Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration

CMHS Consumer Affairs E-News
May 22, 2006, Vol. 06-60

STAR Center National Teleconference Series: Latinos in Recovery

What:
This toll-free teleconference call will provide an overview on how consumer operated programs might better serve consumers within Latino communities.

Date:
WEDNESDAY, MAY 24, 2006

Time:
7:00 PM ET, 6:00 PM CT, 5:00 PM MT, 4:00 PM PT

Details:
Panelists will be leaders from a national consumer movement, "Advocates for Latino Mental Health Advancement (ALMA)".

After the panelists' presentations, participants will have an opportunity to ask questions and offer their own perspectives. The only equipment needed in order to participate in this national teleconference is access to a telephone. This call is free of charge!

To Access:
Dial 800-657-1263, at the time detailed above, on 29 March 2006. When the operator answers, mention the call code: 7827. The call topic is "Latinos in Recovery".

Recording Disclosure:
Please note that this STAR Center National Teleconference call will be recorded for the purpose of transcription and for the creation of an MP3 audio file. Because this call is being recorded we ask that during the Q & A portion of the call, you identify yourself by first name only. Both the audio file and the call transcript will be archived and made available to the public on our web-site at www.consumerstar.org.

Teleconference Guest Speakers
George Badillo is a Peer Educator at Pilgrim Psychiatric Center on Long Island, New York. Mr. Badillo's work is sponsored by the Resource Center, located in Albany, New York. He provides education and information about patient rights, policy issues, and mental health services to mental health consumer peers in outpatient and inpatients settings. Mr. Badillo's approach is to provide peers with the opportunity to make informed choices about mental health services and community supports. Mr. Badillo was previously affiliated with the Oral History Project, and served as a bilingual interviewer from 2000-2003. He interviewed peers about their previous and unique experiences in state psychiatric hospitals. His personal story of survival and courage is featured in the film "Inside Outside: Building a Meaningful Life after the Hospital," produced by Pat Deegan, Ph.D.

Eduardo Vega is currently Director of Education/Assistant Director at Project Return: The Next Step in Los Angeles, one of the nation's largest and oldest consumer-run peer support programs, Mr. Vega provides training on recovery practice, peer support, community integration, self-advocacy, advanced directives, illness management and personal care planning among others. A recovering mental health consumer with extensive experience as a provider, he has also authored articles, fact sheets, curricula and research review for the SAMHSA Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma Associated with Mental Illness (the ADS Center), the UPenn Collaborative on Community Integration, Behavioral Healthcare Tomorrow, Mental Health Weekly, and the IAPSRS journal, among others. He has over fifteen years experience in multiple programs in five states as a mental health advocate, social services worker and counselor and holds an M.A. in Psychology from New School for Social Research.

Teleconference Moderators
Ramiro (Ray) Guevara is the Director of the Support Technical Assistance Resource (STAR) Center
Phone: (703) 516-7996 * Toll Free: (866) 537-STAR (7827) * ramiro@consumerstar.org

Miguel Angel Oyola Jr. is the Manager of the Support Technical Assistance Resource (STAR) Center
Phone: (703) 600-1114 * Toll Free: (866) 537-STAR (7827) * miguel@consumerstar.org

BACKGROUND
This call is part of an ongoing SAMHSA/CMHS-supported STAR Center National Teleconference Series, designed to provide resources and culturally competent support for self-help, consumers and their supporters in diverse communities
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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.