Advocacy E-News July 17, 2015
July 17, 2015
ADVOCATES CALL ANCORA’S USE OF RESTRAINTS ‘SERIOUS’
When Ancora Psychiatric Hospital’s inspection reports came to light last month, it wasn’t the improperly stored insulin and expired medications, or the overcrowded bedrooms, or even the missed physical therapy sessions that most concerned New Jersey mental health advocates. Inspectors found two patients had been restrained at least three times within a 30-day period without anyone updating their treatment plans to prevent future episodes. Restraints are considered an expensive, violent and potentially harmful practice that can prolong recovery and raise the cost of health care.
SHOOTINGS BY POLICE IN HACKENSACK SPURS TASK FORCE
In response to two recent police-involved fatal shootings of Hackensack residents with mental illness, the city manager, mayor and council announced this week that they will form a task force to help people with mental illnesses.
Mayor John Labrosse said at the end of Tuesday’s council meeting that the city needed to move “as fast as possible” to get the cameras for officers and quickly shifted his remarks to the community’s obligation to help its residents.
Lawyers for family of Hackensack man fatally shot by police planning lawsuit
HOMELESS VETERANS FIND THEIR PLACE THROUGH COMMUNITY HOPE
Community Hope — a nonprofit organization that helps homeless veterans and those combating mental illness find a place to live or recover. 1,350 veterans in New Jersey and Pennsylvania have received similar help in the past four years from the agency’s Supportive Services for Veteran Families program. The program has a focus on homelessness prevention
AFFORDABLE HOUSING HELPS THOSE WITH A MENTAL ILLNESS
When you think about mental illness, chances are that some of the treatment options that pop into mind include things like talk therapy and cognitive behavioral approaches. What probably doesn’t: good housing opportunities. A growing body of research has shown that a new approach — combining wraparound services with quality housing opportunities — is crucial to recovery.