Services Administration, more than 130 of Texas’ 254 counties are designated as mental health professional shortage areas. That means people in more than 50% of Texas counties may not be able to find a mental health care provider when they need it.

And Browne said mental health issues have been building for kids since 2020. According to reports from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, emergency department visits “increased for self-harm, drug poisoning, and psychosocial concerns” for kids ages 5-17 throughout the pandemic, in comparison to 2019.

Teen girls were especially impacted: They had emergency visits for suicide attempts 50% more in 2021 than in the same time period in 2019.

Sabrina Browne and Mia Best have both trained about 75 pediatric health professionals to discuss and detect mental health issues in their patients. “We really focus on early intervention and prevention,” Browne said. “We really want to catch kids before they end up in a crisis. We’re hearing that our providers are feeling more comfortable to start addressing some of these issues. It’s been really exciting.”

Over the past year, Browne and her colleague, Children’s Health pediatrician Mia Best, have trained 75 health professionals in Dallas-Fort Worth through online modules and in-person case study discussions.

“One of my passions and main goals with this initiative is bringing mental health back into the idea of overall health and wellbeing,” Browne said. “We’ve done a disservice in trying to separate out physical from mental health, because the two are so intertwined.”

Best said she knows how overwhelmed pediatricians can get, and how important it is to carve out a space for learning, growth and community-building.

“We’re really talking about children’s lives and their emotions,” Best said. “We also are going through things ourselves as providers. It’s really hard because we put our heart and soul into treating these kids and making sure their lives are better. When sometimes it doesn’t go as planned, how are we coping with that?”

Best said integrating care helps providers, patients, and patient’s families, especially when treating issues of generational trauma and social determinants of health.

Both she and Browne are recruiting more health providers to participate in the initiative, which runs quarterly, and hope to expand the program beyond Dallas-Fort Worth in the coming years.

Got a tip? Email Elena Rivera at erivera@kera.org. You can follow Elena on Twitter @elenaiswriting.

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