DMH UCLA Public Mental Health Partnership

Presented by Jennifer Wisdom, PhD, MPH, ABPP Intergenerational Communication Challenges introduces generations (from boomers to Gen Z) and identifies how each generation has its own experiences, worldviews, and perspectives. Dr. Wisdom will solicit ideas from attendees on how intergenerational challenges show up in their workplace and describe how these challenges in the workplace can be associated with generational perspectives, such as different views on what it means to show respect or display loyalty. Dr. Wisdom will provide strategies for communicating across the generations, both for older generations (boomers and Gen X) to communicate with younger generations (millennials and Gen Z), and vice versa. This training is intended for field-based mental health and outreach workers in Los Angeles County.

Presented by Danielle Farmer, MSEd, LCSW. Studies show that 83% of U.S. workers suffer from work-related stress, with 25% naming their job as the number one stressor in their lives (The American Institute of Stress, 2022). These rates are even higher for individuals in social service settings due to factors such as emotional labor and the traumatic realities that clients may face. These factors place outreach workers at higher risk for work-related traumatic stress. Therefore, it is vital that field-based outreach workers are equipped with the knowledge and tools needed to understand how work-related stress develops and self-care practices to combat it. This training will define and explore concepts related to work-related stress such as burnout, vicarious trauma, and the physiological impacts of chronic and/or traumatic stress. Participants will discuss the history of self-care, its roots in radical community movements, and how it relates to field-based outreach workers. Participants will learn a plethora of self-care practices using a holistic approach and will have work time to create an individualized wellness plan for themselves using learned self-care practices. This training is intended for field-based mental health and outreach workers in Los Angeles County.

Presented by Elizabeth Mackey, LMSW and Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW. This training will focus on models of integrated care, including integrated, coordinated, and co-located care models, and related skills for practicing care coordination across systems. The importance of coordinated care will be explained through the social determinants of health (SDOH) framework, highlighting integrated care/care coordination as an intervention that mitigates the impacts of SDOH. This training will teach providers how to identify key care partners within systems, as well as advocacy and collaboration best practices. Attendees will be given an overview of chronic health conditions common within populations experiencing serious mental illness (SMI) and being unhoused, and how non-medically trained providers can support access to and continued engagement in primary and specialty medical care. This training is intended for field-based mental health and outreach workers in Los Angeles County.

Presented by Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW, Danielle Cameron, ACSW, MSW and Larry Fernandez, LCSW, MSW. Group therapy can be an effective and impactful therapeutic intervention for consumers of community mental health services, providing a space for processing, peer support, and social skills practice. This training will explore both the practicalities of starting and maintaining a group within a community mental health setting, as well as specific evidence-based interventions and modalities that can be used to ensure a group remains helpful and supportive to participants. This training is tailored for community mental health providers working in field-based settings in Los Angeles County.

Presented by Danielle Cameron, ACSW, MSW and Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW. Group therapy can be an effective and impactful therapeutic intervention for consumers of community mental health services, providing a space for processing, peer support, and social skills practice. This training will explore both the practicalities of starting and maintaining a group within a community mental health setting, as well as specific evidence-based interventions and modalities that can be used to ensure a group remains helpful and supportive to participants. This training is tailored for community mental health providers working in field-based settings in Los Angeles County.

Presented by Paul Brodwin, PhD. In this session, participants will review the recurring ethical issues faced by case managers who work with people with severe mental illness, learn the definitions of "ethical dilemma" and "moral distress," and how to distinguish between them in practice, and lastly, through interactive case studies, gain experience in recognizing and resolving ethical concerns about boundaries, equity, and the gap between personal ideals and workplace realities.

Presented by Julie Cohen, LMFT and Danielle Farmer MSEd, LCSW. This training will provide Full Service Partnership (FSP) team members with a foundational understanding of assertive engagement principles and strategies when working with parents and caregivers. Participants will learn the core concepts of assertive engagement, including active listening, empathy, and effective communication techniques. The training will focus on building rapport, establishing trust, and collaborating with parents and caregivers to support their child's progress and wellbeing within the FSP program. By the end of the training, participants will have gained essential knowledge and skills to begin implementing assertive engagement strategies in their interactions with parents and caregivers.

Presented by Stacy D. Goldsholl, MA. This training will give field-based mental health service providers an overview of the prevalence of smoking among persons living with serious mental illness (SMI), and review its implications on health. Stacy D. Goldsholl will review the effectiveness of evidence-based practices for smoking cessation for persons with SMI. Goldsholl will also discuss how providers can assess an individual’s smoking status and their willingness to quit. She will do this by providing information on behavioral counseling for individuals who are interested in quitting through a motivational interviewing approach, and offering guidance on how to choose an approach to help someone quit smoking. She will then recommend adaptations for individuals who have cognitive deficits. Additionally, Goldsholl will review smoking cessation pharmacotherapy options, their safety and efficacy for individuals with SMI, and recommendations on treatment duration. She will also discuss treatment recommendations for individuals who are not interested in quitting smoking, and provide treatment options for active smokers.

Presented by Emily C. Dossett, MD, MTS. Pregnancy and postpartum can be joyful, but they can also be full of stress, physical changes, and worsened psychiatric symptoms for people with serious mental illness (SMI). At the same time, reproductive needs in the SMI population have historically been overlooked or ignored. This training will discuss how the perinatal period affects psychiatric symptoms and how providers can address these changes. We will also use a reproductive justice lens to think about pre-pregnancy psychiatric consultation as well as family planning for people with SMI. The target audience for this training is field-based intensive mental health services providers who work with individuals impacted by severe mental health disorders.

Presented by Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW. Outreach and Engagement (O&E) is a key phase of treatment across Full Service Partnership (FSP) and Homeless Outreach Mobile Engagement (HOME) teams within Los Angeles County. During this time, it is crucial to begin building a solid therapeutic relationship with clients. We will discuss techniques to reinforce this relationship, including shared decision making and other collaborative strategies. This training will also facilitate a space for reflection on engagement practices from both a clinical and practical lens. Utilizing evidence-based practices from trauma informed care to motivational interviewing, this brief training aims to strengthen providers' skillsets overall. Time will be taken to engage in dialogue and role play for the unique challenges that O&E can present providers and the teams they work within across multiple systems of care.

Presented by Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW and Larry Fernandez, LCSW, MSW. Mental illness and co-occurring disorders can influence the length of time in establishing a trusting therapeutic relationship. Assertive engagement involves the use of interpersonal skills and inventiveness to engage clients and interest them in subsequent care. It entails taking multidisciplinary services directly to the people in encampments, streets, sidewalks, alleyways, schools, and other public spaces, followed by the provision of ongoing support. This training will cover assertive engagement strategies that are most helpful with adult clients with mental illnesses that may include co-occurring substance use disorders. Strategies will include evidence-informed modalities (motivational interviewing, harm reduction, strengths-based), informal/creative approaches, as well as opportunities for learners to apply these strategies using case vignettes. The intended audience for this training is field-based community mental health providers and outreach workers.

Presented by Sam Tsemberis, PhD and Ana Stefancic, PhD. This training will describe the concept of program fidelity, how the principles and practices of Full Service Partnership (FSP) programs are operationalized to measure FSP model fidelity, and how to use fidelity assessments as part of quality improvement. We use narratives and vignettes to illustrate how to apply FSP fidelity principles and practices in real-world programs to enhance service delivery for individuals experiencing mental illness as well as homelessness, substance use, and/or physical health challenges.

Presented by Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW. This training discusses the concepts of uncertainty, rumination, and self-care. The presenter discusses how uncertainty and rumination contribute to an increase in anxiety and stress.

This training serves as a follow-up to the previous training, Working with Justice-Involved Clients: Part 1, which took place on May 17, 2023. This training will more closely examine how the justice system interacts with individuals with serious mental illness (SMI). Participants will review statistics regarding individuals with SMI in the justice system and the best practices for discussing mental health in the courtroom setting. This training will highlight important practice points for clinicians, such as strategies for coordinating and advocating on behalf of clients in the justice system, as well as ethical considerations. Recorded on June 7, 2023.

This is an overview of the criminal justice system, including alternatives to incarceration for clients with serious mental illness (SMI), and a discussion of the roles and responsibilities of the clinician while working with clients. The training will include information related to the Los Angeles County jail and court systems, practice points related to working with clients with SMI, navigating the case and the courtroom, and discussion of some of the related ethical considerations and the impact on the clinician's work. This training is tailored for community mental health providers working in field-based settings in Los Angeles County. Recorded on May 17, 2023.

Presented by Shayan Rab, MD. This presentation will outline key principles in field-based psychiatric services through a model developed by the HOME Team. Psychiatrists will learn how to adapt traditional psychiatric services for service delivery in the field and gain a better understanding of the DMH innovations available to support field-based psychiatry. The presentation will outline how to utilize a team-based approach in supporting community reintegration and the role of a psychiatrist in critical psychosocial interventions, including housing support. Internal and external DMH clinical resources will also be shared to enhance collaboration and care-coordination efforts. This training is tailored for community mental health providers working in field-based settings in Los Angeles County.

Presented by Elizabeth Mackey, LMSW and Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW. This training focuses on expanding the practice, knowledge, and skills of social workers, case managers, peers, psychologists, and psychiatrists who work in Full Service Partnership (FSP) programs in Los Angeles County. The training builds on the prior FSP Training Collaborative series topics (recovery-oriented and trauma informed care) to provide education on harm reduction principles and practice. Part 3: Focuses on harm reduction’s practical application. Topics will include safer substance use strategies and resources, overdose prevention, medication-assisted treatment (MAT), and COVID-19 considerations.

Presented by Elizabeth Mackey, LMSW and Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW. This training focuses on expanding the practice, knowledge, and skills of social workers, case managers, peers, psychologists, and psychiatrists who work in Full Service Partnership (FSP) programs in Los Angeles County. The training builds on the prior FSP Training Collaborative series topics (recovery-oriented and trauma informed care) to provide education on harm reduction principles and practice. Part 2: Begins with a review of the stages of change model and motivational interviewing (MI) as critical for continued engagement and goal setting with clients around substance use. 

Presented by Elizabeth Mackey, LMSW and Chelsea Simms, LCSW, MSW. This training focuses on expanding the practice, knowledge, and skills of social workers, case managers, peers, psychologists, and psychiatrists who work in Full Service Partnership (FSP) programs in Los Angeles County. The training builds on the prior FSP Training Collaborative series topics (recovery-oriented and trauma informed care) to provide education on harm reduction principles and practice. Part 1: Defines harm reduction and describes its historical, cultural, and political context in the HIV/AIDS crisis and the evolution of the criminalization of drugs in the United States, with a particular emphasis on the War on Drugs’ role in exacerbating systemic racism and stigma. 

Effective care coordination is essential for supporting positive outcomes in clients with complex medical and mental health needs. This is especially true for child and adolescent clients involved with multiple agencies or systems. This training will examine the best practices for engaging in professional collaboration on behalf of youth clients. Participants will explore theoretical approaches to care coordination and case management activities, review the various systems with which youth clients may be involved (e.g., schools, the juvenile justice system, DCFS, etc.), discuss care coordination techniques to use within these systems, and finally, troubleshoot barriers to successful collaboration. Staff of all roles on mental health or outreach teams that engage in any case management or therapeutic activities with youth clients are encouraged to listen.