Mark McAnally, RN is Employee of the Year

蹤獲弝け, Inc. honored Mark McAnally at the Employee Kickoff earlier this month. Mr. McAnally serves as the Infection Control and Employee Health Nurse for 蹤獲弝け as well as the chair of the COVID-19 committee. His passion and dedication have shown through his tireless efforts in ensuring the health and safety of 蹤獲弝け consumers and staff throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr. McAnally has been an invaluable asset in navigating the coronavirus pandemic, said Melvin L Burks, CEO. His leadership as the chair of 蹤獲弝けs COVID-19 committee allowed us to successfully remain open, safely serving consumers throughout our communities.

蹤獲弝け, Inc. is a regional behavioral health system in Central and West Central Indiana with corporate offices located in Terre Haute, IN.  Services are provided to children, youth and adults, with specialized programs for expectant mothers, infants, and people who may be struggling with stress, life changes, or relationship issues as well as more serious problems such as depression, anxiety disorders, and serious mental illnesses.

For information on 蹤獲弝け Services, call (800) 742-0787.

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Moving Forward

Contributor: Dwight Weaver, Program Manager Child & Adolescent Services

This time last year, it was hard to believe that this pandemic would cause such a disruption to our lives. That impact wont be fully understood for years to come, but it is clear that our lives are forever changed.

As the pandemic seems to be coming to an end, it is imperative that we begin addressing the underlying mental health crisis that is still affecting children and families today. The compounded stresses and year of instability has led to an increase in the number of youth experiencing mental health issues. 

As schools closed and transitioned to virtual learning, parents who typically went to work each day were now working from home while simultaneously teaching their children.  This isolation from peers and social supports caused immense stress for our youth.

Now, as children and teens return to activities and communities reopen, our youth are beginning to regain some things lost to the pandemic. Even so, there is an acute need for mental health services to help our young people manage this transition. Moving forward we must adapt to their unique needs. Youth, who may still be learning how to appropriately express their thoughts and feelings, may have setbacks caused by the lack of social engagement. High school students have struggled with loss of traditions and milestones. All of these unique struggles can lead to negative feelings of loneliness, depression, and thoughts of suicide.

So how can we help our youth during this time?

Start with a conversation about resiliency. Resiliency factors can help us cope with changes, challenges, and complications that may arise in our life. The more resiliency we have, the better we are able to handle and overcome challenges in life. If we can support our youth with activities that build resiliency, then we can start the process of helping our youth overcome the difficulties of this past year.

Next, start moving forward. Normal may never be what it was before, but we can regain some of what was lost.  Focusing on what we can control and encouraging our youth to re-engage in activities and reconnect with their communities, families, and friends promotes a healthy lifestyle and builds resiliency too. Both are effective in helping to overcome mental health challenges.

Finally, focus on mental health. Spend quality time with family and friends.  The value of such small and simple activities cannot be overstated when it comes to your mental health. Build friendships, learn new skills, and socialize with peers in a positive learning environment. The solutions to the mental health challenges our young people face are within our reach.

蹤獲弝け, Inc. is a regional behavioral health system in Central and West Central Indiana with corporate offices located in Terre Haute, IN.  Services are provided to children, youth and adults, with specialized programs for expectant mothers, infants, and people who may be struggling with stress, life changes, or relationship issues as well as more serious problems such as depression, anxiety disorders, and serious mental illnesses.

For information on 蹤獲弝け Services call (800) 742-0787.

Telehealth Utilization is Up, Likely Here to Stay

蹤獲弝け sees positive trends

Earlier this year the (HHS) reported that telehealth interactions had increased from nine percent, prior to the pandemic, to 51 percent, during quarantine. Similarly, the CDC recently reported a 50 percent increase in telehealth services during the first quarter of 2020, compared to the same period of 2019. The vast majority of those cases were unrelated to COVID-19; however, there was a whopping 154 percent increase in telehealth sessions in the last week of March of 2020, marking the start of the rise of COVID-19 cases in the US and social distancing guidelines.

Telehealth services had been utilized for years by 蹤獲弝け, mainly as a way to connect with hospitals to provide psychiatric consultation.  This was particularly important in rural areas where providers were at a minimum.  Recently, telehealth services have grown to be the primary way people are receiving treatment. Telehealth has been an excellent tool in addressing the needs of rural communities with limited access to healthcare, including for both primary health and behavioral health, said Mark Collins, Chief Clinical Officer at 蹤獲弝け, Inc. During COVID-19 the structures and systems we created to meet those demands have really assisted us in transitioning towards telehealth.

Much of the rapid increases in telehealth services can be explained by the demands of the pandemic and the need to social distance; however, certain federal privacy regulations have become more flexible and broadened access to telehealth services to include video conferencing and telephonic conferencing, all with the goal of meeting COVID-19 demands. In person services are still available for emergency situations and when a face to face appointment is needed.

HHS also reported that while telehealth is expected to fall post-COVID-19, its also expected to level out at a much higher proportion of all delivery methods; around 21 percent of all delivered services. In addition, a recent national poll conducted by Morning Consult estimates that around 23 percent of all adults utilized telehealth during COVID-19.

Towards the beginning, telehealth was relatively new to our patients and even some providers, said Collins. Now though, telehealth, for both primary and behavioral healthcare, is pulling its own weight in service delivery. In many ways we have seen patients become more accustomed to telehealth and even be drawn to it for convenience.

In FY21 the organization delivered 23 percent of all services via telehealth, which included the first several months of the pandemic and quarantine. Today, many months into the pandemic, 蹤獲弝け delivers the majority of outpatient services via telehealth and continues to serve patients through in-person services when clinically appropriate, throughout its traditional 10-county service area.

蹤獲弝け, Inc. is a regional behavioral health system in Central and West Central Indiana headquartered in Terre Haute, IN. Services include specialized programs for expectant mothers, infants, and people with drug and alcohol problems. Counseling services are provided for people who may be struggling with stress, life changes, or relationship issues as well as more serious problems such as depression, anxiety disorders, and serious mental illnesses.

To access services call 1-800-742-0787 or visit hamiltoncenter.org.

Want to learn more about how to get the most out of your telehealth session? Click here.

Grief from Loss During Uncertain Times

By: Emily Grimwood, MSW, LSW, Therapist, 蹤獲弝け, Inc.

            Spring is a time for celebration and new beginnings. The flowers bloom, the sun begins to shine again, and families prepare for graduations, vacations, and the completion of a school year full of hard work a moment of validation for both children and parents. Unfortunately, COVID-19 has altered those experiences for many, and instead, this spring has been filled with very different experiences for families around the world.

            This season, families are facing the grief of unmet expectations. While many associate grief with death; grief is a necessary experience for any loss, including the loss of the spring for which we had hoped. Every person grieves loss differently. There is no normal way to grieve, and it is okay to accept that the world we live in right now is not normal. We must let go of our expectations and accept the many things that are out of our control.

            Our children have had to relearn how to participate in their education. The traditional standards of achievement and engagement in the educational process have change rapidly causing added stress for everyone involved. To support the mental health of children, it is important to validate the challenges they currently face in their learning and to remain mindful of the challenges they face in attempting to succeed in a setting they did not plan for, and likely did not want.

            Adolescents, specifically those with plans to graduate in the spring, are likely experiencing loss in a unique way. Events that teenagers have spent years planning for and looking forward to have been ripped away from them. Events like graduation and prom, senior day, or even that final goodbye with friends on separate journeys into adulthood are all lost- replaced with a seemingly cruel in-home detention. These losses are significant and these youths are valid in any anger or disappointment they may feel as a result. Let them feel these feelings. Let them communicate them. Do not try to fix it for them; the fact is, that is not something that is possible. These milestones cannot be replaced. Allow teenagers to grieve them.

            In these trying times, children and adolescents arent the only ones deserving of adjusted expectations; parents, you deserve it too. That structure and those rules you put so much effort into maintaining no longer apply; at least not absolutely. It is important to focus on surviving and caring for your mental health alongside that of your childrens. Taking care of yourself is a crucial part of taking care of them. You cannot support your children when you are burnt out from putting everything into them and nothing into yourself. It is less important in these times to rigidly restrict screen time or make sure your children are getting perfect grades it just is. So, concentrate on happiness and know that you are a good parent in doing so.

            Finally, it is okay to not be okay. It is okay to have challenges with the current state of the world, to have fear, to feel unsure; it is also okay to experience joy even in these difficult times. Celebrate small victories and take whatever opportunities you can to help yourself and your family grasp onto light in the darkness amidst all of the uncertainty. Together we can survive this and continue moving forward in our lives.

蹤獲弝け, Inc. is a regional behavioral health system in Central and West Central Indiana with corporate offices located in Terre Haute, IN. Services are provided to children, youth and adults, with specialized programs for expectant mothers, infants, and people who may be struggling with stress, life changes, or relationship issues as well as more serious problems such as depression, anxiety disorders, and serious mental illnesses.

For information on 蹤獲弝け Services call (800) 742-0787.

Protector, provider, problem solver and bravery — reflections on being a man and finding balance during the public health emergency

By Paul Schneider, Ph.D.

“There’s spirits above and behind me, faces gone black, eyes burning bright. May their precious blood bind me, Lord as I stand before your fiery light.” – Bruce Springsteen, The Rising, 2002

After 9/11, “The Boss” captured hope without negating loss. As a native of the New York Metropolitan area, my heart aches again, but this time, the damage has been more universal. 

As men, many of us have not been blessed with a huge vocabulary to describe our emotions; however, I sense that we are sharing emotional experiences during this public health emergency that will be transformative and by being mindful of this process, perhaps we can gain a bit more control of it.

If I free associate to the word man from a personal perspective, here are the first themes that come to mind protector, provider, problem solver, and bravery but how are we all doing with those things?

Protector

As protectors, we are all familiar with the fight-flight reaction. The adrenaline response temporarily transforms us into physically stronger beings. Depending upon the situation, we may choose to fight or flee.  What we often leave out is the freeze reaction. Think of the possum and “playing possum.”  Many of us, men and women alike, have been told that our role right now is to freeze until given permission to do otherwise. But others have not been given the “freeze” option in their employment, leaving them the other two alternatives. They can take some risk and fight through it, or they can flee.  We want to protect ourselves and our families, but so far it remains difficult for us to accurately calculate risk.

So, how do I protect myself and my family? It is too late for me to become a molecular biologist, so I try my best to follow the guidelines, and I remain alert for any news about what the virus doesnt like such as bleach, sunlight and distances over six feet. I clean, but not as much as two weeks ago. Mostly, these activities help with the sense of learned helplessness.  “Learned helplessness” is a model of depression which suggests it is the result of a feeling of loss of control over what is most important to us. The solution to the problem is expressed most succinctly in the Serenity Prayer:

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and Wisdom to know the difference.

Provider

Next, we have provider, and, honestly, one of the most provider type things that I am currently doing is grocery shopping. I have never seen so many men at Kroger! As a provider, I can help review our supplies and provisions, and perhaps I can occasionally make a purchase. While grocery shopping may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about being a provider, it does allow you to focus on providing in ways that you can control, and that is critical during this time.

Providers also earn and invest money, but for now, much of that is, unfortunately, in the column of things we can’t control. During this public health emergency, our job and financial security has less to do with our own behavior than ever before. In investing, we want to avoid emotional decisions, so many of us freeze, and that has been painful. 

Problem Solver

Then, we have problem solver. In my case, this is inexorably linked to probability and statistics. As I write this, my wife is sharing data on baseline infection rates in the general population. If accurate, it will turn every calculation I have done to date upside down. We dont have the numbers we need to make informed choices. Most critically, what is the baseline probability that some random individual, including me, is actively spreading the virus? What factors or variables can help identify who is spreading the virus and how?  What percentage of transmissions occur due to surfaces or when we are not within six feet of someone? Are men more likely to contract or die from the virus?  If so why?

At some level, we all play a very low probability game of Russian roulette on a daily basis. We dont stop driving because someone might cross the median and kill us.  What I feel, as a man, is that the longer my lifestyle is dramatically altered, the more risk I am willing to take to restore some semblance of normalcy. I imagine one of those large wheels at the casino.  On day 4 of physical distancing, my decision model will be much different than on day 44 or day 444.

Bravery

Finally, there is bravery.  My dad was a medic and an Army lieutenant in World War II. He earned a Bronze Star.  I did not learn of this until after he passed.  I have not donned a uniform since boy scouts or marching band and in marching band, I was third trombone, so I rarely blew a note. I do not know if I am a hero or coward. I am neither until tested. So far, this crisis has not provided that test for me. We are told that by physical distancing ourselves, we are protecting others. As a man, is it easier for you to tell yourself you are protecting others than to admit you are protecting yourself?  Could “bravery” lead to unwise risk taking?

Balance

Early on in this crisis, it was all about saving lives, and rightfully so. Now, there is talk of balancing that with the quality of life. My Mom is 100 years old and in a long-term care facility. My sons are early on in their careers. Just like many of you, I am trying to balance health and safety with quality of life for myself and those who I love. I continue to feel shocked, confused and sometimes a bit surreal, but I am also feeling that the longer this goes on, the more risk I personally am willing to take so I can find a balance that is right for me.

We have lost much control over our lives in the past months. For now, not forever, we need to learn to cope. By being mindful, and searching for the words that can describe this shared experience we can be transformative.

Protector, provider, problem solver, and bravery. While those themes are still prevalent when I think of the word man, they look a little bit different these days, and thats ok.