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NAMI Minnesota
800 Transfer Road, #31
Saint Paul, MN 55114

phone: 651-645-2948
toll free: 1-888-NAMI-HELPS
fax: 651-645-7379

email: nami-mn@nami.org

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Mental Health Day on the Hill 2012 - February 14

Mental Health Day on the Hill will be Tuesday, February 14 (Valentine's Day). Last year's legislative session was one of the toughest in decades and it is vital that we continue to educate legislators about the importance of funding mental health services. Please join us and make your voice heard!

Here's a rundown of the day's events:
10 am: Briefing at Christ Lutheran Church
(Across the street from the State Capitol)
12 Noon: Rally in the State Capitol Rotunda
1-3 pm: Visit with your legislators - make contact ahead of time to arrange this visit. Find out who represents you, here.

The Mental Health Legislative Network has chartered a number of buses, each beginning in different locations, to make it easier for people to attend. Buses will start from Winona, Kerkhoven (Willmar), Marshall, Fergus Falls, Duluth and Baxter, each making multiple stops along the way. For information about the routes and how to reserve a seat, click here.  If you are driving to the Capitol, see parking suggestions, here.

10th Annual NAMI Research Dinner

NAMI and the University of Minnesota will host their 10th Annual Research Dinner on Feb. 28, at Radisson Hotel, 2540 North Cleveland Avenue, in Roseville. The event will feature leading researchers on the treatment of mental illnesses. Find more information and registration, here.  Or download an event/registration flyer, here.

Help Shape NAMI Minnesota's Strategic Plan

What are your hopes and dreams for the future– for yourself, your family, NAMI and the mental health system? A penny for your thoughts? NAMI invites you to dream and hope and to tell us your thoughts. With your feedback, your wish could come true. Take the Penny for Your Thoughts survey to help NAMI shape it's next 5-Year strategic plan.

Special Needs BasicCare Starts Jan. 1

Special Needs BasicCare (SNBC) is a voluntary managed care program for people with disabilities ages 18 through 64 who have Medical Assistance. Enrollees may have a care coordinator or navigator to help them get health care and support services. The program started Jan. 1, 2012. Over 27,000 adults have been sent a letter explaining they will be enrolled in the new program unless they choose to opt out. NAMI Guide to SNBC. More SNBC details here.  See plans side-by-side. State map of SNBC plans. SNBC powerpoint. Be sure to review letters coming on SNBC.

Navigating the Juvenile Justice System

NAMI often receives calls from families wondering what to do when a child enters the juvenile justice system or is at risk of doing so. To help families understand the system, NAMI Minnesota created a new booklet, Advocating for a Child with a Mental Illness in the Minnesota Juvenile Justice System. To get a copy, call NAMI at 651-645-2948 or find it here.

Hope for Recovery to Air on Public TV

NAMI Minnesota’s video Hope for Recovery: Understanding Mental Illness will be shown statewide via all six Minnesota public television (MN Channel) stations during February. The program is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 19, 2012 at 6:30 p.m., and Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012 at 12:30 a.m., 6:30 a.m., and 12:30 p.m.

HealthCare Exchange Committee Includes NAMI

Gov. Mark Dayton has appointed 11 people to the Health Care Exchange Committee, which also includes four legislators and the commissioners of commerce, health, and human services. NAMI Minnesota executive director Sue Abderholden was appointed, along with representatives from the insurance industry, health care providers, small businesses, counties, unions, and others. Federal health care law requires the exchanges to include mental health care coverage and states can exceed what the federal government determines to be essential services. To keep informed, sign up for NAMI legislative alerts.

Budget Cut Impact Survey

NAMI Minnesota, as part of the Mental Health Legislative Network, is collecting information about the impact of state and county budget cuts on children and adults with mental illnesses and their families. This information will be used to fight further cuts, push to restore funding and lessen the impact on people with mental illnesses and their families. Please take a moment to tell your story. Thank you!

Share Your Experience with Adult Foster Care

NAMI Minnesota is exploring issues of quality around adult foster care homes (sometimes called "group homes") serving individuals living with mental illnesses. If you or a loved one has lived in an adult foster care home in the past few years please take a moment to fill out our brief survey. There is one survey for residents of Adult Foster Care homes, one survey for loved ones of residents and another for staff of adult foster care homes.

Anti-Stigma Project Posters Available

Posters titled Hope and Healing, Learn the Lingo, and How to Help are now available as part of NAMI and Regions Hospital's project to reduce stigma. Personal story posters, brochures for families, speakers on recovery and NAMI in the Lobby volunteers to assist families are also part of the project. Download free posters here.  Read more about the project, here.

Getting Accommodations in College

If you are having difficulty in school due to mental health issues, your school is obligated to provide supports and services to help you succeed. Read the tools for school tip sheet.

NAMI Survey on Inpatient Hospital Experiences

Regions Hospital/Health Partners have selected NAMI Minnesota to develop a plan to reduce stigma within hospitals. The project will include promoting respect, support, information sharing, hope and recovery. To help with the project, please take a short survey on your experience with psychiatric hospitalization as a patient, family member/friend or service provider. Print version of patient survey, here.  HealthPartners-NAMI press release.

Online Learning Program for Hospital Staff

Compassion into Action: Recognizing and Responding to Patients with Mental Illnesses- NAMI wants to make sure that hospital staff and health care personnel understand mental illnesses so that people with mental illnesses receive appropriate treatment. See online learning program.  

NAMI's Workplace Giving Program

NAMI became a member of Community Health Charities of Minnesota (CHCM) on March 1, 2011. To donate to NAMI Minnesota through Community Health Charities be sure to write in NAMI Minnesota . More here.

In the News

Mental Health Calls Up, Star Tribune, 1-24-12
Depression in the Open, NewsCut, 1-4-12
Top 10 Advances in Research at NIMH, Stone Hearth News, 12-23-11
NAMI Volunteer Wins Award, Isanti County News, 11-30-11
One Woman's Journey, Isanti-Chisago County Star, 11-17-11
States Cut $1.7 Billion in MH Funds, Wall Street Journal 11-11-11
Cuts have Unforeseen Effects, Star Tribune 10-27-11
Antidepressant Use on the Rise, Star Tribune 10-25-11
Walk Aims to Fight Misconceptions, St. Cloud Times 9-21-11
Don't Fling Words like 'Crazy,' Star Tribune 9-15-11
Dealing with the Mentally Ill, We Need to do Better, MNPost 9-13-11
Censoring Soldier Suicides, StarTribune 8-24-11
School District Gets Mental Health Aides, Pioneer Press 8-8-11

Crisis Planning Booklets for Families

Learn to recognize, manage, prevent and plan for your child's mental health crisis. Download here. Download booklet in Spanish. Crisis planning booklet for adults.

Mental Health Crisis Resource page

More information about NAMI Minnesota

Help Fight Stigma

Find a NAMI Affiliate         

Donate to NAMI Minnesota through GiveMN