Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration

CMHS Consumer Affairs E-News
November 18, 2005, Vol. 05-133

Consumer Affairs News from the Center for Mental Health Services http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/consumersurvivor/
The Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently held the Third National Conference Addressing Homelessness for People with Mental Illnesses and/or Substance Use Disorders convened in Washington, DC, from October 26-28 2005, the theme of this year's conference was "Preparing People for Change: Knowledge and Choice." Over 800 providers, consumers, and public officials attended more than 75 workshops and sessions, each presented by national experts and organized around the homelessness-related topics of services, housing, and cross-cutting issues.

The Keynote address was presented by Philip F. Mangano, Executive Director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH). Speakers at this year's conference included Charles G. Curie, Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA); A. Kathryn Power, Director of CMHS; and Richard Kopanda, Deputy Director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT). Mr. Curie presented the 2005 Exemplary Program Awards to twelve (12) programs from across the country that serve individuals and families who are homeless. The programs were selected based on several criteria, including use of evidence-based practices and consumer involvement.

The final plenary session included a panel of consumers presenting their own personal paths to recovery, emphasizing a major theme of the conference. A special evening session was devoted to a conversation about the recent hurricanes in the Gulf Coast. The discussion centered around what impact the hurricanes had on the service delivery system in the home communities of attendees, what innovative responses had been developed, what lessons had been learned, and how best to move forward.

Exemplary Program Awards were presented by Charles G. Curie, Administrator of the Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (DHHS/SAMHSA), at the National Training Conference of the National Resource and Training Center on Homelessness and Mental Illness (NRTC) on October 26, 2005.

The Exemplary Programs included: Homeward Bound, Anchorage, Alaska; Project HOPE, Concord, California; El Hogar River City Community Homeless Program (RCCHP) and Turning Point Community Program's Homeless Intervention Program (HIP), Sacramento, California; Fellowship House's Community Housing Program, South Miami, Florida; Helping Other People Through Empowerment, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland; Maryland SSI Outreach Project, Baltimore, Maryland; Worcester Homeless Families Program, Worcester, Massachusetts; Project Outreach Team (PORT), Ann Arbor, Michigan; Albert and Mildred Dreitzer Women and Children's Treatment Center and Families United Supportive Housing (FUSH), 350 Lafayette Transitional Living Community (350 TLC) of the Center for Urban Community Services, Inc., New York, New York; Programs of Palladia, Inc., New York, New York; Homeless Outreach Program at Southeast, Inc., Mobile Psychiatric Unit and Project Liaison, Columbus, Ohio; and The Neighborhood Living Project (NLP), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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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.