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Increased Access to Telehealth as a Means of Reducing Stigma
The Random House College Dictionary defines stigma as “a stain or reproach, as on one’s reputation.”1 Dictionary.com adds to this definition “a mark of disgrace or infamy.”2 In the context of mental health, stigma means a negative perception of mental illness, which has long served as a...
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A Cruel Irony: Less Mental Health Stigma but Fewer Behavioral Health Clinicians
Mental health outreach is more prevalent than it has ever been before. Efforts to encourage people to ask for help are seen online, on television, on college campuses, and in corporate headquarters. Many are sponsored by governments, but businesses, educational institutions, and foundations have...
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Behavioral Health News Spotlight on Excellence – An Interview with Joseph Wilson, Peer Specialist with Services for the UnderServed
Overview David Minot, Executive Director of Mental Health News Education, the non-profit organization that publishes Behavioral Health News, interviews Joseph Wilson, a Certified Addiction Recovery Coach and Peer Specialist with Services for the UnderServed in NYC. Joseph details his work at the...
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Recovery, Hope and Resilience During the Pandemic
As one of the largest providers of outpatient mental health services in New York State, New York Psychotherapy and Counseling (NYPCC) works together with tens of thousands of New Yorkers facing mental health challenges. NYPCC embraces a recovery-oriented, trauma-informed model of community mental...
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Telehealth, Burnout, and the New Normal
No amount of education, training, or clinical experience could have prepared us, as therapists, for the reality of collective trauma on a global scale. As clinicians at the largest provider of community-based outpatient mental health services for our county, Westchester Jewish Community Services...
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A Virtual Peer DBT Consultation Group
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), an evidence-based treatment developed for individuals meeting criteria for Borderline Personality Disorder, is one of the primary interventions delivered at Westchester Jewish Community Services (WJCS). In an effort to supplement existing training and practice in...
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A Lesson in Resiliency
The Pandemic has and continues to challenge everyone in many similar and different ways. The profound loss of lives and continuing vigilance and preparation/adjustment on part of everyone has tested the limits of many individuals, families, businesses and organizations. Increased stress and...
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Telehealth: An Unexpected Silver Lining During a Pandemic
Cozy up in your home’s coveted armchair, paired with a blanket, headphones and your smart phone. Click on your telehealth link. Begin your remote outpatient therapy session from the comfort of your own home. But wait … are we referring to individuals served, therapists, or perhaps...
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Learning from Client Surveys About Telehealth and the Impact of COVID-19
In the fall of 2019, as part of our effort to increase client accessibility to treatment, Westchester Jewish Community Services (WJCS) was preparing to launch a telehealth program. The plan had been to start a small pilot in the spring of 2020, with a few staff providing telehealth sessions, as...
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A Safe Space: Digital Tools Supporting Mental Health
As the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe last year, collectively, mental health challenges were intensified. With the pandemic, a series of lockdowns, restrictions, and preventative measures were put in place, forcing many of us into isolation, primarily interacting in digital spaces. We’ve also...
