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Authors Posts by Jim Sharp

Jim Sharp

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The Pennsylvania Children and Youth Administrators Association (PCYA) is hosting a training on The Family First Prevention Act (FFPA) on January 30, 2019, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm at the CCAP Office, located at 2789 Old Post Road, Harrisburg, PA. The Office of Children, Youth and Families will provide an overview of Family First and update attendees on Pennsylvania’s implementation plans moving forward. Providers and county staff are encouraged to attend.

The Act and the federal funding associated with it will dramatically change PA’s child welfare system. New requirements and new opportunities for use of Title IV-E and Title IV-B dollars to enhance prevention efforts will be included in the presentation.

The registration link is provided in this flyer.

If you have questions about the training, please contact:

Brian C. Bornman, Esq.
PCYA Executive Director
County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania
Phone: 717-836-4736 | Cell: 717-836-4267 | Fax: 717-526-1020
bbornman@pacounties.org | www.pcya.org

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As we continue to work with the Department of Human Services (DHS) on the proposed Intensive Behavioral Health Services (IBHS) regulations, providers through the BHRS Work Group identified a potential solution to the real challenge of recruitment and retention of direct service staff. Providers experience varying degrees of difficulty with hiring Therapeutic Staff Support (TSS) and with recruitment of Registered Behavior Technicians (RBT). The letters below are intended to provide some guidance and assistance for those BHRS providers who need a solution to their staffing crisis.

The work group acknowledges that there are a number of other issues related to implementation of the proposed regulations and will continue to meet and collaborate on ways to address additional barriers. In the meantime, feel free to utilize these letters if necessary. Our members have reported that some of the County Oversight entities and the BH-MCOs are open to considering solutions and strategies to help address workforce challenges. If you have questions or additional input, please contact Robena Spangler.

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The Implementation Report for the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant (CMHSBG) is submitted to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) annually to report the outcomes of the grant. The report includes both financial reporting and updates on the priorities set forth in the CMHSBG Application. Changes to the priorities can only be made in the biannual application; the Implementation Report only tracks the progress of those priorities already set. The majority of the Implementation Report requires charts that are submitted separately through the National Research Institute and are not available for review at this time.

The OMHSAS Bureau of Policy, Planning, and Program Development submits the attached sections through the SAMHSA Grant site (WebBGas). Any comments or questions regarding the CMHSBG 2019 Implementation Report may be directed to Wendy Tucker or 717-705-8280.

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The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) has contracted with Mercer to conduct an extensive analysis related to the factors involved in serving youth with co-occurring mental illness and neurodevelopmental disorders, with a primary focus on youth being admitted to Residential and Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities (P/RTFs). The goal of this project is to support identification, adoption, and sustained use of best and promising practices across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and across child-serving agencies for serving this population. Mercer will test numerous hypotheses to identify underlying root causes contributing to ongoing challenges in meeting the needs of this population successfully in the community. This process will be done through:

  • Targeted interviews or focus groups with providers, behavioral health managed care organizations (BH-MCOs), primary contractors (PCs), family members, youth, and other identified system stakeholders;
  • Data analysis; and
  • Other targeted, investigative research.

Mercer will then offer actionable recommendations for systemic interventions to support sustainable improvements and provide ongoing technical assistance to support successful adoption and implementation.

The targeted interviews with the P/RTFs serving this population will be held via in-person focus groups. Mercer is requesting that, at a minimum, members from your leadership and clinical program teams are included as participants as well as any other folks that you deem responsible for the care of the population mentioned above.

It is important that all interviews are completed by the end of the calendar year. Therefore, in an effort to be mindful of possible time off for the holiday season, we would like to schedule in advance over the course of the next two months. Each focus group will be scheduled for two hours; below is the day and time scheduled for the session(s). Please place a hold on your calendars for this date/time. Focus group invite/instructions will be made available in the week.

Providers in the Southeast:
Tuesday, November 27, 2018 • 9:00 am – 11:00 am
OMHSAS Southeast Field Office
1001 Sterigere Street, Building #48, 2nd Floor
Norristown, PA 19401

Providers in the West:
Thursday, November 29, 2018 • 9:00 am – 11:00 am
George Junior Republic, Program Building
233 George Junior Road|
Grove City, PA 16127

Questions should be directed to Robena Spangler or Scott Talley.

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The National Council for Behavioral Health is helping to connect some of our members with some researchers. Western Michigan University is conducting an NIH-sponsored study to better understand the usefulness of evidence-based program registries in behavioral health care.

Are you an executive or senior staff member who is involved in selecting and/or implementing behavioral health care interventions at your agency? If so, the study would like to conduct a short telephone interview with you. If not, we are asking that you forward this email to an appropriate colleague at your agency.

The interviews are confidential; no individual or agency names will be associated with responses. In appreciation, you or your agency can receive a $25 Amazon gift certificate, as allowable.

To schedule a telephone interview and/or for more information, please email
eval-nihstudy@wmich.edu and include your agency’s name and state. Responses will come from one of the study’s collaborating organizations: The Evaluation Center, Kercher Center, Rady Hospital, or DSG Inc.

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PA Project LAUNCH is offering an opportunity for professional growth and development for fathers in the Western Region. This community health advocate training will prepare fathers to make lasting change in the health of families and communities. The paid opportunity will provide participants with:

  • 25 hours of paid training
  • Free meals and childcare during the training
  • A netbook that participants keep after the training

Participants will learn about advocacy and community engagement, gain skills in self-care, and learn how to use their experiences to make changes in their communities. The training will be held on three Saturdays (November 3, November 10, and November 17) from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm. The location of the training will be at Healthy Start Point Breeze, 400 North Lexington Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15208. Space is limited. Contact Shannon Lawhorn via phone (412-723-1342) for more details or email to find out how to apply.

This paid training is made possible through a partnership with the Allegheny County Health Department and generous funding from the Heinz Endowments and the Eden Hall Foundation.

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The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency is now accepting applications to participate in in a pilot program, the Opioid Misuse Prevention Project (OMPP).  The program is a new initiative targeting early, upstream prevention to reduce the risk factors that lead to substance misuse in general and opioids, in particular.

Ten sites will receive five years of funding to implement a public health campaign and two evidence-based programs – Lifeskills Training (LST) and Strengthening Families 10-14 (SFP) – to middle school/junior high school youth and their families. Applications are due in PCCD’s eGrants system November 15, 2018. To learn more, watch a 20-minute video about the rationale, core components, and how to apply for OMPDD funding, and visit the Evidence-based Prevention and Intervention Support Center (EPISCenter) website for additional application support materials.

About the Program
This evidence-based prevention response to Pennsylvania’s opioid epidemic relies on a combination of LifeSkills Training (LST) and Strengthening Families 10-14 (SFP). LST is a middle-school drug education and prevention program offered universally in the classroom; SFP is a family management and parenting skill development program offered to families with youth ages 10 to 14.  When offered in conjunction with each other, these programs have been shown to reduce the abuse of prescription pills by youth into their mid-twenties.

Pilot Program Implementation

  • The pilot version of the project will be implemented in 10 school districts in the Commonwealth.
  • Participating sites will be selected through a competitive process and will require a partnership between the school district, a local non-profit agency, and the Single County Authority.

The EPISCenter at Penn State University will coordinate technical assistance to ensure successful implementation.

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Community Behavioral Health (CBH) is in the process of updating the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Performance Standards. The updates reflect recent changes with the Behavior Analyst Certification Board guidelines, changes at the state level, and updates that will help promote access to quality ABA services. CBH is interested in feedback from providers, stakeholders, and families regarding the updated performance standards in its current stage.

Please review the draft of the ABA Performance Standards 2018 updates and then provide any feedback you have through SurveyMonkey. Please submit all feedback by Monday, October 29. Questions about the survey? Contact CBH Network Development Specialist Stephanie Wiseman. Thank you in advance for your feedback and participation.

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The Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Special Education is pleased to announce the following training opportunity:

2018-2019 PA Community on Transition Webinar Series – Planning for the LifeCourse

All webinars will take place from 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm

This webinar series is designed to assist individuals of all abilities think about life experiences needed to move ahead in life. Throughout the series, a cross-agency panel, including the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR), Office of Developmental Programs (ODP), Pennsylvania Youth Leadership Network (PYLN), and PaTTAN representatives will provide participants with information on what IEP teams and students need to know and do regarding setting a vision for a meaningful life, identify how to find or develop supports, and discover what it takes for students to live the lives they want to live.

Charting the LifeCourse™ and LifeCourseTools.com is a project of the University of Missouri–Kansas City Institute for Human Development, Missouri’s University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research and Services (UCEDD) and endorsed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Human Services and supported by the Pennsylvania Community on Transition.

December 5, 2018 – Planning for the LifeCourse – Employment Uses
Employment is a hallmark of adulthood and should be available for every person. The benefits of employment are significant for people with and without disabilities. Employment is feeling proud, having self-confidence, getting a paycheck, meeting new people, paying taxes, and building new skills. Daily Life and Employment is one of the Life Domains of the Charting the LifeCourse™. This webinar will feature the employment elements of the Daily Life and Employment Life Domain, including school, employment, volunteering, communication, routines, and life skills. Participants will learn how to use these LifeCourse Tools to help students envision and plan for their employment goals.

February 6, 2019 – Planning for the LifeCourse – Postsecondary Education and Training Uses
This webinar will address the Daily Life and Employment Life Domain, specifically, education and training opportunities. Participants will learn how to use the LifeCourse Tools to help students envision and plan for their postsecondary education and training goals. The session will highlight ways the tool can be used in educational settings to create transition goals and identify needed services and activities.

April 1, 2019 – Planning for the LifeCourse – Independent Living
This webinar will address the LifeCourse Domains of Community Living, Healthy Living, and Safety and Security. Participants will learn how to use the LifeCourse Tools to assist students to envision their goals for living an independent life. The tool will be reviewed with regard to educational entity to guide a team in planning for desired living situations, taking control of health care, and finding the balance between staying safe and personal autonomy.

Audience:
Special Education Administrators, Transition Coordinators, Special Education Teachers, General Education Teachers, School Counselors, School Psychologists, Agency Partners, and Families

No continuing education credit (Act 48) will be offered. Certificates of Attendance will be available 30 days after each event.

Registration Information:
You may register online by clicking on the name of the event on the Training Events Calendar. For questions regarding content, please contact Hillary Mangis, PaTTAN Pittsburgh, by phone (800-446-5607, x68780) or email. For questions regarding registration, contact Pam Ranieri, PaTTAN Pittsburgh by phone (800-446-5607, x6840) or email. To obtain directions to PaTTAN, please select the appropriate location here.

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E&C #SUBHEALTH

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | September 27, 2018
Contact: Press Office | (202) 226-4972

#SubHealth Convenes Hearing Titled “Better Data and Better Outcomes: Reducing Maternal Mortality in the U.S.”

Live Webcast
Click here to watch the hearing beginning at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Opening Statement of Health Subcommittee Chairman Michael C. Burgess, M.D.
Good morning. Thank you to everyone for joining us this morning to discuss a topic that is important to each and every one of us, maternal mortality. This is a subject matter that has been brought to the forefront by Members of this Subcommittee, actions of State Legislatures, and the media. Having spent nearly three decades as an OB/GYN, I believe it should be a national goal to eliminate all preventable maternal mortality – even a single maternal death is too many.

All too often do we read about stories of seemingly healthy pregnant women who are thrilled to be having a child, and to everyone’s surprise, suffers severe complications, or death during pregnancy, birth, or post-partum. The death of a new or expecting mother is a tragic event that devastates everyone involved, but in many cases these are preventable scenarios.
Read more…

Opening Statement of Chairman Greg Walden
Today the Subcommittee on Health is holding a discussion on the critical issue of maternal mortality. In fact, we will examine as issue that is literally a matter of life and death for women all across the country. Thank you, Dr. Burgess, for calling this hearing. As someone with decades of real-world experience as an OB/GYN, you know better than most how important this issue is.

This is a difficult topic, and one that is close to my heart. Far too many mothers die because of complications during pregnancy and the effects of such a tragedy on any family is impossible to comprehend.
Read more…

Witness Testimony and Additional Background 
Click here to view the hearing background memo and witness testimony on the Energy and Commerce Committee website.

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