Events

Connections Conference 2023 - Innovations in recovery: Breaking barriers, finding recovery

Time: 9:00 am – 3:30 pm
Location: Desert Willow Conference Center in Phoenix

 

Thank you to everyone who attended this year's conference. This conference was two days of inspirational and educational sessions on innovative paths to recovery. Mercy Care is committed to breaking down barriers to health care for our members through our network of dedicated providers and our community partners. 

 

Session Details 

The owl and me: recovery across the lifespan (keynote), Presenter: Pat Deegan, Downloads: Presentation / Handout 1 / Handout 1 (Spanish) / Handout 2

Patricia E. Deegan PhD will share stories of her own recovery after being diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager. Pat will describe specific challenges on the journey of recovery and will discuss strategies she has used to overcome these challenges. The big message is that those of us who have been diagnosed can live our lives, not our diagnosis. There will be time for Q&A.

 

The power of Personal Medicine: moving through challenges, Presenters: Allison Stiles and Missy Rufo, Downloads: Handout   

Personal Medicine is what we DO to get well and stay well. In this interactive workshop, participants will learn how to harness the power of Personal Medicine to support their own well-being. Participants will engage in small breakout groups to explore and discover new Personal Medicine through the use of Personal Medicine Cards.

 

Evidence-based practices, Presenters: Cami Parker, Anthony Carrillo, Andy Wambach, Noemi Zaragoza

Join us to learn about Evidence-Based Practices such as ACT, Permanent Supportive Housing, Supported Employment, and Consumer Operated Services and Peer/Family Supports that are available in the Mercy Care network. Mercy Care members will share their success stories in these programs.

 

Recognizing abilities, creating opportunities: Vocational Rehabilitation, Presenter: Monica Amaya, Downloads: Presentation

In this presentation, Vocational Rehabilitation Behavioral Health Coordinator and Behavioral Health Specialist, will present The Interagency Service Agreement between the Arizona Department of Economic Security (“ADES”) and the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (“AHCCCS”). Presenters will discuss the history and purpose of the Agreement and the collaboration between the two entities. Presenters will discuss how to engage in services with Vocational Rehabilitation and how VR collaborates with Behavioral Health for successful employment outcomes.

 

Creativity in Recovery with CHR, Presenter: Marni Ritch

Guided art project for members using canvas and acrylic paints. Members guided through project of painting a colorful Recovery Tree using supplies provided by CHR. Topics of discussion will be: roots of recovery, weathering storms, growing recovery, change, balance in recovery, and resources and support.

 

Building resiliency through wellbeing management, Presenter: Mike Tripp, Downloads: Presentation

Life is a marathon and not a race. Having a sense of resiliency can help ensure we stay the course. Investing in efforts to support our sense of wellbeing contributes to our resiliency by way of decreasing risk of illness, improving overall system functioning, and increasing our healthy longevity. All of which helps us stay the course. This session explores the benefits of managing personal wellbeing and provides a tool that can be used to develop a meaningful personal action plan.

 

Civic Leadership Training, Presenter: Kristina Sabetta, Downloads: Presentation / Handout 1 / Handout 2

The Civic Leadership Training will focus on how to advocate for behavioral health rights and services within the Arizona behavioral health system of care, learn what civic leadership is, identify resources and opportunities to become an advocate at local and state levels, and skills to do so. The training will also include the principles of care, individual rights, how the Arizona State Legislature works, how to advocate in person or virtually, empowering participants to, through advocacy, help improve the quality of care for behavioral health service recipients.

 

Writing Your Own Story, Presenter: Bonnie G. Danowski, Downloads: Presentation / Handout

Writing Your Own Story is based on my book published in 2022, THE PATH BECKONED. The session will share the approach for caregivers/families/family of choice who are supporting someone with a physical or mental illness to learn how to share their story with others. Why sharing your story is important and encourages advocacy and furthers the mission of stigma reduction.

 

Taking care of our workforce, ensuring quality care for members (keynote), Presenter: Hayley Winterberg, Downloads: Handout

Learn to recognize the signs of a unhealthy workplace and unattainable expectations. The Keynote will explore how, as supervisors, we can improve our team and organizational culture. Discuss how to develop realistic techniques to create a positive work culture and understand the importance of employee wellbeing, retention, professional development, skills-based training, and career advancement opportunities.

 

Personal Medicine: a pathway to recovery, Presenters: Allison Stiles and Missy Rufo, Downloads: Handout

Personal Medicine is what we DO to get well and stay well. In this interactive workshop, participants will learn how Personal Medicine Cards can support people in working through common challenges on the journey of recovery. Participants will engage in small breakout groups to explore and discover Personal Medicine for themselves through the use of the Personal Medicine Cards.

 

Supporting staff resiliency through wellbeing management, Presenter: Mike Tripp, Downloads: Presentation

Life is a marathon and not a race. Having a sense of resiliency can help ensure we stay the course. Investing in efforts to support our sense of wellbeing contributes to our resiliency by way of decreasing risk of illness, improving overall system functioning, and increasing our healthy longevity. All of which helps us stay the course. This session explores the benefits of managing personal wellbeing and provides a tool that can be used to develop a meaningful personal action plan.

 

The critical role of peers in crisis behavioral healthcare, Presenter: Joel Conger, Downloads: Presentation / Handout

Recovery Support Specialists, often referred to as “peers”, are an invaluable part of the treatment team involved in caring for an individual in a behavioral health crisis. At Connections Health Solutions, Peers, who bring lived experience to their work, are part of the 5-discipline care team that converges to stabilize individuals in crisis when they present for care and are central to engagement of individuals through the course of treatment with motivational interviewing, sharing their stories of recovery, and acting as a support as individuals prepare to return to the community. The role of Recovery Support Specialists in crisis behavioral healthcare in Arizona is unique compared to many other regions of the country, who are only beginning to explore the many ways that involving peers in treatment can improve outcomes. Connections is one model that demonstrates this critical role that peers have had across all levels of our treatment model for over 10 years as well as through the data demonstrating improved treatment outcomes for individuals receiving care when peers are actively involved in the interdisciplinary care team responsible for treating those in crisis.

 

Beyond primary care: the value of integrated total patient wellness, Presenter: John Elliott, MD

Oftentimes most clinics, either medical or mental health, focus specifically on their assigned specialty, which leads to gaps in patient care. Many times, patients seek out medical care as they don’t know where else to turn, but what happens to the patient when their medical concerns are co-occurring with a mental health condition, such as substance use during pregnancy? Or a patient who seeks out behavioral health but is too afraid to see out medical care for fear of a possible medical diagnosis. Here at Alium health, we integrate all aspects of a person's wellness to ensure we can identify and treat both the medical and mental health. Integration involves two or more providers who have specialized disciplines who work together collaboratively to ensure that the patient’s total health needs/wellness is addressed.

 

Contingency Management: using rewards to drive recovery, Presenter: Dr. Jon Peeples, MD, Downloads: Presentation

Contingency Management is a form of addiction treatment that activates the brain’s reward system to promote healthy behaviors and bridge the gap between drug use and sustained sobriety. Despite decades of evidence supporting contingency management as the best treatment for stimulant use disorders (e.g., methamphetamine, cocaine, prescription stimulants), operational and insurance challenges have largely limited its use to research studies, the Veterans Health Administration, and state programs. Within the last couple years, innovative technology has been developed to expand access to this much-needed treatment to people nationwide. Affect Therapeutics has developed an all-digital treatment program that is delivering contingency management nationwide, along with medical, counseling, and case management services. Affect is using technology to revolutionize addiction care delivery, quality tracking, and outcome measurement. Through our advanced digital platform, we are able to meticulously monitor the progress of individuals in our program and drive better results than traditional treatment.

 

Medication Assisted Treatment on the road, Presenter: Stephanie Robinson, Downloads: Presentation / Handout  

This session discusses the first Arizona Mobile MAT unit, the development of the unit, the services provided on the unit and the impact it can make to the community experiencing homelessness and substance use issues.

 

Housing programs in Arizona, Presenter: Kris Weaver-Gould and Anna Verdugo

In this presentation you will learn about the AHP program, how to apply on a participant's behalf, and once housed, the partnerships and collaboration to help the member have and keep housing stability.

 

Bridging peer support services and high-risk populations in a behavioral health setting, Presenter: Jennifer Bose

This presentation will describe Copa Health’s response to the systematic increase of emergency room and hospital usage in the behavioral health community. Copa Health began its Bridge Program which is a specialized Peer Support Intervention Program designed to serve the mental health community and provide additional support to our High-Risk/High Needs Population. Our goal of the Bridge Program is to increase quality of life for our members and their families, and at the same time reduce inpatient/and emergency room utilization. We understand that not all life challenges require inpatient care. Using intervention strategies utilized in Peer Support Services and the use of Critical Time Intervention model, our uniquely trained Recovery Coaches will assist individuals to develop resiliency and learn how to connect to resources within their communities while building a larger supportive network with our members.

 

NAMI - In Our Own Voice, Presenter: Ariel Biscoe

NAMI ‘In Our Own Voice’ is an interactive presentation that provides insight into what it’s like to live with mental illness. The presentation is led by two adults living with mental health conditions and includes video and discussion. Audiences are given a safe place to ask questions and gain an understanding of an often misunderstood topic. Through dialogue, we help grow the movement to build better lives and cure Stigma.

 

Provider panel - workforce challenges, Presenters: Michael Burnett, Kimberly Craig, Tara Daffern, Sarah Hauck, Laura Larson, Shar Najafi Piper

Join Mercy Care's Workforce Development Administrator and Horizon Health and Wellness, Center for Health and Recovery, Copa Health, and Lifewell for an open discussion on key topics impacting our providers today.

 

Questions? Contact the Office of Individual and Family Affairs (OIFA) team at OIFATeam@MercyCareAZ.org.