Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • The Power of Housing

    Housing options for patients dealing with mental illness are bleak in New Mexico. Casa Milagro provides an alternative to the infamous board-and-care homes and offers a sense of community as well as medically trained staff. Residents pay a third of their monthly income in rent and can live there for as long as they want despite a waiting list to secure a spot. The safe and stable housing is supported by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development and is a model that experts believe would mitigate the housing crisis, which is especially tough for those battling mental illness.

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  • CU Anschutz unveils out-of-home gun storage map to help improve safety, prevent suicide

    For individuals wanting to store their guns outside of their homes, they can now find a space using the Colorado Gun Storage Map. The interactive tool was developed in collaboration between the Colorado School of Public Health, the University of Colorado School of Medicine, and the Colorado Safety Coalition, with the goal of helping those in crisis situations find spaces like law enforcement agencies and special storage facilities to store their firearms.

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  • Portugal's Wildly Successful Decriminalization Experiment

    Since introducing both the decriminalization of a range of substances like heroin and cocaine and new harm-reduction strategies in 2001, Portugal has seen success in driving down HIV cases, overdoses, and needle sharing. The country attributes their progress to treating the issue of drug use as a human rights issue rather than a criminal one, because they consider external factors that contribute to addiction like gender, class, or race.

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  • Prizes for sobriety: As Washington meth use rises, this treatment is one of few that works

    Rewarding patients for sobriety greatly increases the likelihood for recovery. The approach of contingency management creates new behaviors through incentives instead of punishment. Through the Seattle Department of Veteran’s Affairs, patients in an addiction program who test negative get to draw a prize and accumulate rewards the longer they stay sober. This alternative form of treatment has proven effective in boosting patient participation—and success—in addiction programs at the Seattle VA.

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  • Student threat assessment expands to all Texas school districts

    Schools in Austin, Texas have a renewed vigor to address student mental health after they saw hundreds of suicide attempts in recent years. In addition to approaching the issue in a serious manner, schools are now equipped with full-time mental health clinics on campus to offer support for students, teachers, and families. There are now 45 different clinics across the city that have worked with over 2,000 visitors, and already studies are showing improvements in things like increased self-esteem and decreased psychological distress.

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  • San Diego Is Showing California How to Use Its Red Flag Law

    In San Diego, California, more than three Gun Violence Restraining Orders, or “red flag laws,” have been used to prevent gun violence. These laws have gained in popularity across the country, and allow courts to temporarily take away firearms from individuals who pose a danger to themselves or others. With such success in San Diego, their attorney’s office is now training law enforcement and government agencies across the state on how to use such orders.

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  • Mesa school district rolls out new counselor program for kids' mental health

    The Mesa, Arizona, school district is expanding its mental health care programming in response to a high teen suicide rate in the region. By increasing the number of counselors available, using data to tailor its approach to each individual campus, and connecting students with outside therapy professionals when appropriate, Mesa is hoping to reach more students.

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  • Colorado's trailblazing Safe2Tell system needs significant upgrades, lawmakers say

    In 2016, Utah debuted SafeUT, a streamlined crisis center with on-call mental health specialists that students can call or text about potential threats to schools or personal mental health concerns. SafeUT was born out of a recognition for more preventative and mental health services, and was inspired by Colorado’s Safe2Tell initiative. Now, as Colorado seeks to iterate on their state initiatives, they’re looking to SafeUT’s streamlined approach as a model for improvement.

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  • Overcoming an Epidemic: Opioids in Pennsylvania

    Across Pennsylvania, researchers, medical professionals, communities, and local governments are taking steps to address the opioid crisis. The epidemic that has swept across the country is being addressed at every level, including individual, family, and community. Responses include destigmatizing efforts like the Share Your Opioid Story project, school-based prevention education, drug court programming, medication assisted treatment, and training and awareness initiatives for medical professionals in urban and rural areas.

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  • Reimagining New York Jails Without Solitary Confinement

    Solitary confinement was once thought of as one of the only effective punishments for violent prison inmates. As more research surfaces showing the severe damage it does to mental health, the racial bias of those placed in solitary, and its relative ineffectiveness, more cities, like New York City, are exploring alternatives to the practice. In places such as Denver, Chicago, and San Francisco, rather than invoking a punitive approach, city officials are offering positive reinforcement – and seeing positive results.

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