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Substance Use Disorder

The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) has launched MyOMHSAS, its enterprise learning management system, providing tailored training modules and resources on behavioral health topics. Accessible to everyone, MyOMHSAS offers courses like Suicide Prevention in Care Management, Assisted Outpatient Treatment, Transgender Resources, and Child and Adolescent Service System Program (CASSP)/System of Care (SOC), with more modules planned for the future, such as Anti-Ageist Practices, Cultural Humility, and Working with LGBTQ+ in the Community.

To access training modules, users need to register and log in on the MyOMHSAS website. For inquiries or suggestions, contact OMHSAS via email. If you have additional questions, contact RCPA COO and Policy Director Jim Sharp.

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In response to the escalating number of nonviolent offenders requiring competency restoration, Treatment Advocacy Center is offering a free training session titled “Dismiss Upon Civil Commitment With AOT: One Alternative to the Competency Restoration Crisis.” This session delves into Pennsylvania’s civil commitment law and the implementation of Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT). Learn from community leaders and explore the benefits of AOT over competency restoration. Register for the July 30 session in Butler or the August 1 session in Allentown. CLEs, CJEs, and CEUs available.

View the flyer for more information.

Photo by Markus Winkler from Pexels

Press Release from Angler West Consultants, Inc.

May 13, 2024 — Inperium, Inc. and Resources for Human Development (“RHD”), multi-state nonprofit providers of behavioral health and other social support services, have agreed to affiliate and create one of the nation’s largest and most comprehensive human services networks, spanning eighteen states. In its first year, the combined enterprise is expected to generate $800 million in annual revenues.

Inperium will invest in RHD to advance its mission, and the parties will combine their administrative operations to generate economies of scale and enhance overall performance. The affiliation is expected to close the third quarter of 2024 following the regulatory approvals. In the interim, pursuant to a Transitional Services Agreement, Inperium will deliver services to enhance RHD’s operational and financial performance.

Jay Deppeler, Interim Chief Executive Officer of RHD, commented: “I and the other members of the RHD management team look forward with great anticipation to this next chapter in the evolution of this extraordinary nonprofit organization. Inperium is one of the fastest growing nonprofits in America with an impressive record of consistently exceptional performance. Combining the RHD and Inperium service networks will enhance the continuum of care for the people we support. I commend and thank the RHD Board for the enormous energy and determination it invested to lead this transformational undertaking to a successful conclusion.”

Ryan D. Smith, Founding President and Chief Executive Officer of Inperium, explained: “Inperium creates opportunities for mission-driven human services providers like RHD to grow and innovate by providing them with capital and state-of-the art infrastructure, which in turn enables Inperium’s affiliates to devote all their focus on providing best-in-class supports and services to vulnerable and underserved populations. Our affiliation with RHD represents a defining moment and a major next step in expanding the scope, scale, and success of the Inperium network. As we approach our tenth year of operations, our affiliation pipeline remains robust, and I expect to announce additional affiliations in the near term, including Inperium’s inaugural affiliation on the West Coast.”


About Angler West Consultants

Angler West is an intermediary that assists nonprofit consolidators in the execution of acquisition and divestiture programs involving specialty healthcare and human services organizations. Founded in 1996, Angler West has the transaction experience and industry relationships to help your company grow profitably.

Angler West Consultants, Inc.
J. Kevin Fee, President
Phone: 215-630-8336
Email

Keep Your Providers Happy and Thriving With Going Back to In-Office Care
Monday, June 10, 2024
11:00 am – 12:00 pm EST
Register Here

Join RCPA Partner Eleos Health on June 10 for a webinar focusing on recruiting and retaining staff across behavioral health in PA. Andrew Schimitt from Gaudeniza will join Eleos to share insights around how implementing Eleos has helped increase staff satisfaction. We will also show a brief demonstration of Eleos to see it live in action!

Webinar attendees will:

  • Evaluate how Eleos Health’s augmented intelligence can help to address top workforce challenges while improving care;
  • Witness Eleos live in action through a brief demonstration; and
  • Apply lessons learned from Gaudenzia to their own organization.

Register today!

Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash

Full Diagnosis: Impact of Trauma, Physical Health, and Metabolic Health
May 22 and 23, 2024

The full conference schedule for the 2024 Pennsylvania Dual Diagnosis Conference is now available! To view the conference schedule, view the flyer or visit the Dual Diagnosis Conference website.

About the Event
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Office of Developmental Programs and Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services invite you to participate in the statewide Dual Diagnosis Conference being held virtually next week on May 22–23, 2024. Nationally recognized speakers will provide a variety of perspectives on the impact of trauma, physical health, and metabolic health.

Registration
There is no fee to attend the virtual conference, but advance registration is required. Closed captioning and ASL will be provided during the livestreaming of the conference. Register here today!

This is an announcement that the 988/Crisis Work Group meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 22, has been cancelled. RCPA will reschedule the meeting in the coming months. Currently, there is no movement or update in the OMHSAS Crisis Regulations release for public comment. Additionally, at this time, OMHSAS is making structural changes in their Policy and Crisis divisions. There are legislatively very few federal or state bills suggesting substantive changes in the development of the 988 system.

If you have any questions, please contact RCPA COO & MH Policy Director Jim Sharp.

A new bulletin addressing revisions to the Older Adults Protective Services Act (OAPSA) has been released by the Commonwealth Court. This bulletin specifically focuses on clarifying the legal standing of certain provisions, notably the “lifetime employment ban” for individuals with criminal convictions. Enacted in 1987, OAPSA aimed to protect Pennsylvania’s older population from exploitation, neglect, and abuse, establishing a program for their safeguarding, including those in mental health inpatient and residential facilities. However, subsequent amendments in 1996 introduced a permanent employment ban for individuals convicted of certain crimes. Despite this, a 2015 ruling by the Commonwealth Court found this provision unconstitutional, citing violations of due process guarantees under the PA constitution.

The full bulletin, titled “Bulletin OMHSAS-24-03 Employment Bans in OAPSA,” can be accessed here. Further inquiries regarding OMHSAS-24-03 can be directed to OMHSAS via email. You can also contact RCPA Policy Director and COO, Jim Sharp, with any additional questions.