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RETIRED JUSTICE EVELYN LUNDBERG STRATTON'S VETERANS' CRIMINAL JUSTICE & MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES NEWS

“Sharing Information to Benefit All Veterans”

FEBRUARY 05, 2017

Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton, Retired Veterans in the Courts Initiative

Evelyn Lundberg Stratton retired from the Ohio Supreme Court at the end of 2012 so as to pursue more fully criminal justice reforms with a particular emphasis on veterans who become involved with the justice system. She

established the Veterans in the Courts Initiative in 2009. Video http://bit.ly/1glCXZ0

Subscribe to this free weekly, all volunteer-generated, news summary by joining our Veterans in The Courts Initiative Group http://bit.ly/1DZ3esD

4,621 providers of veterans’ services just like you, nationwide & internationally, receive this free

newsletter directly. Another 11,000+ can see it on 5 social media sites. My blog has been viewed by over 5,000 people in 52 countries. Thank you for sharing!

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TOPIC PAGE TOPIC PAGE

FEATURED STORIES 1 COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES 27

OPPORTUNITIES 3 GENERAL NEWS 32

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT 5 "VETERANS IN JUSTICE" LINKEDIN GROUP 34

OHIO 8 OTHER LINKEDIN GROUPS 34

STEPPING UP INITIATIVE 11 VETERANS IN THE COURTS INITIATIVE BLOG 35

VETERANS TREATMENT COURTS 17 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 35

PTS/TBI/MST 19 HOW TO JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER 35

SUICIDE 26

FEATURED STORIES

CA: California Veterans Legal Task Force’s California Veterans Treatment Court Survey December 2016 http://bit.ly/2kr53vO

Editor’s Note: This in-depth look at California’s veterans treatment courts was provided by author Duncan MacVicar, Consultant, California Veterans Legal Task Force. Thank you for allowing us to share your report with our readers.

Executive Summary: Veterans Treatment Courts (VTCs) in California are based mostly on

the two alternative justice statutes for veterans, Penal Code Sections 1001.80 and 1170.9,

but they also employ other applicable law. Supervision time of veteran participants is

usually in the range of 12 to 18 months, with a few shorter and a few longer than that.

VTCs convene once or twice per month, with a few having weekly calendars. Court capacity

ranges to over 100.

VTCs are the principal source of alternative sentencing for veterans in the state. Although

PC 1170.9 applies outside the VTC setting, its use in other courtrooms is infrequent.

Of course, VTCs include a variety of offenses. With 8 courts providing data, we found these

to be the most common (see question #19): Driving Under the Influence 30% Drug

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possession 17% Domestic violence 15% (even though some VTCs do not admit DV cases)

Other violent offenses 12% Crimes against property 12%

These data reveal tendencies of veterans toward self-medication and toward violent

behavior.

Also, concerning domestic violence: Nearly half of VTCs have created a veteran-specific

alternative to the mandated batterers’ intervention program, authorized by Penal Code

Section 1203.097(a)(6). Plus, a majority of VTCs entertain family reunification, in contrast

to the usual approach to DV; this approach sometimes includes modifications to protective

orders. But very few remove protective orders prior to graduation from the VTC program.

VTCs adopt a wide variety of eligibility criteria. One-fourth of them require VA eligibility in

order to be admitted to the court. See question #5.

Numerous agencies, including VA, identify veterans in the system and refer them to VTCs.

See question #7. Then, for the most part, admission decisions are made following

discussion among the VTC teams.

During supervision, a wide variety of service providers are utilized in the creation of

treatment plans. But VTC teams have little knowledge of the mental health treatment

capabilities of local military installations.

Less than 40% of VTCs divide their programs into phases or levels. Phases are differentiated

mostly by frequency of court appearances.

Despite the fact that Penal Code Section 1170.9 paragraph (h), which provides for

restoration of rights to compliant VTC graduates, has been in effect for three years, less

than half of VTCs have provided restorative relief thus far.

Most VTCs document their procedures using forms and protocols. They need to improve

data gathering, however; this improvement could be facilitated by funding the Evaluator

position on the VTC team.

Additional future surveys should study how the criminal justice system affects children and

families of veterans.

GI Jane Needs a Place to Sleep http://bit.ly/2kuIRRl Editor’s Note: This article was written by and contributed to The Huffington Post by Lily

Casura, a contributor to this newsletter.

Every other year around this time, including this year, volunteers fan out across their

communities on a single night, attempting to count the homeless. As part of that count,

they also attempt to eyeball who’s a homeless veteran. Later, this count is put together with

a tabulation of how many people pass through services geared to the homeless in a year,

like shelters, to get a federal estimate of both how many homeless there are across

America, and also how many veterans are homeless.

See any problems with this picture, like who it might leave out? That would be women

veterans, the fastest growing demographic of homeless veterans, who are highly unlikely to

appear lurking under a bridge or staying in shelters, because of their trauma histories and

because they’re often single parents with dependent children in tow. Research Survey: Women Veterans and Housing Instability II

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OPPORTUNITIES

Research Survey: Women Veterans and Housing Instability II http://bit.ly/hwvsurvey2 PLEASE SHARE WITH WOMEN VETERANS: If you're a woman who served in the U.S. military

in any era, please take this university-approved survey about housing issues after you left

the military. If you're an advocate, please share it with women veterans. Thank you for your

help! (No active duty, please.)

Research Survey: Oregon Health & Science University: Using Social Media to Engage Veterans in Health Care http://bit.ly/2kCjHjM

Hello! I am a doctor and researcher at Oregon Health & Science University, and I invite you

to take a survey about veterans and social media. This survey takes the average

participant 11 minutes.

Your answers on this survey matter. I know veterans are used to filling out paperwork that

does not seem to go anywhere. I will use your opinions and responses to help us design a

new program for veterans, one that uses social media to connect with veterans and

promote their health.

Hidden Heroes is Hiring! http://bit.ly/2kkoq9R

The Elizabeth Dole Foundation’s Hidden Heroes is looking for two dynamic and enthusiastic

professionals to join our Washington, DC office!

Hidden Heroes Programs Coordinator

o The Hidden Heroes Programs Coordinator will have the opportunity to help

shape the Foundation’s two fastest growing programs: The Hidden Heroes

Cities Program and the Hidden Heroes National Coalition/Resource Directory.

This position works closely with the Executive Director and the Foundation

Programs Manager to help sustain and grow the Foundation’s MSO and VSO

partnerships.

Operations Administrator

o The Operations Administrator is responsible for supporting Foundation

operations and infrastructure by maintaining office workflow procedures, and

helping to ensure maximum efficiency by serving as primary operations

support to all members of the Foundation staff.

Request for Applications: Cohen Veterans Bioscience AMP IT UP http://bit.ly/2kCRSI1 The AMP IT UP Preclinical Program announced the posting of the RFA, Translational

Preclinical Animal Model Systems of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, on January 6, 2017.

The purpose of this RFA is to further validate, characterize, and develop existing and novel

animal model systems of PTSD that will be useful for screening novel therapeutics and/or

elucidating mechanisms of disease.

Please click here to find complete details for the RFA, the submission process, and our

application portal.

This opportunity is open to all and we invite you to forward the link to friends, colleagues,

and other list serves. The application due dates are February 6, 2017 (Full Application Type

A and Pre-Application Types B & C) and April 6, 2017 (Full Application Types B & C).

Questions may be directed to Patricia Kabitzke (patricia.kabitzke@cohenbio.org).

Apply to be a Tillman Scholar by March 1st http://bit.ly/2kuuXyM

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Founded in 2008, the Tillman Scholars program supports our nation’s active-duty service

members, veterans and military spouses by investing in their higher education. Since the

program’s inception, the Foundation has named over 450 Tillman Scholars at more than 100

institutions nationwide.

Applications to become a 2017 Tillman Scholar will close on March 1, 2017 at

11:59pm PT. To start your application, click here.

The scholarship covers educational expenses, including tuition and fees, books and living

expenses. But scholars receive much more than just funding.

Our program unites the best talent and leadership in the military to make a significant

impact in the fields of medicine, law, business, policy, technology, education and the arts.

Read our Application One Pager and explore the profiles of the Tillman Scholars to see what

distinguishes our most successful applicants.

Questions? Review the FAQs.

Ohio National Guard Scholarship Program - makes college an affordable pursuit for Guard members http://bit.ly/2kCNaKz

COLUMBUS, Ohio (01/30/17) — Since its inception in 1977, the Ohio National Guard

Scholarship Program has helped tens of thousands of young people throughout Ohio by

paying for their college tuition. Presently, that cost could be anywhere from $4,000 to

$14,000 per year, depending on the college or university. Guard members in good standing

can get up to 100 percent of their tuition paid for by the program, enabling them to focus

entirely on their studies and their future.

. . . The ONGSP has been helping Guard members earn an associate or bachelor’s degree

for 40 years. Education benefits are a significant incentive for recruiting and retaining

quality Soldiers and Airmen in the organization.

There are two options available for those who decide to take advantage of the scholarship

program (The lifetime maximum is 96 Educational Units, regardless of the number of

reenlistments).

A 3-year enlistment, with a maximum of 48 Educational Units (two years, full-time),

of tuition assistance toward an undergraduate degree at a participating Ohio college

or university during enlistment, or

A 6-year enlistment with 96 Educational Units (four years, full-time).

The VA Seeks Industry Partners (VA Healthcare Conference May 15-18 Washington D.C. http://bit.ly/VAHealthcareLI

The VA has made amazing strides to ensure Veteran healthcare and benefits. However, to

ensure the VA remains prepared to battle these challenges, new partnerships, acquisitions,

and relationship building has become a top priority.

Some of the challenges include eliminating the backlog of patients requiring care, raising

the level of patient satisfaction, while simultaneously introducing new technology.

Do you have a solution or service that can assist the VA with these challenges?

If so I’d like to discuss your involvement at the upcoming VA Healthcare Conference

(http://bit.ly/VAHealthcareLI) this May 15-18 at the Sheraton Pentagon City in Washington

D.C.

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This event provides an unparalleled opportunity to meet those who are actively seeking new

ideas and solutions to strengthen our VA Health Care system including:

• Tom Murphy, Principal Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits, Performing the Duties

of Under Secretary for Benefits

• Curtis Coy, Deputy Under Secretary of Economic Opportunity

• Rick Lemmon, Acting Chief Procurement and Logistics Officer

• Andrea Ippolito, Lead, VA Center of Innovation

• Baligh R. Yehia, MD Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Community Care

• And more!

To discuss your involvement at the conference contact Dionne Vaz at +1-646-378-6022 or

Dionne.Mariavaz@iqpc.com

NIH: All of Us Research Program announces funding opportunity for community partners http://bit.ly/2kCvfUa

The National Institutes of Health has announced a new opportunity for organizations

interested in helping engage volunteers in the All of Us Research Program, part of the

Precision Medicine Initiative.

This funding opportunity, open to national and regional organizations, as well as local

community groups, will support activities to promote enrollment and retention in the All of

Us Research Program across diverse communities.

All of Us is an ambitious effort to gather data over time from 1 million or more people living

in the United States, with the ultimate goal of accelerating research and improving health.

Unlike research studies that are focused on a specific disease or population, All of Us will

serve as a national research resource to inform thousands of studies, covering a wide

variety of health conditions.

Researchers will use data from the program to learn more about how individual differences

in lifestyle, environment and biological make-up can influence health and disease.

By taking part, people will be able to learn more about their own health and contribute to an

effort that will advance the health of generations to come. NIH plans to launch the program

later this year.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AMSUS SmartBrief http://bit.ly/2kuAXaB

OMB, OPM, VA list exceptions to federal hiring freeze

Tricare dental benefits changing for active-duty personnel's families

DHA plans 24 health IT projects for FY2017

Study: VA's effort to reduce opioid prescriptions worked

Navy veteran named HHS CISO

VA SAIL Report: End of Year Hospital Star Rating (FY2016) http://bit.ly/2kkhDNm The Veterans Health Administration uses a comprehensive performance improvement tool

called Strategic Analytics for Improvement and Learning (SAIL) that includes key metrics

used by the private sector as well as additional metrics that are important for addressing

access to care, quality of mental health care, employee perception about the organization,

nursing turnover and efficiency.

The metrics are organized into 9 Quality domains and one Efficiency domain. The Quality

domains are combined to represent overall Quality.

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Each VA medical center is assessed for overall Quality from two perspectives:

Relative Performance compared to other VA medical centers using a Star rating

system from 1 to 5 and

Improvement compared to its own performance from the past year.

Both relative performance and size of improvement are used to focus improve efforts.

SAIL is designed to include actionable metrics that are important to assess healthcare

delivery and quality. However, many of these metrics are not publicly reported by other

hospitals and systems.

Therefore, it is not appropriate to directly compare evaluation findings derived from SAIL

with other systems published by public and private sectors. Instead, SAIL is developed for

the VA to drive internal system-wide improvement.

In 2016 82% (120 out of 146) of VA Medical Centers Reported on SAIL Showed

Improvement Compared to Their Baseline One Year Earlier.

The table below (in the article) displays relative performance in star rating in the third

column and size of improvement in arrows in the fourth column that indicate whether

medical center performance has improved, stayed the same or declines from the past year.

VA: True North: Newsletter of the VA National Center for Ethics in Health Care http://bit.ly/2kundNj

Letter from the Director Dear Colleagues, I’m very pleased to tell you about two important

initiatives from NCEHC. T

he first is the Life-Sustaining Treatment Decisions Initiative, which officially got under way

with the recent publication of VHA Handbook 1004.03,

Life-Sustaining Treatment Decisions: Eliciting, Documenting, and Honoring Patients’ Values,

Goals and Preferences. I would like to congratulate the many individuals in our Center who

worked so hard toward the publication of this Handbook, which will have a transformative

impact on the care of seriously ill Veterans at the end of life.

This huge milestone will ensure that all Veterans receive treatment that is consistent with

their values, goals and preferences. It is also an inspiring example of VA setting a standard

and being a model for health care organizations around the world.

The second initiative is about moral distress. In early December 2016, nearly one thousand

employees in VA facilities around the nation viewed the NCEHC Ethics and Professionalism

Grand Rounds webinar with Dr. Ann Hamric, a leading scholar on moral distress in health

care. In case you missed it, you can view the webinar and take the post-test for continuing

education credit here.

Unfortunately, moral distress is a common experience in many health care systems. Based

on our early work with employees in our medical facilities, it is common in VA as well.

VA: Bob McDonald’s legacy: Trying to fix the VA amid constant conflict http://bit.ly/2kvezxU

. . . During his two and a half years as the face of the VA, an agency trying to climb its way

out of disgrace, McDonald was often criticized.

But in his final weeks, he saw an outpouring of support, gaining endorsements from more

than 25 veterans organizations to retain his position as VA secretary and continue his

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transformation initiative, “MyVA.” Many leaders of veterans groups, like Brown’s, praised his

receptiveness and hard work.

Many of those leaders, experts and employees have said – and McDonald was ready to

admit - the VA has seen some progress in recent years, but not enough.

“I think top line, Bob McDonald stopped the bleeding,” said Paul Rieckhoff, founder of Iraq

and Afghanistan Veterans of America. “I think we always knew VA turnaround was going to

be long, hard and complicated.

It needed to start with stopping the bleeding, creating a baseline of integrity and rebuilding

trust. I think Bob McDonald did that.”

VA: BLS Data – January 2017 http://bit.ly/2kxTRgN As with the first Friday of each month, the BLS employment statistics were released

today. Attached is our monthly ‘cheat sheet’ for your use and information. The national

unemployment rate for January 2017 increased slightly from 4.7% to 4.8% and the Veteran

unemployment numbers for January 2017 increased from 4.1% to 4.5%.

Thanks to all of you who are working directly or indirectly, to ensure our Veterans have

meaningful employment.

BLS_Employment_Data_January_2017.pdf

V/R

Curtis L. Coy

Deputy Under Secretary for Economic Opportunity

Veterans Benefits Administration

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

VA Local Events & Other News

VA Sioux Falls Town Hall, Feb. 1st

Philadelphia VAMC Town Hall, Feb. 8th

Memphis VA Medical Center Town Hall, Feb. 9th Muskogee VAMC Public Invited to Visit Veteran Patients on National Salute to Veterans

Patients, Feb. 12th – 18th

Cleveland VAMC Veterans Listening Session & Resource Fair Feb. 15th

Roseburg VAMC Town Hall Meetings, Brookings - Feb. 15th & North Bend - 16th Coatesville VAMC to Host Town Hall Meeting, Feb 27th

Cincinnati CVAMC Town Hall March 1st

VA to recognize tribal organizations as Veteran representatives

Cincinnati top 10 VA Medical Center

VA/American Heart Association Women's Health Services Heart Health Campaign

VA offers free, online courses to help #Veterans cope with the demands of their daily

lives.

Bay Pines VAHCS Medical Legal Partnership MLP Program

VA dental insurance pilot program extended for enrolled Veterans

The Veteran Appointment Request App is Here!

Calling all artists: The National Veterans Day poster contest now under way

Nominations Now Open: 2017 William A. Nelson Award for Excellence in

Health Care Ethics

VA Providence Veteran PTSD Research Study

CGVAMC Diabetes Research Published

Shreveport VA director removed from post

VA confirms Overton Brooks medical director reassigned amid allegations of wrongdoing.

VA's National Cemeteries lead nation in satisfaction survey

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Find your next job through VA Careers and USAJOBS

VA leader exempts many jobs from federal hiring freeze

VA Puget Sound HCS Adaptive Curling Clinic for Local Veterans

VA OIG Reports OIG December 2016 Monthly Highlights

Former Physician Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud Scheme

Review of Alleged Waste of Funds on a Cloud Brokerage Service Contract

Review of Alleged Improperly Sole Sourced Ophthalmology Service Contracts at the

Phoenix VA Health Care System

VA OIG Administrative Investigation Advisory – Alleged Improper Use of Relocation

Program and Incentives, Veterans Health Administration (14-04097-139)

VA OIG Administrative Investigation Advisory – Alleged Improper Telework and

Ineffective Supervision, Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System, Omaha, Nebraska

(14-04690-140)

VA OIG Administrative Investigation Advisory – Alleged Preferential Treatment in Hiring,

Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks, Fayetteville, Arkansas (14-01418-141)

Review of Alleged Human Resources Delays at the Atlanta VA Medical Center

Review of the Implementation of the Veterans Choice Program

o VA statement about Office of Inspector General review of implementation of the

Veterans Choice Program

Combined Assessment Program Summary Report – Evaluation of Inpatient Flow in

Veterans Health Administration Facilities

Healthcare Inspection – Echocardiography Scheduling and Quality of Care Concerns,

Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital, Hines, Illinois

Additional resources from my blog LIST OF VA TOWN HALLS & OTHER MEETINGS NATIONWIDE: http://bit.ly/1Gg1DN6

OHIO

Attorney General DeWine Announces $2.6 Million in Grants to Create Trauma Recovery Centers http://bit.ly/2kCOux3

(COLUMBUS, Ohio)— Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced today that he is

awarding more than $2.6 million in grants to create five Trauma Recovery Centers in Ohio

that will provide crisis intervention to hospitalized traumatic violent crime victims.

Ohio will be just the second state in the nation with a network of Trauma Recovery Centers.

Attorney General DeWine made the announcement today at The Ohio State University

Wexner Medical Center, which is among the grant recipients.

"These Trauma Recovery Centers will fill a gap in connecting victims of crime to services,

especially those within underserved, vulnerable populations that may face barriers in

accessing or may not know how to access victim services," said Attorney General DeWine.

"This program will ensure that victims will not have to seek out support on their own,

because help will immediately be brought to them."

. . . The partnerships receiving grant awards to create TRCs in Ohio are: The Ohio State University STAR Program and The Ohio State University Wexner

Medical Center: $839,335

Circle Health Service sand University Hospitals (Cleveland): $993,424

May Dugan Center and MetroHealth (Cleveland): $545,363

Seven Hills Neighborhood Houses and Cincinnati Children's Hospital: $125,685

CitiLookout and Springfield Regional Medical Center: $171,963

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EVENT: Cleveland VAMC Veterans Listening Session & Resource Fair Feb. 15th http://bit.ly/2kuJBWz

Health care and benefits questions will be answered at the Veterans Listening Session &

Resource Fair Feb. 15. We hope you'll join us!

Cincinnati VAMC ranks nationally as a top 10 VA medical center http://bit.ly/2ko1x52

Veterans Health Administration Office of Analytics and Business Intelligence released its

year-end Strategic Analytics for Improvement and Learning (SAIL) report.

In it, the Cincinnati VA Medical Center (VAMC) ranks 10th nationally out of 128 facilities,

giving the Cincinnati VAMC a 5-star facility rating.

(https://www.va.gov/QUALITYOFCARE/measure-

up/Strategic_Analytics_for_Improvement_and_Learning_SAIL.asp)

EVENT: Cincinnati VAMC Town Hall, March 1st http://bit.ly/2kCBqaR Calling all Veterans! Mark your calendars for the Cincinnati VA Medical Center Town Hall on

Wednesday March 1, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. in the auditorium at the Cincinnati VA Medical

Center (3200 Vine Street).

Water restrictions imposed at Pittsburgh VA hospital http://bit.ly/2kCUNR7 PITTSBURGH (AP) - Authorities say water restrictions have been implemented in many

areas of a Veterans Affairs hospital in Pittsburgh due to discovery of the bacteria that

causes Legionnaires‘ disease.

Veterans Affairs officials said routine testing at the hospital in the city’s Oakland section

turned up the Legionella bacteria in many areas throughout the facility.

Spokesman Michael Marcus, however, said there have been no confirmed cases of hospital-

acquired Legionnaires‘ disease.

Dr. Brooke Decker, the hospital’s director of infection protection, said the restrictions

include no use of the water supply for drinking, showering, bathing or washing hands.

Portable hand-washing stations have been set up and bagged ice and bottled water are

being provided.

Supreme Court of Ohio Specialized Dockets Newsletter for February 3, 2017 http://bit.ly/2kCvKgV

A summary of current and future activities regarding specialized court dockets in Ohio and

nationally.

Cleveland Veteran Featured in National News Story: GI Jane Needs a Place to Sleep http://bit.ly/2kuIRRl

Editor’s Note: This article was written by and contributed to The Huffington Post by Lily

Casura, a contributor to this newsletter.

Every other year around this time, including this year, volunteers fan out across their

communities on a single night, attempting to count the homeless. As part of that count,

they also attempt to eyeball who’s a homeless veteran. Later, this count is put together with

a tabulation of how many people pass through services geared to the homeless in a year,

like shelters, to get a federal estimate of both how many homeless there are across

America, and also how many veterans are homeless.

See any problems with this picture, like who it might leave out? That would be women

veterans, the fastest growing demographic of homeless veterans, who are highly unlikely to

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appear lurking under a bridge or staying in shelters, because of their trauma histories and

because they’re often single parents with dependent children in tow.

Ohio Women Veterans Advisory Committee 2017 Calendar of Events (PFD) http://bit.ly/2krxXf9

Since 1994, the Ohio Department of Veterans Services' Advisory Committee on Women

Veterans has served to "locate, educate and advocate for all women veterans who served in

the United States military."

The committee is dedicated to outreach through various initiatives including the creation of

an informational Web site, the organization of a statewide women veterans conference and

the promotion of benefits and superior health care for women veterans.

The committee serves as a focal point of information for all women veterans.

The committee acts as a liaison and advocate on behalf of women veterans with state

legislators, veterans affairs administrators and county veterans service offices.

Members of the committee ensure the programs and policies of the Department of Veterans

Affairs remain open to women and are mindful of those elements of the veteran experience

unique to women.

Chief Justice O’Connor Announces Support for Prescription Database Access for Drug Courts http://bit.ly/2kCQXYd

Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor today applauded Gov. John Kasich’s

proposal to expand access to the state’s prescription drug monitoring program, known as

the Ohio Automated Rx Reporting System (OARRS), to include the state’s drug courts. She

urged the General Assembly to move legislation as quickly as possible.

“At a time when Ohio faces the most significant drug abuse problem in its history with the

opioid epidemic crippling individuals, families and our state, it is important that our courts

have access to every tool available to combat this scourge,” Chief Justice O’Connor said. “I

applaud Gov. Kasich’s initiative and, as I have in the past, support expanding access to this

critical tool.”

Nineteen states allow access to their prescription drug monitoring programs by judges and

prosecutorial officials.

Ohio National Guard Scholarship Program - makes college an affordable pursuit for Guard members http://bit.ly/2kCNaKz

COLUMBUS, Ohio (01/30/17) — Since its inception in 1977, the Ohio National Guard

Scholarship Program has helped tens of thousands of young people throughout Ohio by

paying for their college tuition. Presently, that cost could be anywhere from $4,000 to

$14,000 per year, depending on the college or university. Guard members in good standing

can get up to 100 percent of their tuition paid for by the program, enabling them to focus

entirely on their studies and their future.

. . . The ONGSP has been helping Guard members earn an associate or bachelor’s degree

for 40 years. Education benefits are a significant incentive for recruiting and retaining

quality Soldiers and Airmen in the organization.

There are two options available for those who decide to take advantage of the scholarship

program (The lifetime maximum is 96 Educational Units, regardless of the number of

reenlistments).

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A 3-year enlistment, with a maximum of 48 Educational Units (two years, full-time),

of tuition assistance toward an undergraduate degree at a participating Ohio college

or university during enlistment, or

A 6-year enlistment with 96 Educational Units (four years, full-time).

Additional resources from my blog

OPERATION LEGAL HELP OHIO http://bit.ly/1Gg0HbK

RESOURCES FOR VETERANS http://bit.ly/1Gg21LH

OHIO JOBS FOR VETERANS http://bit.ly/1CL3Ay0

RESURRECTING LIVES FOUNDATION http://bit.ly/1R9toOV

EVENTS FOR OHIO VETERANS http://bit.ly/1Tx7tix

EVENTS FOR LAWYERS & OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS FOR OHIO VETERANS http://bit.ly/2fQHYN7

RESOURCES FOR OHIO VETERANS http://bit.ly/2fQNEql

STEPPING UP INITIATIVE Editor’s Note: Closely associated with Veterans Treatment Courts and other specialty docket courts dealing with mental illness is the new STEEPING UP INITIATIVE. Stepping Up is a national initiative to reduce the number of people with mental illness in Jails. Stepping Up and similar initiatives are an important evolution in the treatment of veterans and others incarcerated with mental illness. Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundeberg Stratton (Retired) is the Director of Stepping Up Ohio. We have decided to create this new section of Retired Justice Stratton’s News Clips, rather than bury the stories somewhere else. We particularly wish to thank County Court Judge Ginger Lerner-Wren in The Criminal Division of the 17th Judicial Circuit, Broward County of Florida, a Pioneer and Creator of America's first mental health court dedicated to the decriminalization of people with mental illness, for sending us news articles to share with you.

EVENT: Register for Webinar: Assistance for Law Enforcement Agencies Responding to the JMHCP Solicitation Feb. 9th http://bit.ly/2kCKgFC

. . . In this webinar, officials from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice

Assistance and The Council of State Governments Justice Center explain the FY2017 Justice

and Mental Health Collaboration Program (JMHCP) solicitation and its application process for

law enforcement program applicants.

JMHCP supports innovative cross-system collaboration to improve responses to people with

mental illnesses and co-occurring substance use disorders who come into contact with the

criminal justice system.

This solicitation specifically seeks to increase early identification and front-end diversion of

people with mental health and co-occurring substance use treatment needs.

Treatment Advisory Center Eliminating Barriers to the Treatment of Mental Illness News & Commentary http://bit.ly/2kCqaLI

Join Us February 6th In Person or Online for a Discussion About "Emptying the 'New

Asylums'"

Join the Treatment Advocacy Center on February 6 at the American Enterprise

Institute in Washington, DC, in person or online, for an important event on our new

report , Emptying the 'New Asylums': A Beds Capacity Model to Reduce Mental

Illness Behind Bars.

This groundbreaking research report shows how even small changes to public policy

can significantly reduce forensic beds waits at relatively low cost, providing those in

need with #aBedInstead.

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RESEARCH WEEKLY: Beyond "Emptying the 'New Asylums'"

If the US psychiatric bed supply were a hospital patient, it would be on a critical

care unit, possibly even on life support. The Treatment Advocacy Center's newest

study proposes a course of treatment to improve the health in at least one aspect.

Emptying the 'New Asylums': A Beds Capacity Model for Reducing Mental Illness

Behind Bars takes a mathematical approach to the critical shortage of treatment

beds for mentally ill inmates who cannot come to trial because they do not meet

legal standards of mental competence.

An estimated 90,000 inmates reach jail annually with psychiatric symptoms that

render them incompetent to stand trial (IST) without treatment. Many states provide

competency evaluation and treatment services in the jails or the community, but

state hospitals remain the default option for IST inmates.

With fewer than 12 beds per 100,000 people in the United States, there is a shortage

of beds to serve all these inmates in a timely fashion.

As a result, inmate bed waits are common, and some of those waits are months

long. More than a dozen states are already being sued or threatened with legal

action over the constitutionality of such waits, during which inmates often receive no

treatment and only become more ill.

New Report: "Emptying the 'New Asylums': A Beds Capacity Model to Reduce Mental Illness

Behind Bars"

Relatively small changes in common practices could dramatically reduce the mass

incarceration of individuals with serious mental illness and its human and economic

toll, according to a new report released today by the Treatment Advocacy Center.

Emptying the 'New Asylums': A Beds Capacity Model to Reduce Mental Illness Behind

Bars uses a mathematical model to project the impact of changing any one of three

factors on the logjam of jailed mentally ill defendants who cannot be tried because

they are too ill, but who remain incarcerated because psychiatric beds needed to

restore them to competency are unavailable.

An estimated 90,000 defendants require such services annually. Because of

psychiatric bed shortages, the majority of states maintain waiting lists of such

inmates, and some of the lists are months long. More than a dozen states are being

sued or threatened with legal action over the constitutionality of the widespread

practice.

The three impacts projected by the model were reducing the number of people with

serious mental illness being arrested and added to bed waitlists, eliminating

administrative and other non-clinical factors that lengthen state hospital stays, and

increasing the number of beds.

Treatment Advocacy Center Executive Director John Snook called the findings game-

changing. The modeling project, based on queueing theory (the study of waits),

projected that:

In Florida, diverting two mentally ill offenders per month would reduce the

average forensic bed wait in the state by 75%, from an average of 12 days to

three days.

In Texas, reducing the average hospital stay from 189 days to 186 days

would reduce forensic bed waits from an average of two months to three

days.

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In Wisconsin, increasing the number of forensic beds from 70 to 78 beds

would reduce waits for competency services from nearly two months to two

weeks.

Emptying the 'New Asylums': A Beds Capacity Model to Reduce Mental Illness Behind

Bars Emptying the 'New Asylums': A Beds Capacity Model to Reduce Mental Illness Behind

Bars reports the findings of a mathematical model built to project whether relatively

modest selected changes to the status quo could break this logjam.

Data from five sample states were used for to model the effect of three specific

changes. Eight recommendations for state and federal lawmakers are proposed in

response to the findings from modeling bed and waitlist

IL: Play written, performed by former prison inmates to be staged at church http://trib.in/2kkoXsd

Former state prison inmates will offer a glimpse into life behind bars in a play to be

presented Sunday at the DuPage Unitarian Universalist Church in Naperville.

"A Day at Stateville" was penned by four men who served time at the Crest Hill-based

correctional center and will be performed by former inmates as well.

It's part of the "Changing Minds" campaign, a statewide effort by the Illinois Institute for

Community Law & Affairs to win support for Illinois House Bill 3668. The legislation "would

allow people who are at least 50 years old and have been incarcerated in an Illinois prison

for 25 years or more to apply for sentence modification," according to the University of

Illinois' Educational Justice Project.

OH: Ohio to get residential mental-health center for those released from hospitals http://bit.ly/2kCA3sH

When ground is broken in May for the $2 million Adam-Amanda Mental Health Rehabilitation

Center in Athens, the two namesakes won't be there.

Adam Knapp and Amanda Baker, two young adults who struggled with mental illness, took

their own lives after the mental-health system failed them, family members say.

But their parents and other supporters say the center bearing their names will be a

"pathway to hope and healing" for others. It will be the first residential rehabilitation facility

in Ohio — and one of few in the nation — to provide longer-term care for patients released

from psychiatric hospitals.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness Ohio is spearheading the project, which is designed

as a "step-down" facility for patients from Athens' nearby state hospital, Appalachian

Behavioral Healthcare.

OR: Emergency psychiatric services now available in Portland http://bit.ly/2kCrIFm After a long period of planning and construction, the Unity Center for Behavioral Health has

opened its doors to those who may be experiencing a mental health crisis.

The $40 million facility is open 24 hours a day and was built in a partnership between

Legacy Health, Adventist Health, Kaiser Permanente and Oregon Health and Science

University. It holds 80 adult beds and 22 beds for youth age nine through 17.

On Jan. 31, existing behavioral health patients from Adventist Medical Center, Legacy

Emanuel and Legacy Good Samaritan medical centers, as well as Oregon Health and Science

University, were transferred to Unity Center, located at 1225 N.E. 2nd Ave.

On Feb. 2, the center's psychiatric emergency service (PES) began accepting walk-ins and

transfers from local emergency departments.

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The emergency service is an outpatient service where a psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse

practitioner will evaluate patients and create a treatment plan for the person's individual

needs. The area inside is laid out in a "living room design" with recliners, group space and

calming rooms.

Patients there can be observed for a few hours up to 23 hours before returning to the

community. It was designed so that police would respond less to 911 calls about mental

health crises and prevent long waits in hospital emergency rooms.

SD: Mental health care getting its just due By Dr. Charles Sherman, Human Service Agency http://bit.ly/2kCrdv5

It seems the need for mental health services has come to the forefront in the media and to

many in the judicial system. Mental health care has recently been held up as a valuable and

necessary care needed by those who find themselves involved in the court system.

In South Dakota we now have drug courts in many cities. In Watertown, we have the first

veterans court. The vet court is to help veterans who have gotten into trouble as the result

of adjustment difficulties following deployment.

We also have a new mental health court opening soon in Rapid City. The South Dakota Chief

Justice David Gilbertson is the prime sponsor of legislation in Pierre which calls for additional

training for those people who work in jails and screening for those who land in jail.

For many years we have taught mental health first aid classes here in Watertown along with

many of the other mental health centers who taught the class in their communities.

Two years ago we began teaching our law enforcement personnel a program called

Community Intervention Training. This five day training program gives law enforcement

officers skills to assess people who are having mental health problems.

The new legislation proposed by justice Gilbertson will come with oversight committees to

review the various processes. The amount of training being called for is extensive. Court

service officers, states attorneys, court appointed attorneys, judges and prison personnel all

will be required to obtain training in mental health issues.

The use of a screening tool in jails is applauded — as long as there is training and

consultation from community mental health centers who partner with our detention centers

across South Dakota.

It is imperative to involve the community mental health centers in the training and allow the

professionals to do their work. Any need for a more thorough assessment of mental health

issues needs to be done by professionals trained in the field.

Funding of these initiatives needs to come from some source other than current funding for

mental health services. Please don’t steal from Peter to pay Paul. We are certainly not over-

funded currently.

TN: Mental Health Courts now in Rutherford County http://bit.ly/2kkerRM A Mental Health Court in Rutherford County is the latest Recovery Court in our area. The

Mental Health Court will add to the idea of alternatives to jail and reach for recovery just as

the DUI, Veterans and Drug Court's already do.

. . . Mental health courts link offenders who would ordinarily be prison-bound to long-term

community-based treatment. They rely on mental health assessments, individualized

treatment plans, and ongoing judicial monitoring to address both the mental health needs of

offenders and public safety concerns of communities.

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TN: WMCTV: Mental health initiatives gaining support in Nashville http://bit.ly/2kzXoLH . . . The topic of mental health is front and center this week after Metro Police Officer Eric

Mumaw died while trying to help someone who was suicidal.

"It shouldn't be a crime to be ill. We wouldn't lock someone up with cancer or for a heart

attack," said Davidson County Sheriff Daron Hall.

In Nashville, however, the sheriff's department has no other choice but to do that right now.

"I can't tell you how many people call and want their family member arrested because there

is no mental health treatment in the community," Hall said.

"Unfortunately right now our jails are becoming the new psychiatric facilities with a very

large percentage of people with mental illness ending up in jail," said Amanda Bracht with

the Mental Health Cooperative.

According to Hall, one-third of the Davidson County jail population is suffering from some

sort of mental illness.

But that is expected to change in 24 months with the new jail and treatment facility being

built in Nashville.

"What we are doing unlike anywhere in the country, when you arrive in the

future, if you have a misdemeanor and are mentally ill you won't go to jail,

instead you will go into a diversion unit," Hall said.

For example, Hall said the man who climbed onto a highway sign and blocked traffic for

hours last year would not have had to sit in a jail cell after that incident.

"That individual was diagnosed with anxiety and he was criminalized, put in jail for 20 days,

and sentenced as a criminal, when he was really mentally ill. That was the whole reason he

did it," Hall said. "We want to arrest what really is the issue, not the person."

Mental health is not just an issue in the criminal justice system, but society as well.

"I would say the system is very challenged right now and that we are getting to the point of

a crisis in our system because we don't have the resources to meet the demand," Bracht

said.

Those resources are now getting more attention and funding by the city and state this year.

Police officers are also getting annual training from the Mental Health Cooperative on how to

handle mental illness in the field and where to take them.

"I'm very proud of where we are headed," Hall said.

TX: New report highlights mental health issues in Texas jails http://bit.ly/2kr5XZd . . . Cowling’s story is one of many in the Texas Law Civil Rights Clinic’s report Preventable

Tragedies: How to Reduce Mental Health-Related Deaths in Texas Jails. The report tells the

stories of 10 “tragic and preventable deaths” in Texas jails and offers recommendations to

the jail system for the treatment of people with mental illnesses.

According to the report, there are “severe and persistent failures” in the Texas jail system

that abandon mentally ill people.

Ranjana Natarajan, director of the Civil Rights Clinic at the School of Law, who worked on

the report, said the purpose of the report is to raise awareness and provide solutions to

Texas legislators on what to do about this issue.

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“These people’s stories hardly get out there,” Natarajan said. “It may be difficult to make

uniform rules and requirements since there is a great variation among jails, but maybe

these people’s lives will make it possible.”

The UT School of Law hosted a discussion about the report Tuesday afternoon. Two authors

of the report, Amanda Gnaedinger and Alex Stamm, and Diana Claitor, executive director of

the Texas Jail Project, analyzed some of the mental health problems featured in the report.

They also speculated what could have been done to save the lives of inmates whose stories

were highlighted in the report.

“The stories were incredibly hard to hear, let alone write about,” Gnaedinger said. “All we

can do now is make sure we do something about it. We can fix so much for so many.”

Virginia: Bill aimed at investigating deaths, mental health screenings in Virginia jail fails because there’s no money http://bit.ly/2kzO22D

The state does not have enough money to pay for independent investigations into inmate

deaths at jails, lawmakers decided this week.

A bill to fund two investigators, at $275,000 a year, was tabled by a House appropriations

subcommittee.

It’s a familiar refrain in the General Assembly: We support the idea, but can’t afford it.

The legislation came out of a commission that examined the high-profile 2015 case of

Jamycheal Mitchell, a 24-year-old who died in the Hampton Roads Regional Jail after

stealing $5 in snacks from a 7-Eleven. He lost about 40 pounds and died from weight loss

and heart complications.

“We’re not ignoring this problem, we just need the finances,” said Del. Scott Lingamfelter,

R-Woodbridge, the subcommittee chair.

WA: Editorial: Mental Health Court works — numbers can gauge how well it works http://bit.ly/2kzJZDk

A 2016 report by Mental Health America, a national nonprofit group, rated the 50 states and

Washington, D.C., on 15 measures and found Washington ranked 50th — second to last —

on getting care to those who need it.

A federal judge last year held the state in contempt of court over providing timely services

to mentally ill defendants.

This came two years after the state Supreme Court ruled that boarding psychiatric patients

temporarily in hospital emergency rooms and acute care centers, due to lack of room at

psychiatric treatment facilities, is unlawful.

There are approaches that help those who need it, and one Yakima County program shows

particular promise with mentally ill individuals who run afoul of the law.

Superior Court’s Mental Health Court, which has been operating for three years, aims to

help defendants find stability in their lives through efforts such as dealing with substance

abuse, finding the right medications, reconnecting with family and friends, and eventually

contributing to society through work or attending school.

. . . Advocates point out the program is the not for everybody, such as registered sex

offenders. Those going through the program must be willing participants and pay $150

before they graduate.

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The extent of services and number of staffers needed to make it viable also limit the reach

of the program. But the good stories we’re hearing will get stronger once the numbers back

them up.

VETERANS TREATMENT COURTS

CA: Man gets probation, treatment for stealing cop car http://bit.ly/2kCjQnj A transient man was sentenced to three years of supervised probation and admission to the

Veterans Treatment Court program Friday after he pleaded no contest to misdemeanor

charges related to resisting a police officer and stealing a police car last year, according to

the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

CA: Homeless veterans receive a hand up at North County Stand Down http://bit.ly/2kCzXRL

VISTA — The inaugural North County Veterans Stand Down rang with pride and patriotism

Jan. 26 to Jan. 28. Flags of every military branch lined the dirt entry road to Green Oak

Ranch where the event was held.

The three-day Stand Down provided a wide range of essential services to homeless

veterans, and aimed to raise their morale and awaken their motivation.

Medical, dental, legal, counseling and other needed services were available.

. . . Next door to the pop up boutique was an on site misdemeanor court. Veterans who pre-

registered for court services were warmly welcome, heard by a judge, and legally pardoned

for outstanding traffic tickets and other minor offenses.

The onsite court was staffed by volunteer professionals and followed all the procedures of a

city courthouse. Extensive legal research was done on each veteran to ensure proceedings

ran smoothly.

Terri Peters, County of San Diego public defender, volunteered as an attorney. She said the

court service really helps veterans who have given their all for our country.

Without clearing misdemeanors veterans could be stopped from obtaining a DMV

identification card, or being hired for employment.

Nineteen veterans went through court that morning. Navy veteran Tamye Edwards was one

of them. Edwards said she was not aware of her past ticket and is glad to have it cleared

up. “It was a good stop for me,” Edwards said.

FL: Bay Pines VA Healthcare System Medical Legal Partnership MLP Program http://bit.ly/2kuwlS2

The Bay Pines VA Healthcare System Medical-Legal Partnership (MLP) program is a

collaboration between the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center, Stetson University Veterans

Law Institute, Bay Area Legal Services, and Gulfcoast Legal Services.

The program will become available to Veterans enrolled for care with the Bay Pines VA

Healthcare System on February 1, 2017.

What is the MLP Program and who is eligible for services?

The MLP program encourages service delivery collaboration between medical and legal

practitioners. MLP Attorneys train VA health care teams to screen for legal Veterans’ legal

needs. The health care teams then refer Veterans to on-site legal clinics, whose pro bono

attorneys provide advice, intervention, and representation.

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The health and legal teams collaborate to resolve the issue and provide any necessary

follow-up services.

IN: 'It isn't easy' - Three graduate from La Porte Veteran's Treatment Court http://bit.ly/2kCndea

La PORTE — Friends, family members, judges, prosecutors, office holders, fellow soldiers

and loved ones packed into La Porte Superior Court 3 on Tuesday to honor and celebrate

the graduation of three participants in the Veterans Treatment Court program, bringing to

six the number who have graduated in the past three years.

This was the third group to complete the vigorous program, which is aimed at helping

veterans who may be struggling with mental illness or substance abuse issues and who

have run into trouble with the criminal justice system. Those who complete the voluntary

program receive favorable sentencings — specifically, reduced jail time.

MA: At Middlesex jail, a sheriff’s program worth praising http://bit.ly/2kCU7vf . . . In contrast, for the past year, with hardly any attention, Middlesex County Sheriff Peter

Koutoujian and his staff have developed an innovative approach that is transforming lives

for the better, lowering recidivism rates and raising the odds that those who have served

their country can become more responsible, productive citizens.

Friday marked the first anniversary of the Housing Unit for Military Veterans at the

Middlesex jail and house of correction, the first of its kind in New England, and really the

only one quite like it nationwide. Its acronym is HUMV, or Humvee, an armored vehicle that

once protected many of the younger vets in the unit.

“We wanted to create a unit that could specifically address the needs of those who have

served in the military,” Koutoujian said. “The therapeutic model is unique.”

Koutoujian tapped Paul Connor, an Army veteran, to run the unit. They got a waiver from

the state, so that pre-trial prisoners and inmates already serving their sentences could be

housed together. The HUMV is set up like a barracks, bunks lined up in the self-contained

unit.

The walls are lined with the insignias of the five service branches and other military images,

including the flag raising on Iwo Jima and a poignant, haunting image of St. Christopher

watching over a kneeling soldier.

The men in the unit are broken down into squads, sharing chores and other duties, which

builds camaraderie and accountability.

Not every veteran in the jail population is selected to join the unit. It can hold up to 54

men, but the most they’ve had at one time is 38. Veterans from every conflict era since

Vietnam have served time in the HUMV.

TX: Fort Hood graduates first veterans from VETS Court program http://bit.ly/2kuxd9g The Fort Hood Veterans Endeavor for Treatment and Support (VETS) Court graduated its

first three veterans Friday at the III Corps headquarters building.

The veterans graduated after a year of counseling, alcohol-abuse treatment and peer

mentoring in order to clear their records from federal misdemeanors.

A year and a half ago, the program did not exist. It is the first federal veterans treatment

court operating on a U.S. military installation and allows veterans suffering from the mental

effects of their military service to get the treatment they need to become productive

members of society again.

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Maj. Gen. John Uberti, deputy III Corps commander, said it was an honor to host the first

graduation of the VETS Court.

Virginia: Helping Vets: The Diversion Docket http://bit.ly/2krm3lv CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) -- Of the more than a million veterans returning from war,

around 20 percent come back with mental illness, according to the mental health experts.

At times, mental illness can lead to crime and then jail time.

Court systems across the country continue to look for ways to help veterans. Chesapeake is

working to get the mentally ill what they really need: Treatment instead of punishment. It's

also a way that the city can do the right thing for those who served our country.

. . . Inside the Chesapeake jail are 151 inmates with mental illness and 47 veterans.

Chesapeake Behavioral Director Joe Scislowicz believes those two groups need similar

treatment, but jail is not the place to get it.

"That shouldn’t be the first course of treatment," he said. Scislowicz and Chesapeake

designed an alternate path through the court system.

"One of the things we identified was that we had an opportunity to have a behavioral docket

and veterans' docket, it could release the number of folks we have in jail," he explained.

The idea was to create mental illness docket, but one that included veterans.

Here's how it works: The jail or the public defender identifies a veteran or person with

mental illness who has committed a crime. Generally, it will be someone who is accused of a

misdemeanor and is frequently in trouble. They will have to plead guilty and go before a

special judge on the docket. Instead of jail time, the person will get immediate treatment.

"The sooner you can get someone into treatment, when they are motivated, the more likely

they are to follow through and have success," Scislowicz said.

WA: Local quilters honor military service at Thurston County Veterans Court http://bit.ly/2kCU963

Traditionally, graduates of Thurston County’s Veterans Court depart with a certificate, a

salute from the judge, and some kind words from court staff members.

But recent graduates have received something extra: homemade quilts stitched by the

women at Tumwater’s Ruby Street Quiltworks, through the Quilts of Valor Foundation.

Staci Coleman, Veterans Court coordinator, said the community has been supporting the

program since it began in July 2009. Veterans Court is one of Thurston County’s therapeutic

courts — like Mental Health Court, DUI Court and Drug Court — and operates through the

District Court system.

Additional resources from my blog

LIST OF NATIONAL AND STATE LEGAL ASSISTANCE RESOURCES FOR VETERANS http://bit.ly/19DC5zu

U.S. VETERANS TREATMENT COURTS LOCATIONS http://bit.ly/1Lf1VX5

PTS/TBI/MST

PTSD Summit urges new legislation for military veterans http://bit.ly/2kzRf1V The American Military Veterans Foundation held a PTSD Summit in Cape Coral, FL, Thursday

to educate state, county and city leaders of the growing epidemic of PTSD and suicide in the

veteran community.

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The PTSD Summit committee started in September 2016 when a spike in veteran suicides

was noticed in the community. They decided it was time to reach out to government leaders

for support and discuss the next step towards making "Camo Alert" a reality.

The alert would notify the public when a veteran coping with PTSD was missing in the

community. The notification would work similar to an Amber Alert.

Heading the efforts locally are National Board of Director for The American Military Veterans

Foundation, Keith Cambell.

"We are coming together with other veterans organizations, law enforcement and

government to gap the loop holes in the current legislation," said Cambell. "We want to see

faster turnaround on missing PTSD veterans."

Cohen Veterans Bioscience Newsletter, January 2017 http://bit.ly/2kCNWHv Listening to Veterans: Garrett Combs, MBA, MPP

AMP IT UP - Second Preclinical Workshop

AMP IT UP - Request for Applications

Early Signal Foundation's "Wireless Program"

Alliance Partner Spotlight: In Silico Biosciences, Inc.

VA PTSD Monthly Update January 2017 http://bit.ly/2ko3zSI

Feature Topic: Managing Stress Reactions after Trauma

Research shows that people who have been through trauma, loss, or hardship in the

past may be even more likely than others to be affected by new, potentially

traumatic events.

Self-Care After a Traumatic Event

Learn what to expect following a traumatic event and how to manage stress

reactions on our website:

o Coping with Traumatic Stress Reactions: Active ways to cope with traumatic

stress, with tips for coping with specific PTSD symptoms.

o Negative Coping and PTSD: Ways of coping with PTSD that cause problems

and should be avoided.

o Self-Care After Disasters: Ways to cope when you have been through a

disaster.

Self-Help Options

Mobile App: PTSD Coach. With you when you need it, PTSD Coach is a free iPhone

app that can help you learn about and manage symptoms that commonly occur after

trauma. Also available for Android.

PTSD Coach Online. Learn to manage troubling symptoms after trauma (desktop).

Mindfulness Practice in the Treatment of Traumatic Stress. Discusses changes in your

way of life that can help with PTSD.

Professional Help

Tips on Finding a Therapist.

What's Stopping You? Overcome Barriers to getting care for PTSD.

VA Mobile App: PTSD Coach http://bit.ly/2kvquf0

PTSD Coach has now been downloaded over 100,000 times in 74 countries around the

world.

The PTSD Coach app can help you learn about and manage symptoms that often occur after

trauma.

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Features include:

Reliable information on PTSD and treatments that work

Tools for screening and tracking your symptoms

Convenient, easy-to-use tools to help you handle stress symptoms

Direct links to support and help

Always with you when you need it

Providing you with facts and self-help skills based on research.

Download the mobile app

Free PTSD Coach downloadfrom:

iTunes (iOS) and Google Play (Android)

Now available for Canada (in French) and other versions on iTunes.

Also see PTSD Coach ONLINE for desktop use: choose from 17 tools.

DCoE Webinar Rewind: Seek Help Early for Substance Abuse Following TBI http://bit.ly/2kxUWFB

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) and substance use disorder share many symptoms, and one

condition may often complicate the other. Experts from the Defense and Veterans Brain

Injury Center (DVBIC) discussed the problems service members can face when the two

conditions intersect during a webinar hosted by the Defense Centers of Excellence for

Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury.

Research shows that substance misuse is responsible for 37-50 percent of all TBIs.

The majority of individuals who experience a TBI have a history of substance misuse, which

often continues after the injury. In addition, a TBI itself can lead to substance misuse, said

Lars Hungerford, a senior clinical research director for DVBIC.

“TBI is actually a risk factor for binge drinking, even after controlling for PTSD and

demographic factors,” Hungerford said.

Research: Concussion foundation received nearly 650 new brain donations in 2016 http://bit.ly/2ky3Sux

Concussions and the brain damage they cause are increasingly on people's minds.

The Concussion Legacy Foundation, devoted to studying and preventing head trauma in

sports, announced Thursday that 647 new athletes pledged last year to donate their brains

after death for research, which brings the total to 1,467.

The foundation currently is studying 400 brains, of which 277 belonged to athletes.

. . . Recent research revealed that the number of concussions does not cause or explain the

severity of CTE. The accumulation of repeated hits—the kind that linebackers routinely

deliver in daily practices and walk away from without symptoms that would warrant a

concussion evaluation—damages the brain more than several memorable collisions.

. . . Another persistent problem with concussion protocol, according to Nowinksi, is that

players still conceal their injuries to stay on the field. "The players aren't reporting

anything," he said. "You cannot get two concussions in the NFL or you are gone. You get

labeled as a concussion case and you won't be given a good contract. Or you'll be cut."

Players also do not understand what researchers consider concussions. They reported

feeling 27 "dings" for every one concussion, according to a survey of 730 college players by

Harvard and Boston University in 2013. "Dings" are the same as concussions, according to

Nowinski.

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The foundation has effectively motivated teams at all levels to reduce tackling in practices,

a strident recommendation made after showing CTE can cause dementia, Alzheimer's

disease and Parkinson's disease.

Research: Cognitive Behavior Therapy Most Effective Treatment for OCD, Anxiety and PTSD http://bit.ly/2kktLhr

. . . The main findings were:

1- Cognitive Behavior Therapy is a very powerful treatment for anxiety, ocd and

post-traumatic stress disorders

2- While DCS significantly augmented CBT, the effects were very small (less than 4

points difference between DCS and placebo on a scale ranging between 0-100).

3- We found no significant interactions between DCS and antidepressants

Note: as a rule of thumb, effect sizes of around 0.2 are considered small, around 0.5 are

considered medium and over 0.8 as large effect sizes.

. . . The main message is that all patients with anxiety, OCD and post-traumatic stress

disorders should be offered, and have access to, good quality Cognitive Behavior Therapy,

as this is the most effective treatment for these conditions.

In my opinion, patients should not rush to their doctors to get a DCS prescription, as this

remains an experimental treatment. More research is needed to understand who may

benefit from this treatment and in what format should it be delivered.

Research: NIH awards $21 million to research consortium to study epilepsy in patients with traumatic brain injuries http://bit.ly/2knYx90

January 30, 2017-- An international consortium of academic research institutions have been

awarded a $21 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop better

ways to prevent epilepsy in patients who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.

The grant will be led by seven principal investigators at five institutions: Albert Einstein

College of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Keck School of Medicine at

the University of Southern California, University of Melbourne and University of Eastern

Finland.

The investigators will collaborate in the fields of bioinformatics, molecular biology, cellular

pathology, therapy discovery and the health sciences.

The research team will identify biomarkers associated with the development of epilepsy and

develop novel therapies designed to prevent or modify the condition, which is currently

incurable.

They will also engage with patients and their families to help identify their most pressing

needs and concerns, encourage them to participate in research, and provide educational

resources.

The project, the Epilepsy Bioinformatics Study for Antiepileptogenic Therapy, or EpiBioS4Rx,

includes an international network of 13 centers for traumatic brain injuries and seven

preclinical research centers with expertise in traumatic brain injury, epileptogenesis (the

development of epilepsy), the identification of plasma, tissue, EEG, and imaging biomarkers

and preclinical therapy development.

VA Research: VA is studying gut bacteria in PTSD, TBI patients following success in mice http://bit.ly/2kCmNo8

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Veterans Affairs researchers want to know if an over-the-counter probiotic given to colicky

babies could help patients with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.

VA staff in Denver have just begun to recruit 40 VA-eligible patients who have “mild TBI,” or

concussion, along with PTSD. Levels of inflammation, composition of gut bacteria, and

quality of stress responses will be tracked, said Lisa Brenner, a psychologist and director of

the VA Rocky Mountain Mental Illness Research and Education Clinical Center in Denver.

A recent study of mice inspired the VA's project. MedicalResearch.com: This Week's Top Medical Research News (Brain-related) http://bit.ly/2kkg5Tm

Majority of Neurologists Report Symptoms of Burnout Weight Shaming Can Cause Physical As Well As Mental Harm

A Split Brain Has Two Perceptions But One Mind

Reduced Stem Cells Link Congenital Heart Disease To Impaired Brain Growth

Our Personality is Shaped By Wrinkles and Folds of Our Brain

Many CT Scans Can Be Avoided During ER Evaluation of Head Trauma

Considering HIPAA Privacy Rule with Mental Health Data http://bit.ly/2kvjAq9 The recent Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Reform Act of 2016 ensures that the

HIPAA Privacy Rule is not overlooked in patient care.

January 31, 2017 - The permitted uses and disclosures of PHI in the HIPAA Privacy Rule

were key considerations in a recently passed bill package, which included reforms for

patients being treated for mental health conditions.

The Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act was signed into law as part of the 21st

Century Cures Act in December 2016.

. . . It is important to note that the HIPAA Privacy Rule does address how healthcare

organizations are required to treat patient records when an individual is being treated for

mental health conditions. Healthcare providers are allowed to communicate with a patient’s

family, friends, or other persons involved in the patient’s care.

“The provider may ask the patient’s permission to share relevant information with family

members or others, may tell the patient he or she plans to discuss the information and give

them an opportunity to agree or object, or may infer from the circumstances, using

professional judgment, that the patient does not object,” the HIPAA rule maintains.

Psychotherapy notes are also specified under HIPAA, and are different from other mental

health information. This is because “they contain particularly sensitive information and

because they are the personal notes of the therapist that typically are not required or useful

for treatment, payment, or health care operations purposes, other than by the mental

health professional who created the notes.”

The bill also explains that there must also be a better development and dissemination of

model training programs.

The Secretary must “identify or recognize private or public entities to develop model

training and educational programs to educate health care providers, regulatory compliance

staff, and others regarding the permitted use and disclosure of health information under

HIPAA.”

Improving leadership and accountability are also important aspects of the legislation. An

Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use must be established, the bill said,

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along with a Chief Medical Officer within SAMHSA. The Assistant Secretary will also head the

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

Furthermore, the bill requires improved oversight of mental and substance use disorder

programs through the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE).

Research: Study reveals riskiest position in NFL for concussions http://bit.ly/2kA1tPN Players in open-field positions are the most vulnerable to brain trauma injuries, a study by

the Charlotte Observer concluded.

Specifically, defensive backs need more protection for the NFL to prevent concussions.

The report said 15 cornerbacks (the most of any position) and 11 safeties missed at least

one game due to a head injury.

A total of 93 players missed games last season with concussion symptoms.

A number of factors that put defensive backs at risk, according to a concussion expert cited

in the Observer's report.

“They were tackling with their head,” said Robert Cantu, clinical professor of neurosurgery

at Boston University’s School of Medicine. “Plus the fact that they’re in the open field so

they’re colliding at full speed, whereas the stuff in the (offensive and defensive) line there’s

been less of a run-up of speed.

“They’re bigger, stronger, faster – and they’re faster obviously when they’re in the open

field. And unfortunately many of them are continuing to use their head for that open-field

tackle.”

Wide receivers (12) and tight ends (10) were among other high-risk position groups.

Not Safe for Children? Football’s Leaders Make Drastic Changes to Youth Football Game http://nyti.ms/2kuPdA7

ORLANDO, Fla. — U.S.A. Football, the national governing body for amateur football, intends

to introduce a drastically altered youth football game in response to declining participation

and increasing public belief that the game is not safe for children to play.

The organization has created a new format that brings the game closer to flag football and

tries to avoid much of the violence in the current version. Among the rule changes: Each

team will have six to nine players on the field, instead of 11; the field will be far smaller;

kickoffs and punts will be eliminated; and players will start each play in a crouching position

instead of in a three-point stance.

Soccer: Heading the ball linked to concussion symptoms http://cnn.it/2kxQMNL (CNN)Whether in practice games or competition, soccer players who frequently head the

ball are three times more likely to have concussion symptoms than players who don't rack

up high numbers of headers, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal

Neurology.

When a bump, blow or jolt to the head or a hit to the body causes the head and brain to

move rapidly back and forth, this can lead to concussion, a type of traumatic brain injury.

The brain bouncing or twisting in the skull creates chemical changes in the brain and

sometimes damages cells, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Dr. Michael L. Lipton, senior author of the study and a professor of radiology and of

psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, noted one

important reason why he conducted the research:

"There's like over a quarter of a billion people in the world who play soccer, and most of

those people are the kind of people we study," he said of adults in recreational leagues.

"It's a huge number of people. So if there is an effect on the brain -- and as the data comes

in, it's increasingly looking like there is -- that's potentially a big public health issue."

Miss Oregon an important voice for traumatic brain injury http://bit.ly/1LNuFvR When I was a freshman in high school, I suffered a traumatic brain injury due to a

cheerleading accident.

As someone who had no prior knowledge of brain injuries, it was difficult to understand

what I was going through and why I felt so different during my recovery process.

Because of the adversities I overcame as a result of my traumatic brain injury, I wanted to

advocate for this serious and often ignored issue.

After meeting with doctors and learning more about traumatic brain injuries, I got involved

in volunteering and talking to students about my experiences and recovery process through

OHSU’s ThinkFirstOregon program.

Prince Harry talks mental health, service in Afghanistan http://usat.ly/2kxF8SY Prince Harry opened up about the time he spent serving in Afghanistan, and the mental

health challenges he and other soldiers faced.

While speaking to ambulance crews in London, the prince, 32, talked about flying

helicopters during his second tour of duty. "You land and then hand them over and then are

radioed to do something else. You never find out how that guy or girl recovered, whether

they did recover or they didn’t," he said, via People. He told the ambulance workers, "I

understand what you go through and thank God you have got each other."

Harry, along with brother Prince William and sister-in-law Duchess Kate, lead the Heads

Together campaign in the U.K., which brings together various charities to fight mental

health stigma. The royals have been vocal and active in their pursuit of mental health

awareness.

Don't 'keep quiet': Prince William urges people to discuss mental health

EVENT: Congressional Brain Injury Task Force Schedules Awareness Day, March 22nd Mark your calendar for the 2017 Brain Injury Awareness Day on Capitol Hill to be

held Wednesday, March 22, 2017.

The day will begin at 10 a.m. with a Brain Injury Awareness Fair to be held in the Rayburn

Foyer, followed by the briefing, "Faces of Brain Injury: The Invisible Disability Affecting

Children and Adults," to be held in the Rayburn Gold Room 2168.

A reception will also be held in the Rayburn Gold Room 2168 from 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. The

Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA) is a sponsor of the reception and will be actively

involved in the day's events.

MST: Former soldiers with service-connected sexual trauma can apply for discharge upgrades http://bit.ly/2kzVCKt

Thanks to a provision in this year's National Defense Authorization Act, soldiers who were

forced to leave the Army due to discipline issues following sexual assault or harassment are

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now able to request honorable discharges if they can provide medical proof.

In much the same way the Army has been allowing soldiers as far back as Vietnam to have

their post-traumatic stress recognized in their records, former soldiers can bring medical

documentation from the VA or a civilian doctor to the Board for Correction of Military

Records if they received a less than honorable discharge and believe their trauma

contributed to their dismissal.

The law also expands the definition of sexual harassment, outlines training for retaliation

investigations and requires more detailed reporting of sexual assaults.

Language in the NDAA requires that the board review cases with "liberal consideration"

when a former service member alleges that their lesser characterization of service is due to

post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury as a result of combat or sexual

trauma.

Additional resources from my blog

RESURRECTING LIVES FOUNDATION http://bit.ly/1R9toOV

EVENTS FOR VETERANS & VETERAN SERVICE PROVIDERS http://bit.ly/1Gg1nOi

SUICIDE University of Utah Research: Simple Intervention Proves Effective in Reducing Suicide Among Active-Duty Soldiers http://bit.ly/2koaaNb

Suicidal behavior among active-duty service members can be reduced for up to six months

with a relatively simple intervention that gives them concrete steps to follow during an

emotional crisis, according to a new study from the University of Utah’s National Center for

Veterans Studies.

The study’s findings show there was a 75 percent reduction in suicide attempts among

participants who engaged in crisis response planning versus a contract for safety. Crisis

response planning also was associated with a significantly faster decline in suicidal thoughts

and fewer inpatient hospitalization days.

Australian Research: Unemployment major contributor to veteran suicide rates, Senate inquiry hears http://ab.co/2kvfoa4

Unemployment is a major contributor to the high rates of veteran suicide in Australia, a

Senate inquiry has heard.

Key points:

The inquiry heard veterans often struggle to find meaningful work in civilian life

Of 229 veterans studied, one in four attempted suicide at least once

The inquiry was told the Department of Veterans Affairs slow claims process harmed

veterans

The rate of suicide in Australia is around 12 per 100,000 people, more than double the rate

of road accident deaths.

But specialists have given evidence that there is no clear data on the number of veterans

who die by suicide each year, and say there is a lack of will to collate the figures.

Dr Katelyn Kerr from the Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention (AISRAP)

told the inquiry the current numbers did not tell the full story.

SPRC: The Weekly Spark http://bit.ly/2kxYtDF Director’s Corner: One Issue, One Goal

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Gun Stores Hear a Bold Pitch at Top Firearms Trade Show: Suicide Prevention

OHIO: Traveling Art Exhibition ‘Signs of Suicide’ Debuts in Dayton

CANADA: How Recruiting Men as Ambassadors Can Combat Stigma about Mental Health

in Asian Community

ADDITIONAL MENTAL HEALTH & SUICIDE NEWS IS POSTED IN THE SECTIONS BELOW.

COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES

Research: NIH awards $21 million to research consortium to study epilepsy in patients with traumatic brain injuries http://bit.ly/2knYx90

January 30, 2017-- An international consortium of academic research institutions have been

awarded a $21 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop better

ways to prevent epilepsy in patients who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.

The grant will be led by seven principal investigators at five institutions: Albert Einstein

College of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Keck School of

Medicine at the University of Southern California, University of

Melbourne and University of Eastern Finland.

The investigators will collaborate in the fields of bioinformatics, molecular biology, cellular

pathology, therapy discovery and the health sciences.

The research team will identify biomarkers associated with the development of epilepsy and

develop novel therapies designed to prevent or modify the condition, which is currently

incurable.

They will also engage with patients and their families to help identify their most pressing

needs and concerns, encourage them to participate in research, and provide educational

resources.

The project, the Epilepsy Bioinformatics Study for Antiepileptogenic Therapy, or EpiBioS4Rx,

includes an international network of 13 centers for traumatic brain injuries and seven

preclinical research centers with expertise in traumatic brain injury, epileptogenesis (the

development of epilepsy), the identification of plasma, tissue, EEG, and imaging biomarkers

and preclinical therapy development.

EVENT College Recruiters: Student Veterans: Why Are They So Hard to Recruit? 5th annual Veteran Recruiting Conference, March 7th – 10th, Dallas, TX http://bit.ly/2kxUuHn

Recruiters: Are you having success attracting any of the over 1,000,000 veterans currently

enrolled in colleges across the US? Are they applying for your internships? Are your

university recruiters making good connections with them on campus during college

recruiting season?

If your veteran recruiting strategy does not include campus recruiting, or if your campus

team is reporting that it has had no luck connecting with student veterans during campus

visits, then you are missing out on a significant portion of the available veteran population.

I have two tremendous opportunities for you to learn exactly how successful campus

recruiting teams have had to change their strategies to open the floodgates of student

veteran applicants:

• Tuesday, March 7th: A one-day pre-conference workshop on how to develop a student

veteran recruiting strategy, led by the Student Veterans of America, and

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• Wed-Thu, March 8th and 9th: A conference concurrent education track, led by the Student

Veterans of America and almost a dozen large corporations with leading practices in student

veteran recruitment

Both of these events are part of the 5th annual Veteran Recruiting Conference, which is

March 8-10, 2017 in Dallas, TX. In addition to learning how other companies are tackling

veteran recruiting challenges, you'll meet veteran recruiting managers from more than 100

large corporations as they gather to learn effective practices, discuss emerging trends and

share tips, tricks and resources for finding the very best military talent. This is your chance

to learn and benchmark your company's efforts against some of the strongest veteran

recruiting programs in the country.

Augusta University/Duke University: Research survey at VA to test if spiritual therapy might be helpful in treating PTSD http://bit.ly/2kzF05A

Veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder are often treated with medication

and psychotherapy. But a research survey at Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center is hoping

to find out if spiritual therapy might be of interest as well.

Dr. Nagy Youssef, an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Health

Behavior at Augusta University who often treats PTSD, is conducting the survey through the

VA in hopes it might show whether there is interest in exploring spirituality-based therapy.

The research is being done in conjunction with the Durham VA and Duke University, he said.

Research: Brown University/University of Massachusetts Medical School: University researchers focus on needs of veteran amputees http://bit.ly/2kzNxW6

University researchers are collaborating on a three-year study focused on the needs of

veterans who have suffered severe upper-limb amputations.

The study is being led by Linda Resnik, professor of health services, policy and practice and

researcher at the Providence Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Resnik and her team of researchers aim to acquire data on veterans by evaluating their

day-to-day functioning and learn more about their experiences with prosthetics, Resnik

said.

Data collection will consist of surveys and performance tests, and subjects will be evaluated

yearly, she said. The surveys are being developed in collaboration with Melissa Clark,

adjunct professor of epidemiology at Brown as well as professor of quantitative health

sciences at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, she added.

University of Denver: DU law students get hands-on experience helping veterans http://dpo.st/2kkcSDx

. . . “When I got out of Marine Corps, the whole process of the VA was just so kind of

convoluted and cumbersome that it’s really kind of hard to even wrap your head around

starting the whole thing,” he said.

Now he’s trying to help vets as a law student at the University of Denver.

Irwin is one of eight students this semester participating in the Veterans Advocacy Project

at DU’s Sturm College of Law, which sets up shop at Denver’s Volunteer’s of America

Veteran Services Center and provides legal advice.

The law clinic runs for the full semester and gives students in their second year or beyond a

chance to work in a setting that allows them to get first-hand experience with taking on

cases and interviewing potential clients while earning six credit hours. Students spend one

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night a week in a classroom and must volunteer at least 150 hours at the clinic at the VOA’s

Veteran Services Center, 1247 Santa Fe Drive, throughout the semester.

Students can take the class multiple times and four students this term are holdovers from

last year.

DU Law professor Ann Vessels started the Veterans Advocacy Project in August 2015 after

forming it during a sabbatical semester. The focus is to help veterans with their benefits or

with discharge upgrades such as going from “dishonorable” to “other than honorable.” She

switched her original project after seeing her son com.

George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School: Legal help for veterans: taking the case for those who have taken up arms http://bit.ly/2kCfr40

Veterans of combat often return home from conflict zones with mental and emotional

traumas. Sometimes those traumas lead to unhealthy or illegal involvement in drugs and

alcohol.

If veterans are apprehended in Fairfax County, chances are they’ll be introduced to the

Fairfax County Veterans Treatment Docket, Virginia’s only court-supervised program

specifically for military veterans.

The federally funded, multi-department program is supported by the Antonin Scalia Law

School’s Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic, also called M-VETS. The clinic

helps staff the docket with third-year law students who volunteer to perform a number of

specialized tasks. The students gain hands-on experience and access to criminal court cases

with real-world consequences.

It’s a two-semester, nine-month commitment, said clinic director and law professor Timothy

MacArthur.

Clinic volunteer Jameson Goodell said the clinic has been as instructive as his time in the

classroom.

“What we deal with is [the client’s] treatment, and you have to know their history, their life,

their home life, the problems they’ve had to deal with,” Goodell said. “It’s more about the

human aspect,” instead of getting bogged down in legal minutiae.

Goodell’s position with the Fairfax County Public Defender Office means he has a direct

pipeline to the judge to work to resolve cases while minimizing adverse effects on the

veterans.

Georgetown University Medical Center Research: Mindfulness Meditation Helps Slash Stress, Anxiety Disorder http://bit.ly/2krARk5

The practice of mindfulness meditation has become increasingly popular in treating anxiety,

and a new clinical trial backed by the National Institutes of Health offers new evidence that

it can indeed offer benefits to anxiety disorder patients.

Working with 89 patients of anxiety disorders, researchers from Georgetown University

Medical Center found that those who took the meditation classes sharply reduced their

stress hormone and inflammatory responses to stressful situations, compared to those who

took a non-meditation course who had worsened responses.

"[These] findings strengthen the case that it can improve resilience to stress," said lead

author and associate professor Dr. Elizabeth A. Hoge in a statement, touting mindfulness

meditation training as a relatively inexpensive, low-stigma therapy.

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Georgia Institute of Technology (George Tech) Research: Georgia Tech demonstrates VA Digital Health Platform in proof-of-concept http://bit.ly/2kzPz8H

The Georgia Institute of Technology has successfully demonstrated a proof-of-concept for

the Department of Veterans Affairs’ new Digital Health Platform (DHP), designed to

integrate veteran data from VA, military and commercial electronic health records.

The VA’s DHP is a cloud-based platform meant to create a 21st century model for the

delivery of veteran healthcare services based on a modern, integrated system that

incorporates best-in-class technologies and standards.

The goal of the DHP proof-of-concept, managed by Georgia Tech, was to demonstrate both

mature and emerging interoperability technologies from both the public and private sectors.

The public-private demonstration, which includes the VA’s Office of Information and

Technology and HHS’s Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology,

included the capability to obtain patient data from disparate military and commercial EHRs,

as well as to accept information from a broad range of ancillary services and consumer

medical devices.

Oregon Health & Science University Research: Using Social Media to Engage Veterans in Health Care http://bit.ly/2kCjHjM

Hello! I am a doctor and researcher at Oregon Health & Science University, and I invite you

to take a survey about veterans and social media. This survey takes the average

participant 11 minutes.

Your answers on this survey matter. I know veterans are used to filling out paperwork that

does not seem to go anywhere. I will use your opinions and responses to help us design a

new program for veterans, one that uses social media to connect with veterans and

promote their health.

Stetson University Veterans Law Institute: Bay Pines VA Healthcare System Medical Legal Partnership MLP Program http://bit.ly/2kuwlS2

The Bay Pines VA Healthcare System Medical-Legal Partnership (MLP) program is a

collaboration between the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center, Stetson University Veterans

Law Institute, Bay Area Legal Services, and Gulfcoast Legal Services.

The program will become available to Veterans enrolled for care with the Bay Pines VA

Healthcare System on February 1, 2017.

What is the MLP Program and who is eligible for services?

The MLP program encourages service delivery collaboration between medical and legal

practitioners. MLP Attorneys train VA health care teams to screen for legal Veterans’ legal

needs. The health care teams then refer Veterans to on-site legal clinics, whose pro bono

attorneys provide advice, intervention, and representation.

The health and legal teams collaborate to resolve the issue and provide any necessary

follow-up services.

University of North Carolina: Homeless and Mentally Ill, a Former College Lineman Dies on the Street http://nyti.ms/2kCqyK7

HAINES CITY, Fla. — About an hour after sunset recently, Ryan Hoffman rode his bike, a hot

pink Huffy, into oncoming traffic on an unlit stretch of Highway 17-92 here.

Hoffman, once a standout football player at the University of North Carolina, collided

violently with a rusty white Ford Mustang, striking the front bumper and then slamming into

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the windshield with so much force it sounded like a gunshot. As the car skidded to a stop,

Hoffman was hurled down the road.

. . . In some ways, Hoffman’s story is ordinary for a former football player these days. After

his athletic career, his mental health deteriorated, and he encountered substance abuse and

legal problems.

Mounting scientific evidence suggests a link between repeated head trauma sustained by

players in the inherently violent game and long-term cognitive impairment.

While former players are alive, they and their families can only wonder if football damaged

their brains and, for some, subsequently caused their troubles.

Once they die, more and more families are racing to get the players’ brains, or some portion

of them, to neurological experts who can look for chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a

progressive disease widely believed to be caused by repeated hits to the head.

Researchers at Boston University and the Department of Veterans Affairs have found C.T.E.

in 120 of the 132 brains they have examined from former N.F.L., semipro and college

players. That’s more than 90 percent.

Hoffman and his family believed that the hits he had taken during his football career

profoundly harmed his brain, and they were sure that the sport had caused him to unravel,

thread by thread, until there was hardly anything left for him to live for.

He had once been a physical marvel: a 6-foot-5, 287-pound left tackle for North Carolina in

the 1990s, a starter for a team ranked in the top 10. When I met him in January, he was

100 pounds thinner, with his old jeans held up.

North Carolina State University: NCSU video on suicide prevention wins an Emmy http://bit.ly/2kD0Ox1

RALEIGH N.C. State University’s Counseling Center has won an Emmy Award for its

“#StopTheStigma” video that featured students talking about suicide.

The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Nashville/Midsouth Chapter, recognized

the work this month with an award for excellence in visual storytelling.

The video was produced in collaboration with StoryDriven, a Durham-based video firm. The

video won in the Emmy’s Public Affairs award category for work about societal concerns in

the public interest.

The eight-minute video featured three NCSU students who told the stories behind past

suicide attempts as a way to help others speak about the issue and seek help for

depression.

University of Texas School of Law: New report highlights mental health issues in Texas jails http://bit.ly/2kr5XZd

. . . Cowling’s story is one of many in the Texas Law Civil Rights Clinic’s report Preventable

Tragedies: How to Reduce Mental Health-Related Deaths in Texas Jails. The report tells the

stories of 10 “tragic and preventable deaths” in Texas jails and offers recommendations to

the jail system for the treatment of people with mental illnesses.

According to the report, there are “severe and persistent failures” in the Texas jail system

that abandon mentally ill people.

Ranjana Natarajan, director of the Civil Rights Clinic at the School of Law, who worked on

the report, said the purpose of the report is to raise awareness and provide solutions to

Texas legislators on what to do about this issue.

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“These people’s stories hardly get out there,” Natarajan said. “It may be difficult to make

uniform rules and requirements since there is a great variation among jails, but maybe

these people’s lives will make it possible.”

The UT School of Law hosted a discussion about the report Tuesday afternoon. Two authors

of the report, Amanda Gnaedinger and Alex Stamm, and Diana Claitor, executive director of

the Texas Jail Project, analyzed some of the mental health problems featured in the report.

They also speculated what could have been done to save the lives of inmates whose stories

were highlighted in the report.

“The stories were incredibly hard to hear, let alone write about,” Gnaedinger said. “All we

can do now is make sure we do something about it. We can fix so much for so many.”

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi: Partnership helps A&M-CC offer veterans job training http://bit.ly/2kkowyg

. . . Thanks to a new partnership between A&M-CC and ed2go, owned by Cengage Learning,

Zumwalt and 99 others can take online courses that provide skills leading to employment in

the technology sector.

Funding for the courses and associated books and other materials comes entirely from

Cengage Learning, said Danell Reilly, program assistant for career and professional

education in the office of community outreach at A&M-CC.

University of Utah Research: Simple Intervention Proves Effective in Reducing Suicide Among Active-Duty Soldiers http://bit.ly/2koaaNb

Suicidal behavior among active-duty service members can be reduced for up to six months

with a relatively simple intervention that gives them concrete steps to follow during an

emotional crisis, according to a new study from the University of Utah’s National Center for

Veterans Studies.

The study’s findings show there was a 75 percent reduction in suicide attempts among

participants who engaged in crisis response planning versus a contract for safety. Crisis

response planning also was associated with a significantly faster decline in suicidal thoughts

and fewer inpatient hospitalization days.

GENERAL NEWS

Michigan Enacts Military Spouse Licensing Law! http://bit.ly/2kCW4aH Unlike many other U.S. jurisdictions, licensing accommodations for the practice of law in

Michigan must go through the legislature rather than the judiciary. MSJDN’s previous

success in its efforts to achieve adoption of licensing accommodations has come in many

varieties and often takes “a village” of driven military spouse attorneys and their networks

to reach the finish line.

. . . The two bills are HB 5288 and HB 5289, assigned Public Act 423-424 (2016) with

immediate effect.

In sum, the new law provides that a military spouse who is licensed to practice in another

jurisdiction and in good standing, and whose service member spouse is assigned to a duty

station in Michigan, may apply for admission without an additional bar examination and may

practice in Michigan until (1) the service member spouse is no longer on active duty, (2) the

military spouse attorney is no longer married to the service member spouse; or (3) the

service member spouse receives a permanent duty transfer out of state.

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. . . If you are stationed or live in a jurisdiction that has not yet adopted a rule for licensure

accommodations for military attorney spouses and you think you might be able to make a

difference or join a team, contact Karen Scanlan at statelicensing@msjdn.org.

EVENT: Grand Opening - Veteran Employment Services Compton, California Office by The Salvation Army HAVEN Veteran Employment Services, Feb. 22nd http://bit.ly/2kusGn8

The Salvation Army HAVEN has continually served the Veteran community for over 20 years

housed on the West LA VA Campus. In 2014, our Veteran Employment Services expanded

to North Los Angeles by opening an office in Van Nuys, CA and has now extended our

services to provide employment assistance to Veterans residing in South Los Angeles

communities.

The new office is located in the Salvation Army Corps on 736 E. Compton Blvd., Compton,

CA 90221. We currently provide the following free services to Veterans in the South Los

Angeles Area:

Individualized Employment Plan (including Career Counseling)

Job Search Strategy

Job Leads

Resume Development / Enhancement

Interview Preparation including mock interview videotaping and critique

Employer Direct Referrals

Supportive Services - checks/gift/debit cards to pay for job related needs such as

tokens, gas cards, interview clothes/uniforms, work boots, tools etc.

Post-employment Coaching

Referrals - to other programs as needed, i.e. skills training, on the job training;

internships; legal assistance; counseling; residential/transitional housing assistance

(homeless or at risk of being homeless)

Career Management Training / Workshops

76-year-old veteran remembers the power of peer support http://on.wusa9.com/2kupUOD

. . . This is called peer support, it's what the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors

facilitates for grieving military family members.

Founder Bonnie Carroll told WUSA9, “… and to connect them with another who truly

understands is incredibly empowering and healing.”

T.A.P.S. recently sponsored a scientific study that not only goes over the actual results, but

provides a peer support model that they hope all groups can follow, whether that's T.A.P.S.,

cancer support groups or alcoholics anonymous.

DoD: Free Tax Software, Support Available for Military, Families http://bit.ly/2kCFhog

WASHINGTON, Feb. 1, 2017 — With the tax season upon us, service members and their

families can access free tax-filing software and consultations to help them navigate the task

of submitting their annual taxes.

Military members and their families can visit the Military OneSource website or call 1-800-

342-9647 for the no-cost "MilTax" software, explained Erika Slaton, a program analyst with

Military OneSource.

The Defense Department recognizes military members and their families have unique filing

situations with deployments, relocations and various deductions and credits, she said.

The MilTax software, previously known as "Military OneSource Tax Services," was created

with the military situation in mind, Slaton said.

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Tax consultants are available via phone through Military OneSource, Slaton said. In-person

tax filing assistance can be accessed at military installations at a Volunteer Income Tax

Assistance location.

5 programs actively reducing recidivism rates - How can we limit our prison population, and save money in our prison system? (PoliceOne) https://goo.gl/p20WsD

. . . Here are five programs that succeed in guiding released prisoners to new paths

PRISON ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROGRAM (PEP)

COMMUNITY BRIDGES FACT TEAM (Phoenix, AZ)

DELANCEY STREET FOUNDATION

SAFER FOUNDATION (State of Illinois)

THE LAST MILE (San Quentin State Prison in California)

Additional resources from my blog

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS http://bit.ly/1Gg21LH

EVENTS FOR VETERANS & VETERANS SERVICE PROVIDERS http://bit.ly/1Gg1nOi

VETERANS JOB LISTINGS AND HIRING FAIRS WEBSITES http://bit.ly/19Dz2ay NEWSLETTERS & BLOG FOR VETERANS http://bit.ly/1GQzKjf

"VETERANS IN JUSTICE"

LinkedIn Professional Group (VIJ)

Please join us on LinkedIn or Facebook for networking and discussions on the issues regarding

veterans in the criminal justice system. This group's mission is to connect professionals and

advocates who work with and for justice-involved veterans and to share ideas and practices for

assisting those veterans -- from the conditions that lead to justice involvement, through initial

police contact, arrest, criminal case processing, conviction, sentencing, incarceration, and

release. Access our group at http://linkd.in/1947vfS Facebook:

www.facebook.com/veteransinjustice

Join The National Discussion - 1,343 Professionals in VIJ Group

Active Topics

Adding a sincere Letter of Explanation to your job applications can help you make a

positive impression on employers.

Abuse of Judicial Power in Family Court Against a Navy Veteran

Tips for discussing one's conviction record in a way that makes a positive impression on

employers

More . . .

LINKEDIN GROUPS

Military and Veteran Benefit Forum Veteran Mentor Network http://linkd.in/1fOlgOt 28,933 members Institute for Veteran Cultural Studies http://linkd.in/1cz3gq1 NAMI http://linkd.in/1cz3Gg7 BI-IFEA (Brain injury-Ideas for Education & Advocacy) http://linkd.in/1cz4e5V Military-Civilian: Hot Jobs and Careers for Veterans and Their Families http://linkd.in/1c59DkM VETERANS IN JUSTICE GROUP http://linkd.in/12APdMS Cuyahoga County Ohio Veterans and Supporters (Bryan A. McGown "Gunny") http://linkd.in/Zxwx1f Veteran Employment Representatives http://linkd.in/ZxwUcc MILITARY MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS POST DEPLOYMENT FOR PROVIDERS, COMBAT VETERANS & THEIR FAMILIES

http://bit.ly/1RVPLFl Midwest Military Outreach, Inc. http://linkd.in/1eiMTkJ

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Military Veteran Job Fairs & Hiring Conferences http://linkd.in/Zxx4jS Wounded Warrior Resources http://linkd.in/17TMNhJ The Value of a Veteran http://linkd.in/15vD7H4 MILITARY MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS POST DEPLOYMENT FOR PROVIDERS, COMBAT VETERANS & THEIR FAMILIES http://linkd.in/1fkQLA8 (Please email us other groups that you find and think would be informative and useful for our audience)

VETERANS IN THE COURTS INITIATIVE BLOG estrattonconsulting.wordpress.com

To focus this newsletter on veterans-related criminal justice and mental illness issues and to shorten it to a more

manageable size, we have moved our tables & lists of reference materials and other longer term information to retired Justice Stratton's blog. Please follow the links below for that information.

Operation Legal Help Ohio http://bit.ly/1Gg0HbK

National Legal Assistance http://bit.ly/19DC5zu

VA Town Halls & Events http://bit.ly/1Gg1DN6

Jobs & Hiring Fairs Listings http://bit.ly/19Dz2ay

Events: Conferences, Webinars, etc.

http://bit.ly/1Gg1nOi

Additional Resources http://bit.ly/1Gg21LH

Current Newsletter http://bit.ly/19ovER5

2015 Newsletters http://bit.ly/1FKASAC

Ohio Resources For Veterans http://bit.ly/19ouWn0

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Editor's Note: Thank you to all of the individuals and organizations that provide articles for these news clips every week. I would especially like to thank and urge you to follow:

USMC 1stLt Andrew T. Bolla, PIO at the USMC Wounded Warrior Regiment, publisher of WWR In the News, DoD Morning News of Note

Lily Casura, journalist, author and founder of Healing Combat Trauma - the award-winning, first website to address the issue of combat veterans and PTSD (established February 2006)

U.S. Army Colonel (Ret.) Wayne Gatewood, of Quality Support Inc. Wayne disseminates a daily Veterans News e-mail to an international audience

Dr. Ingrid Herrera-Yee, Project Manager, Military Spouse Mental Health Pipeline, National Military Family Association. Dr. Herrera-Yee is currently a Board Member for the Association of the United States Army (AUSA), Military Spouses of Strength, Military Mental Health Project and the National Guard Suicide and Resiliency Council among others. She has also been a special contributor to NBC News, Military Times, Air Force Times, Military Spouse Magazine and BuzzFeed. She spends her free time mentoring spouses through eMentor and Joining Forces. Dr. Herrera-Yee received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and was a Clinical Fellow at Harvard University.

U.S. Army Colonel (Ret.) James Hutton, Director of Media Relations at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Justice for Vets, Justice For Vets is a professional services division of the National Association of Drug Court

professionals, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization based in Alexandria, VA. Justice for Vets believes that no veteran or military service member should suffer from gaps in service, or the judicial system when they return to their communities. As the stewards of the Veterans Treatment Court movement

Judge Ginger Lerner-Wren, Pioneer, America's first mental health court dedicated to the decriminalization of people with mental illness

Mary Ellen Salzano, founder facilitator of the CA Statewide Collaborative for our Military and Families Patrick W. Welch, PhD, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret), Veterans Advocate & Educator, Buffalo Veterans Treatment

Court - Senior Mentor

HOW TO JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER There are three ways to join my newsletter:

Join my Veterans In The Courts Initiative Google Group at http://bit.ly/1DZ3esD or,

Subscribe to my Veterans In The Courts Initiative Blog for immediate news and for my weekly newsletter

at http://bit.ly/1DP1TCi or,

Please contact my editor Pete Miller at cruzzen@gmail.com and request to be added.

1. Please send us a little info about yourselves as we like to introduce our new sign-ups to others for networking purposes. (See our transmittal email page for examples.) If you do NOT wish to be recognized, please let Pete know, otherwise we will list you. 2. We provide these news clips summaries as a way to share information of a general nature and it is not intended as a substitute for professional consultation and advice in a particular matter. The opinions and interpretations expressed within are those of the author of the individual news stories only and may not reflect those of other identified parties.

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3. We do not guarantee the accuracy and completeness of these news clips, nor do we endorse or make any representations about their content. We only pass them through to our readers and rely on you to check out their content. We don't intend to make any editorial judgment about their content or politics. 4. In no event will I, EStratton Consulting, or my Editor Pete Miller, be liable for any damages whatsoever arising out of the use of or reliance on the contents of this news clips summary. How you chose to use them is strictly up to you. 5. Please fell free to pass the news clips on to any of your networks, so that we may get the word out as far as possible. You may also send in information similar in content to what we pass on. While we may occasionally pass on such information, we don't intend to promote commercial or for profit products nor be a substitute for your own efforts to promote your own entity or website. We especially welcome information about national funding or training opportunities. 6. If you pass on our clips, please also pass on our Disclaimer. EDITOR/CONTACT

Pete Miller, cruzzen@gmail.com, @OHCircuitRider

Ohio Attorney General's Task Force on Criminal Justice & Mental Illness

Veterans In The Courts Initiative

Editor/Publisher - Veterans Treatment Court News Daily

Editor/Publisher - Traumatic Brain Injury News Daily