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October 09, 2009
SPRING TRAINING
Ohio Supported Employment conference 2009 retrospective
—by Matthew K. Weiland and Paul M. Kubek
Columbus, OH—For organizations seeking to improve employment outcomes among people  diagnosed with severe mental illness, here's something to consider, something that was learned at the Annual Ohio Supported Employment Conference 2009 in Columbus on March 24th and 25th:
The United States Department of Veteran's Affairs (VA) has, in a little over three- years time, become so passionate about the evidence-based Supported Employment (SE) model that implementation of SE components and the offering of SE services has begun occurring nationwide. From Puerto Rico and Hawaii to Cleveland and throughout the continental United States, SE services—and the subsequent stories of success resulting from implementation—have become a part of the fabric of the Department's outreach efforts to veterans.
Stories like this one highlighting the VA's fairly quick and enthusiastic implementation of the SE model have become a vital and often inspirational dimension to the Annual Ohio SE Conference. As the stories of success and lessons-learned become a more integral part of SE implementation so has the willingness of agencies and employment specialists to give the SE model a try. More service organizations are either implementing the SE model as part of their recovery initiatives and interventions, or, at the very least, they are considering it.
Recovery Is Working
NEARLY 200 CARE PROVIDERS attended the Annual Ohio SE Conference 2009 at the Doubletree Hotel in Columbus. This year the event was entitled, "Recovery Is Working!".
The keynote speakers were SE researcher Gary Bond, PhD, Chancellor's Professor at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, and Phil Devol, consultant, trainer, and co-author of Bridges Out of Poverty: Strategies for Professionals & Communities. In addition, 30 workshops were held, highlighting the how-to's of implementation and methods for sustaining the SE model. [ learn more ]
THE STORY TELLERS
We'd like to thank all the presenters for their contributions to the keynote plenaries and workshops and participants for their willingness to share their challenges, successes, questions, and lessons-learned. We'd also like to thank everyone, especially those highlighted below, who stopped by our recording table and took the time to share their stories about Supported Employment and other evidence-based practices.
- Listen to one highlight from each conversation by clicking the "listen & learn more" link.
- Listen to and/or read about the complete conversation with each person by clicking that link (a separate window will open).
 Gary Bond, PhD
Chancellor's Professor of Psychology,
Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis.
Indianapolis, IN
This pioneer of Supported Employment research provides an overview of his plenary at the Ohio SE Conference 2009. He highlights recent research trends, including some results from a national multi-site study of consumers who receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits and Supported Employment services. He also shares some initial results from the Johnson & Johnson-Dartmouth Community Mental Health Program, a national dissemination of SE which the State of Ohio and the Center for EBPs at Case has been participating.
 | listen & learn more | get complete conversation |
 Phil Devol
Consultant, Trainer & Author,
aha! Process, Inc.
Highlands, TX
The co-author of Bridges Out of Poverty: Strategies for Professionals and Communities explains how the "mental models" (perspectives and experiences) of people in each economic class—the wealthy, the middle class, and the poor—contain information about and solutions for poverty. He also examines how individuals caught up in poverty think about day-to-day life, existence, and survival. He also explains how the seven core principles of SE fit into solutions for poverty.
| listen & learn | get complete conversation |
 Fred Pecharka, MA, LPC, CRC
Supervisory Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor,
United States Department of Veteran's Affairs, Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.
Cleveland, OH
Over the past three years, The Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center has implemented Supported Employment services for veterans with a variety of disabilities—including spinal cord injuries and co-occurring mental and substance use disorders—with successful results. Hear some consumer success stories (e.g., how the prospect of a job changes one vet's personal hygiene), and learn about the challenges and successes of system implementation.
| listen & learn | get complete conversation (coming soon) |
 Ryan Might, MA
Supported Employment Mentor Trainer,
United States Department of Veteran's Affairs, Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.
Cleveland, OH
Ryan Might has utilized evidence-based Supported Employment services to help veterans recovering from a variety of disabilities, especially schizophrenia, schizo-affective disorder, and bipolar disorder. They have witnessed first-hand a number of heart-warming success stories. Listen to this two-year veteran of the Annual Ohio SE Conference share some of these stories.
| listen & learn | get complete conversation (coming soon) |
 Michele Robinson, CLPN, ETS
Employment Specialist,
Integrated Dual Disorder Treatment (IDDT) Team.
NEIGHBORING
Mentor, OH
Michele Robinson shares the story of a young woman who deals with co-occurring substance use and mental illness as she re-enters the community from the criminal-justice system. Learn from Michele how employment has become a catalyst for this woman's recovery.
| listen & learn | get complete conversation |
 Rick Johnson, BA
Employment Specialist,
The Giving Tree.
Sandusky, Ohio
Working in Erie, Ottawa, and Sandusky counties in the northwest region of Ohio, Rick Johnson has served a variety of consumers, including veterans, indviduals diagnosed with co-occurring mental and substance use disorders, those involved with the criminal-justice system, and those transitioning to the community after psychiatric hospitalization. Listen to Ric explain his first-hand accounts of how employment promotes recovery among the people he serves.
| listen & learn | get complete conversation |
THE NATIONAL SCENE
Supported Employment, the evidence-based practice, was created by researchers Deborah R. Becker, MEd, CRC, and Robert E. Drake, MD, PhD, and their colleagues at the New Hampshire-Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center at Dartmouth Medical School.
They have provided leadership for national implementation of SE via the Johnson & Johnson-Dartmouth Community Mental Health Program. The State of Ohio—and the Center for EBPs at Case—is participating in this national initiative.
| learn more |
RELATED STORIES, THIS SITE
 EMBRACING CHANGE AT WORK
Annual conference 2008 proves that commitment to Supported Employment continues to grow in Ohio, throughout nation.
| get full story |
A POINT OF PRIDE
John Moneypenny draws upon a strong work ethic to advance his recovery, purpose.
| get full story |
THE CHEESE WALL
Zero-exclusion is the ultimate optimism; everyone who wants to work receives Supported Employment services.
| get full story |
RELATED STORIES, OTHER SITES
Supported Employment featured on CBS
 The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric aired a report on Supported Employment (SE), the evidence-based practice, featuring our own SE Consultant and Trainer Nicole Clevenger.
| get full story |
Coping with Bipolar Affective Disorder featured on NPR
The Diane Rehm Show hosts a discussion about the 2.5 million people in the U.S. who have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, a life-long illness characterized by mood swings and the risk of suicide. Learn what doctors and families can do to support young adults who suffer from the disorder.
| get full story |
IDDT featured on NPR
National Public Radio (NPR) features researcher Robert Drake, PhD of Dartmouth Medical School, one of the pioneers of the Integrated Dual Disorder Treatment (IDDT) model. The story explores the effects of substance use and how it might exaggerate depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder.
| get full story |
ACADEMIC-COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP
The Center for Evidence-Based Practices at Case Western Reserve University is a partnership between the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case and the Department of Psychiatry at the Case School of Medicine. The Center for EBPs works in collaboration with and is supported by the following:
- Ohio Department of Mental Health
- Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services
- Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission
- Ohio Department of Health
The Ohio SAMI Coordinating Center of Excellence (CCOE) and Ohio SE CCOE are both initiatives of the Center for EBPs.
 Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University.
Master's and doctoral programs; paid field placements; fellowships; studies in mental health and substance-abuse services, among others.
| web site |
 Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University.
Post-residency fellowships in community psychiatry and addiction psychiatry, among others.
| web site |
Matthew K. Weiland, MA, is senior writer, producer and new-media specialist and Paul M. Kubek, MA, is director of communications at the Center for Evidence-Based Practices at Case Western Reserve University.
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