American Psychiatric Association Addresses Mental Health Disparities In Seattle Youth Through OMNA On Tour

Main Category: Mental Health
Also Included In: Psychology / Psychiatry
Article Date: 03 Sep 2009 - 13:00 PDT

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In the ongoing effort to help communities close the gap of mental health disparities, the American Psychiatric Association Office of Minority and National Affairs (OMNA) will hold a daylong conference, Diverse Youth in Transition: Navigating a Difficult Passage, in Seattle on September 26, 2009. It will feature mental health experts who will discuss improving outcomes for underserved youth with mental health and substance use disorders.

OMNA on Tour is a traveling educational program designed to inform communities around the nation about the significance and impact on community well-being of ethnic and racial disparities in mental health. The tour aims to foster collaboration among a variety of stakeholders with the goal to develop local action plans to eliminate mental health disparities.

OMNA Director, Annelle Primm, M.D., M.P.H., APA member experts, and other mental health professionals will engage constituencies from various disciplines, including psychiatrists, primary care physicians, substance abuse treatment providers, community leaders, educators, juvenile justice officials, and local mental health system administrators.

"We are pleased to hold our seventh OMNA on Tour in Seattle, focusing for the first time on diverse youth with mental illness and substance use disorders and their transition into adulthood and adult systems," said Dr. Primm. "Our sincere hope is that this program will encourage strategic collaboration among a variety of stakeholders."

The Seattle program will feature many notable speakers, including Dr. Primm; Jim Peacey, M.D., President, Washington State Psychiatric Association; Bruce Gage, M.D., Chief of Psychiatry, Washington State Department of Corrections; William Womack, M.D., Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington; Karen Spoelman, M.A., King County Mental Health, Chemical Abuse and Dependency Services; and Mick Moore, Puget Sound Educational Service District.

Diverse Youth in Transition: Navigating a Difficult Passage will take place on Saturday, September 26, 2009 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Swedish Medical Center in Seattle. For more information or to register go here. The program is being offered in collaboration with the King County Mental Health, Chemical Abuse and Dependency Services Division and the Washington State Psychiatric Association.

Source
American Psychiatric Association

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