Have you ever watched the TV show “Mythbusters?”  It’s a television show on the Discovery Channel where a team of “Mythbusters” tackle such perplexing questions as “can a fishing reel really catch fire if you hook a fast fish?”  Or, “which is worse, having an empty beer bottle smashed over your head, or a full one?”  (I am not kidding about those questions… I pulled them off the shows website.) 

 I know the shows can be entertaining and informative (though, personally, I’d rather not be hit by a beer bottle at all, empty or full).  What I’d really like to see them tackle are some of the many myths surrounding mental illness.  Bust those myths on national television and stigmas surrounding mental illness can become a thing of the past.  The world (or at least the Mythbusters’ viewership) can begin to understand that brain disorders, like heart disease, asthma and diabetes, are legitimate medical illnesses, with genetic and biological causes… and which CAN be treated effectively.

 Myth:  Children can forget about bad things that happen to them and move on easily, especially if the adults in their lives just take good care of them.

 Fact:  25% of children experience one high level trauma by age 16 (sex abuse, serious illness or injury, death of a parent, etc.).  36% of children who experience traumas will demonstrate symptoms of PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder).

 Myth:  Depression is a result of a personal weakness or character flaw.  People who are depressed need to get up, and get moving and get on with their life.  They can “snap out of it” it they try hard enough.

 Fact:  Depression has nothing to do with being lazy or weak.  It results from changes in brain chemistry or brain function, and medication and/or therapy can help people to recover.  An estimated 19 million Americans suffer from depression according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.  And, while treatment is successful up to 90 percent of the time, only one-third of people suffering from depression seek treatment.

 I wish these were the only two myths about mental illness.  The sad fact is that there are too many for one blog.  I am sure there are too many for an entire season of “Mythbusters.”  Wouldn’t it be nice if all the myths could be “busted” and everyone understood and had compassion for all who suffer from mental illness – whether the individuals with these diseases, or the family and friends who suffer with them.

Coleman Professional Services is a nationally recognized provider of behavioral health and rehabilitation programs in Ohio.  For more information about services provided, go to:  www.coleman-professional.com.

I never had the pleasure of meeting Father Coleman; however, as we officially start our behavioral health relationship with the residents of Allen, Auglaize and Hardin Counties today, I hope he would be proud of our accomplishments. It is quite coincidental that we celebrate his 80th birthday on February 1^st.  What a nice birthday celebration!

Knowing some of the good people that Kevin Coleman knew in the 1960’s (Rynearsons, Hetricks, Missimis and others), it stands to reason that he would understand Coleman Professional Services’ dreams and vision. We want to provide behavioral health and rehabilitation services to residents of Ohio regardless of their ability to pay. Starting today, Coleman is serving more than 18,000 residents and employing more than 440 professionals in 7 counties.

 To accomplish our vision and to maintain our quality of standards will be a challenge. We have never witnessed this magnitude of children and adults needing mental health and addiction services. The children require professional intervention to be able to learn in school and the adults need safe and permanent residences to be able to recover; they both need affordable health care to sustain and enjoy life.

 Happy Birthday, Kevin!  I hope you are proud of our work. It is not only a celebration for Kevin but a celebration to many of the volunteers and employees who work so hard to help children and adults improve their lives every day. Thank you all and a very warm welcome to Allen, Auglaize and Hardin county residents.

 Nelson W. Burns  January 31, 2011

The All Ohio Counseling Conference was held November 2-4 in Columbus this year and is open to any professionals in the counseling field, both school and community. Every year, this conference hosts an array of educational sessions ranging from information about counseling techniques to ethical concerns to current “hot topics” in counseling. Not only does this conference provide excellent resources for counselors, it also serves the purpose of expanding the counselor’s professional network.

As a counseling intern at Coleman Professional Services and a 3rd year attendee of the conference, I am always glad for the opportunity to expand my own knowledge base and to intermingle with seasoned professionals in the field. Many of the educational sessions related directly to the needs of my clients and I can apply this new information in better serving my clients. I also really enjoyed the opportunities I got to meet with other professionals, to hear about strategies they are using in counseling, and to hear their success stories.

This year, I had the opportunity to present my own research project on Asperger’s Syndrome during the conference.  People diagnosed with Asperger’s Sydnrome have difficulties with social interaction which can lead to challenges in communicating effectively, being able to maintain a job or live independently, and in forming and maintaining relationships. Through my research, I have been able to formulate more effective counseling practices in working with these individuals and families of these individuals. It was a great experience being able to share my research findings with other counselors and to hear their feedback and experiences in this area as well.

Overall, I would highly recommend the All Ohio Counseling Association conference for professionals in the field. I always leave feeling refreshed and ready to try new ideas in counseling practice.

As BH Executives attempt to look to the future with Healthcare Reform, what can these executives glean from facts and fiction? And, is there a connection with the evolution of a BH EHR system, a Hospital EHR system and Healthcare reform? Wow… you wonder what keeps us executives awake at night!

If we listen to a variety of experts from “The Hill” or Dale Jarvis from The National Council http://www.thenationalcouncil.org we are acutely aware that BH practices need to be linked to Accountable Care Organizations (ACO) of the future. These ACO’s will be established by 2012. When reviewing the Healthcare and Behavioral Healthcare landscape, one notices that family healthcare practices are quickly joining Hospital Systems. The idea here is that Hospital Systems, well capitalized, will develop these ACO’s and the smaller healthcare practices cannot complete without joining the ACO (at least on Medicare and Medicaid). I emphasize the notion of capitalization because I believe this is where an organization’s EHR system comes into play.

Now take a private proprietary behavioral health practice or a nonprofit organization billing $1 to $5 million per year. These practices will be vying to join the ACO’s as fast as the $25 to $50 million organizations. The larger BH organizations will have their own EHR system where the smaller practices will probably not. Will we then see the smaller practices want to join the larger BH systems to be effectively attractable to the ACO’s or Hospital Systems? What type of collaboration can the larger BH organization offer the smaller practices in order to successfully sustain themselves? Without a specialty BH service, the organization is a commodity and Hospital systems probably don’t need another commodity service. Any good BH organization needs to prepare themselves to be attractable organizations to Healthcare systems of the future.

In attending the “2010 EHR Summit” sponsored by The Ohio Council I was fortunate to sit on a panel with many informed leaders addressing electronic health and behavioral health records. We all had a fascinating and diverse conversation about our vision, direction and next steps. Steve Duff coordinated the “Summit” and had collected real-time data from participants on a variety of HER issues. I have not seen this data summarized yet but I was surprised how many small organizations ($2 million or less operating) were still seeking solutions for having an EHR. I applaud The Ohio Council’s decision to have this Summit.

 As our Ohio EHR Collaborative Team commences for implementation this fall, it will be important to take note some of the key issues. I predict there will be at least three important points of focus; one, can we keep implementation costs down to where organizations can benefit from the collaborative; two, can organizations become more standardized in clinical approaches avoiding “unique and multiple” clinical documents; and three, can we effectively train our clinicians on useful procedures in using EHR?  

 The Ohio EHR Collaborative will allow each organization to control and maintain confidentiality of its data without the level of dependency needed to sustain other models. Yet, the Collaborative fosters an “interdependency” where unique organizations can be cost efficient, avoid clinical redundancy and provide a culture that fosters a “learning community”. Behavioral Health organizations must still find their niche in the Health Care Arena; this chilling fact will not go away. As leaders muddle through their strategic window, they will notice the EHR issue will be dead center in their windowpane!