Message from NASW-DE Executive Director John Shuford
We’ve accomplished a couple of milestones recently with the passage of the restructuring of our drug laws and the civil union act. Thanks especially to SURJ [Stand Up for what is Right and Just] for their tireless efforts.
SURJ is well known in criminal justice circles. They have an opening for a VISTA volunteer to work on their Prostitution Diversion Project. This is an unprecedented opportunity for someone who is organized and motivated to have a significant impact on a serious issue in our community. Applications should be into SURJ by May 9th. Please see article below or click here for announcement.
Earlier this week I attended the NASW New Jersey Chapter’s Annual Conference. We have been publicizing it for some time and it was well worth the time. There were many excellent sessions on a variety of topics of interest to social workers. In three days, social workers can earn up to 26 CEUs, learn current techniques and information, and interact with experts in their fields. I would urge social workers in Delaware to attend next year's conference in Atlantic City and maybe even present a session [proposals are due in August]. There were over 700 attendees this year.
The Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth and their Families is offering a workshop on May 24 primarily for judges, but the information would be very valuable for social workers in the juvenile justice field. See the attached flier.
Hospice’s Family Support Programs has announced its May – July offerings. Please see their flier.
Test Prep in Delaware
In partnership with the NASW-NJ Chapter, NASW-DE will be holding the LCSW Test Prep Course in DE.
Same great presenter (Dawn Hall Apgar) and price, in a new location!
LCSW / Clinical Test Prep
Saturday May 21, 2011
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Claymont Community Center
Wilmington, DE
Click here to register.
SURJ Opening for VISTA Volunteer
SURJ [Stand Up for what is Right and Just] is pleased to begin recruiting applicants for a 2011-2012 Americorps VISTA position to assist with the development of a Prostitution Diversion Program in Delaware. VISTA volunteers will commit to a one year term of service spanning July 2011 to July 2012, receiving a modest monthly living allowance stipend of approximately $900 per month and a monetary cash award or monetary award for educational expenses at the close of their term of service.
Interested applicants must apply to SURJ by May 9 (send cover letter and resume to JChampney@surj.org) and candidates will be required to submit an official application through the VISTA website by May 16 (the online application link will be available shortly).
Webcast: Addressing Addiction in the Family
 The Washington State Chapter is presenting a live webcast of a sold-out face to face workshop on May 20, 2011. The workshop is titled: “Clinical Considerations in Addressing Addiction in the Family “. The presenter is Claudia Black. Below is the link to this webcast which can be found on our ON Line CE catalog.
http://www.manexa.com/naswwa/catalog.asp?ItemID=20110415-272095-104953&override=1&PrintPage=1
The face to face workshop has sold out and we are fortunate to have a partner that can assist in delivering the workshop by live webcast.
Here is the biography of Claudia Black:
Claudia Black, M.S.W., Ph.D. is a renowned addictions and codependency expert, author and trainer internationally recognized for her pioneering and contemporary work with family systems and addictive disorders. Since the 1970s Dr. Black’s work has encompassed the impact of addiction on young and adult children. She has offered models of intervention and treatment related to family violence, multi-addictions, relapse, anger, depression, sex addiction and women’s issues.
Dr. Black designs and presents training workshops and seminars to professional audiences in the field of family service, mental health, addiction and correctional services. She is the Sr. Editorial Advisor for Central Recovery Press and serves as senior Clinical and Family Services Provider for Las Vegas Recovery Center. She serves on the Advisory Board for the National Association of Children of Alcoholics, and the Advisory Council of the Moyer Foundation.
Helping the Mentally Ill to Quit Smoking
 A pilot program in New York City is challenging a long-held belief about cigarette smoking—that people with mental-health problems aren't interested in quitting. The results so far are promising.
Therapists say they are surprised that some patients with mental illness have been eager to join the anti-smoking program. And for some patients, giving up smoking has helped them feel more confident about other parts of their lives. The results also hold potential for helping hard-core smokers in the general population stop smoking. MORE
Post-World War II Vision of the American Dream — It's Over
 It's over. The American Dream of a house in the suburbs, college for the children and ever-increasing affluence is gone. It was a paradigm created, supported and lauded by three generations of politicians from both parties. It was and is woven through every piece of public policy from education to transportation to banking. But new realities have killed it for all time. MORE
Survey Finds Behavioral Health Professionals Earn Less than Fast Food Workers
According to the 2011 Behavioral Health Salary Survey just released by the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare (National Council), a licensed social worker with a master's degree earns less than a manager of a fast food restaurant. MORE
Communities Form to Decrease Infant Mortality Rate Among Blacks
 When Kamela Beltran lost her third baby to yet another miscarriage, this one at 22 weeks of pregnancy, she was angry with God. "I asked why. I didn't do drugs. I was married. I didn't have an abortion. Why is God doing this to me?" Beltran said. Her doctor diagnosed the cause of Beltran miscarriage as an infection. But after doing her own research, she decided to see a new doctor, who determined she had an incompetent cervix, a condition where the cervix is weak or begins to open too early into a pregnancy. MORE
Kids with ADHD May Use Drugs and Alcohol More Often
Two recent studies find that being diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in childhood may predict a child's likelihood of later dependence on nicotine, alcohol or other drugs. MORE
Too Much, Too Soon
 The condition is known as early onset or young onset Alzheimer's. It's estimated to make up about 5 percent, or 250,000, of the roughly 5 million cases of Alzheimer's across the nation. Similar to those affected later in life, symptoms for young-onset sufferers can include memory loss, an inability to solve problems and poor judgment, as well as a sudden change in mood or personality. MORE
Doctor Focuses on the Minds of the Elderly
 There are only 17 board-certified geriatric psychiatrists in Florida, and a mere six in southeast Florida, where snowbirds often come to perch. In March, acknowledging the crisis in care, the federal Institute of Medicine began a study of the shortage of geriatric mental health workers nationwide. A growing number of experts are calling for integrating mental health professionals into all levels of communities for the rising population of aging Americans, from nursing homes to assisted-living centers. MORE
Soldiers with Mental Illness More Often Get PTSD
 Preexisting mental health problems could be setting soldiers up for posttraumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, when they return from the battlefield, U.S. Navy researchers said. They found those with depression, panic disorder or another psychiatric illness were more than twice as likely to develop the condition as their mentally stable peers. MORE
Rule Would Discourage States' Cutting Medicaid Payments to Providers
In a new effort to increase access to health care for poor people, the Obama administration is proposing a rule that would make it much more difficult for states to cut Medicaid payments to doctors and hospitals. The rule could also put pressure on some states to increase Medicaid payment rates, which are typically lower than what Medicare and commercial insurance pay. MORE
News from DE and Beyond...
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The play's the thing
She's a clinical social worker and associate professor in the UNC School of Social Work, at least by day. But no matter what you do with the rest of your time, if you write plays, you're a playwright. And for someone who has only been at it for two years, Barrett has put together a pretty remarkable string of successes.
Governor Extols State Partnership with IU School of Social Work
The Indiana University School of Social Work and the Indiana Department of Child Services have created an extraordinary partnership with incalculable benefits in the life and death mission of protecting the state’s most vulnerable children, Gov. Mitch Daniels said at the IUPUI Spirit of Philanthropy ceremony on Tuesday.
Alzheimer's Caregivers Need Care, Too
But caregivers can take various steps to protect their health, says Rebecca Axline, a clinical social worker at the Nantz National Alzheimer Center in Houston. To keep stress in check, for instance, she emphasizes the need to find time and ways to reenergize, to keep meaningful things in your life and to remain social and participate in your favorite activities.
Research redefines definition of poverty
By CHARLES ANZALONE A School of Social Work faculty member is helping redefine the country's definition of being poor with research that shows the dramatic difference between achieving “basic economic security” and the federal government's “poverty line.”
Students work with Fort Worth homeless population
Erin Taylor, a senior social work major, works as an intern for Catholic Charities' Street Outreach Services (SOS) team. "I didn't really know a whole lot about the homeless population until I started working here," Taylor said.
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