Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration

CMHS Consumer Affairs E-News
February 8, 2006, Vol. 06-11

FREE TRAINING TELECONFERENCE

Results from the Field: SAMHSA's Elimination of Barriers Initiative (EBI)

Please Join Us

The SAMHSA Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma Associated With Mental Illness invites you to participate in a free teleconference training titled, "Results from the Field: SAMHSA's Elimination of Barriers Initiative (EBI)."

Date: Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Time: 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM (Eastern time)

To participate in this training teleconference, please complete the online registration form located at http://www.promoteacceptance.samhsa.gov/archtelPDF/EBIReport_FINAL_Tagged.pdf. For additional teleconference information, please refer to the Training section of the SAMHSA ADS Center web site or contact a technical assistance representative by e-mail at promoteacceptance@samhsa.hhs.gov or by telephone at 1-800-540-0320. Please pass this invitation along to interested friends and colleagues. Please note: Registration for this teleconference will close at 5:00 p.m., Eastern time, on Monday, February 27, 2006.

Training Sponsor

This teleconference is sponsored by the SAMHSA Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma (ADS Center), a project of the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The session is free to all participants.

Training Summary

In response to a call for community and societal integration of persons with mental illnesses in President Bush's New Freedom Initiative, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) developed the Elimination of Barriers Initiative (EBI) to work with States and other stakeholders to reduce the stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness. Over a three-year period, the EBI tested campaign models and public education materials in eight pilot States: California, Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wisconsin. The EBI's objectives were to combat stigma and discrimination, reduce barriers to treatment, and build public support for the principle of recovery as well as an array of accessible, quality community-based services.

Training Goals

. Describe the pilot EBI including its goals, approach, partnerships and
portfolio of public education activities and materials.

. Present a summary of the EBI's accomplishments and outcome in terms of
the extent and effect of its outreach activities to schools, businesses and
the general public.

. Describe the lessons learned while implementing public education
campaigns to reduce mental health stigma and discrimination.

. Present future activities, including the publication of an EBI resource kit and
implementation of the National Anti-stigma Campaign (NAC).

Event Speakers

Chris Marshall, Consumer Affairs Specialist, CMHS, SAMHSA Chris Marshall is consumer affairs specialist for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Chris leads programs that educate the public on mental health policy and promote the meaningful participation of consumers in the mental health system. Chris Marshall is also a self-identified consumer.

Richard Gilroy, EBI Project Director
Richard Gilroy has more than 25 years of communications experience, including more than 15 years creating and producing public education and public service advertising campaigns for agencies of the Federal Government. He has developed creative strategies for local, regional, and national marketing campaigns; and created, written, and produced communications for all media, including television and radio, newspaper and magazine, outdoor and transit, collateral, direct mail, and interactive communications. Mr. Gilroy managed the development, creation, and production of all materials for the Elimination of Barriers Initiative (EBI), and for the last year of the three-year initiative, served as project director. In that capacity, he managed all activities related to the 2005 Voice Awards, as well as the development of the Resource Kit, which is slated to be distributed to all 50 States. He is currently the project director for the 2006 Voice Awards.

James Bell, EBI Evaluation Director
As the founder and president of James Bell Associates, Mr. Bell has gained more than 30 years of experience in national program evaluation pertaining to innovative health and human service programs. As the leader of the Evaluation Team for the Elimination of Barriers Initiative Evaluation, Mr. Bell collaborated with CMHS, the eight EBI States, and members of the Implementation Team to design and conduct a formative evaluation. The methods employed were activity monitoring, case studies and focus groups to assess what happened when EBI was implemented. Besides leading the EBI evaluation, Mr. Bell has focused in recent years on evaluating integrated treatment services for persons with co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders and HIV/AIDS.

Presentations

Speaker presentations will take approximately 60 minutes and will be followed by a 30-minute question-and-answer period. Participants will receive confirmation of their registration by e-mail shortly before the scheduled conference date. This confirmation message will include telephone dial-in instructions and a link to presentation materials posted in the Training section of the SAMHSA ADS Center Web site.

The SAMHSA ADS Center is a program of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services.
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The Center for Mental Health Services is a component of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, United States Department of Health and Human Services.