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Combating Mental Health Stigma in a Rural Community
Like all communities, stigma plays a role in an individual’s willingness to access mental health treatment and support. To combat this, Yates INSYGHT, in partnership with the Yates County Community Services Department, chose to promote a countywide initiative focused on promoting comfort in...
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WeSpeakNYC: A Toolkit for Overcoming Mental Health Stigma in BIPOC Communities
Research has consistently demonstrated that BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities experience disproportionately low access and utilization of mental health services in the United States. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) recently found only...
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Empowering Communities through Inclusion and Mental Health Anti-Stigma Efforts
Thank you so much for including me in this project. Thank you to the NYS Office of Mental Health for their support. We are thrilled to present the work we accomplished as part of the Stigma Reduction Project. My name is Melissa Clark, VP of Community Impact at United Way of the...
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Stories of Stigma in the Healthcare System
For Hands Across Long Island, Inc. (HALI), stigma in healthcare is personal. As a peer-run organization, our mental health recovery “lived expertise” informs our services, which all address structural stigma or population-level disparities experienced by people having psychiatric diagnoses...
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Breaking Down Barriers: The STAR Program’s “Stop Mental Health Stigma” Campaign
In an era where mental health discussions are often shrouded in misunderstandings and misconceptions, the “Stop Mental Health Stigma” campaign emerges as a beacon of hope and enlightenment. Spearheaded by the STAR Program at SUNY Downstate Health and Sciences University and generously funded by...
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Mental Health: Everyone Has It. Every Day. Breaking the Stigma with ICAN’s Innovative Campaign
Integrated Community Alternatives Network (ICAN) is an innovative human service non-profit providing individualized traditional and non-traditional service and care to the highest-risk individuals and families with social, emotional, mental health, and behavioral challenges. ICAN’s team of over...
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Breaking Mental Health Stigma in the NYC Hispanic/Latino Community
At NAMI-NYC, we often say 1 in 5 of us is affected by mental illness, and the other 4 are family, friends, neighbors, and colleagues. We are ALL impacted by mental illness. Most interventions are for the individual, but it's critically important to remember the first ring around the person –...
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Behavioral Health News Spotlight on Excellence: An Interview with Mary Brewster, Associate Commissioner for Harm Reduction at the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS)
Overview David Minot, Executive Director of Mental Health News Education, the non-profit organization that publishes Behavioral Health News, interviewed Mary Brewster, Associate Commissioner for Harm Reduction at the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS). The mission of...
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Harm Reduction in Treatment: A Simplified Overview
In the past, harm reduction was mainly associated with distributing clean needles to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2022), there were over 100,000 deaths related to drug overdoses in 2022. Treatment has evolved to...
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Organizational Strategies for Anti-Stigma Work Within Our Four Walls
Mental health stigma affects all of us. It is so ingrained in our society, that we have to consciously choose to share or not to share our experiences or connections to mental health challenges. This conscious level decision-making brings a processing we engage in asking ourselves either, “Am I...
