Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association has an immediate opening for a Statewide Advocacy Director. Key responsibilities include supervising regional advocates, and providing consumers with information, training, and educational activities directed at building self-advocacy skills promoting rehabilitation and recovery.

The State Advocacy Director must be able to work effectively with stakeholder groups and the general public and must work effectively in a team environment. The State Advocacy Director must confer with members of legislature and other holders of public office information/issues that impact people with mental illness.

The Statewide Advocacy Director must be a mental health consumer. A mental health consumer is someone that has met at some point in their adult life the following definition: an adult with a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder of sufficient duration to meet diagnosable criteria as specified within DSM-IV that has resulted in functional impairment which has substantially interfered with or limited one or more major activities.

EDUCATION: High school diploma or equivalent. Minimum of 5 years successfully working in the mental health field and previous public relations experience.

The Statewide Advocacy Director must live in the Nashville Metropolitan area. State, Local, and National travel is involved and must be able to work some nights and weekends. Minimum starting salary is $30,000.00. Benefits include 12 sick and 12 annual days yearly and TMHCA offers health insurance. TMHCA pays 80% percent of the employee’s insurance premium and the employee pays 20% and is responsible for all co-pays and deductibles. Employees are also eligible for 401K plan after six months of employment. Applicant must have a clean criminal background history.

To apply please fax resumes to the Attention of Anthony Fox at TMHCA.  The fax number is (615) 383-9442.

The Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association (TMHCA) Board of Directors Proposes Bylaw Amendments (April 5, 2012)

In accordance with the Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association bylaws this notice is provided to members of the Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association in advance of its meeting on May 10, 2012, for consideration of the proposed resolutions to amend the TMHCA Bylaws. The changes are proposed by the TMHCA Board of Directors.

The Board recommends that members consider the following amendments in the document titled:  BYLAWS TMHCA 2005 w edits April 6 2012. Please send feedback/comments to:  TMHCA President, 955 Woodland Street, Nashville, Tennessee 37206 or email President@tmhca-tn.org

Current Bylaws

Bylaws with Proposed Changes

TMHCA is pleased to announce our upcoming 2012 Annual Advocacy Conference entitled Get On Board. It will be held May 10th at the Manchester Coffee County Conference Center in Manchester, TN.

This year we are focusing on helping members move forward in recovery through self-advocacy and connection to community resources. The workshops provided will center on consumer rights, independent living, and wellness. We hope you can join us for this event. We look forward to seeing you there!  Online registration is recommended at http://www.eventbrite.com/event/3167587339 or you can mail in the downloadable registration form below.

Registration ends May 4, 2012. If you have any questions you may call our toll free line at (888) 539-0393.

See Conference Agenda

Get On Board Advocacy Conference

Manchester-Coffee County Conference Center
147 Hospitality Boulevard
Manchester, Tennessee 37355
May 10, 2012

Sign-in begins at 7:30am Central

Conference runs from 9:30am to 5pm Central

Register Online at: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/3167587339

Registration Fee – $20

Fee will be waived if it presents a financial hardship

Get On Board Promotional Flyer

Conference Agenda

Mail in Registration Form

On October 13, 2011 the Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association Board of Directors unanimously passed a motion to support *Senate Bill 1692 by *Burks. (House Bill 2064 by *Matheny, Dennis, McManus, Richardson, Cooper B.) as introduced.

The Bill States:
Capital Punishment – As introduced, provides that a person who had severe and persistent mental illness at the time of committing murder in the first degree cannot be executed but may be sentenced to life imprisonment or life without parole. – Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 13, Part 2.

Bill Summary
This bill prohibits a court from sentencing to death a defendant who had a severe and persistent mental illness at the time of committing the offense of murder in the first degree.

The burden of producing evidence to demonstrate a severe and persistent mental illness and persuading the court that the defendant, at the time of the offense, suffered from such an illness would be upon the defendant to prove by a preponderance of the evidence. If the defendant raises the issue, the determination of whether the defendant suffered from a severe and persistent mental illness at the time of the offense of first degree murder would be made by the court at a hearing prior to adjudication of the charges.

If the court determines that the defendant was a person with severe and persistent mental illness at the time of the offense, the punishment, upon conviction of first degree murder, will be either life imprisonment or life imprisonment without possibility of parole.

If the court determines that the defendant is not a person with severe and persistent mental illness, the defendant will still be entitled to offer evidence of insanity at trial and, if convicted of capital murder, evidence of diminished mental capacity or mental illness at trial and as a mitigating circumstance. The determination by the trier of fact that the defendant does not have a severe and persistent mental illness will not be appealable by interlocutory appeal, but may be a basis of appeal by either the state or defendant following the sentencing stage of the trial.

Under this bill, “severe and persistent mental illness” means an individual:

1. Has a psychiatric diagnosis or symptoms consistent with a psychiatric diagnosis as specified in the latest edition of the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual;
2. Has delusions, hallucinations, extremely disorganized thinking or other significant disruptions of consciousness, memory, and perception that are not attributable to the acute effects of alcohol or other drugs; and
3. Has a documented medical history of the items listed in (1) and (2).

This spring TMHCA has several job openings across the state for your consideration.

Regional Advocate in Knoxville Tennessee

Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association has an immediate opening for an East Tennessee Regional Advocate. Key responsibilities include providing consumers with information, peer support and training, and educational activities directed at building self-advocacy skills promoting rehabilitation and recovery. Advocates must be able to work effectively with stakeholder groups and the general public and must work effectively in a team environment. The Advocate must live in the Knoxville Metropolitan area. State, Local, and National travel is involved. Starting Salary is $21,000.00 annually. Benefits include 12 sick and 12 annual days yearly and TMHCA offers health insurance. TMHCA pays 80% percent of the employee’s insurance premium and the employee pays 20% and is responsible for all co-pays and deductibles. Applicant must have a clean criminal background history. Please fax resumes to TMHCA at 615.383.1176 Attention Advocacy Director.

Peer Support and Psychosocial Services in Knoxville and the Tri Cities area

The Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association is seeking to hire qualified individuals with the lived experience of mental illness in the following areas:

Tri-Cities (Johnson City, Bristol, Kingsport) – 3 full time positions
Knoxville, Tennessee – 3 full time positions

Applicant must meet one of the following criteria:

• Must be an individual that has received or currently receives mental health services with a Bachelors in Social Work or related fields, or;
• Must be an individual that has received or currently receives mental health services with a with a Tennessee State Certified Peer Specialist accreditation.

Tennessee State Certified Peer Specialist accreditation visit: http://state.tn.us/mental/recovery/oca3.html

Peer Support and Psychosocial Staff will work in a community setting providing evidence-based practices, best practices and peer support to individuals that meet criteria set forth by stakeholders in Tennessee. Additional requirements include: High school diploma or equivalent with local, state, and national travel required. Starting Salary is $23,000.00 annually. Benefits include 12 sick and 12 annual days yearly and TMHCA offers health insurance. TMHCA pays 80% percent of the employee’s insurance premium and the employee pays 20% and is responsible for all co-pays and deductibles. Applicant must have a clean criminal background history. Please fax resumes to TMHCA at 615.383.1176 Attention East TN Regional Director.

Administrative Assistant in Nashville, TN

The Administrative Assistant will work 40 hours weekly in an office setting providing support to TMHCA Executive Director and TMHCA Associate Director. The TMHCA Administrative Assistant must be a person with mental illness.  A person with mental illness is someone that has met at some point in their adult life the following definition: an adult with a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder of sufficient duration to meet diagnosable criteria as specified within DSM-IV that has resulted in functional impairment which has substantially interfered with or limited one or more major activities. Qualifications include: a business degree or 2 years business experience, a high school diploma with administrative experience, knowledge of data and administrative management practices and procedures, knowledge of clerical practices and procedures, computer skills and knowledge of office software packages (Windows based, Microsoft Word, Excel, databases, etc.). Starting Salary is $23,000.00 annually. Benefits include 12 sick and 12 annual days yearly and TMHCA offers health insurance. TMHCA pays 80% percent of the employee’s insurance premium and the employee pays 20% and is responsible for all co-pays and deductibles. Applicant must have a clean criminal background history. Please fax resumes to TMHCA at 615.383.1176 Attention Associate Director.

Regional Director in Knoxville, Tennessee

The Regional Program Director represents TMHCA in the grand division. Key responsibilities include supervising Certified Peer Specialists and TMHCA East Tennessee Medicaid Program; and providing consumers with information, peer support and training, and educational activities directed at building self-advocacy skills promoting rehabilitation and recovery. The Regional Program Director must be able to work effectively with stakeholder groups and the general public and must work effectively in a team environment. The Regional Program Director must be a person with mental illness.  A person with mental illness is someone that has met at some point in their adult life the following definition: an adult with a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder of sufficient duration to meet diagnosable criteria as specified within DSM-IV that has resulted in functional impairment which has substantially interfered with or limited one or more major activities.

MINIMUM EDUCATION REQUIRED: BSW in social work with the expectation of becoming licensed within three months. One (1) year clinical experience preferred. The Regional Program Director will work in an Office setting, with local, state and national travel required. Starting Salary is $35,000.00 annually. Benefits include 12 sick and 12 annual days yearly and TMHCA offers health insurance. TMHCA pays 80% percent of the employee’s insurance premium and the employee pays 20% and is responsible for all co-pays and deductibles Applicant must have a clean criminal background history. Please fax resumes to TMHCA at 615.383.1176 Attention Associate Director.

Two (2) Security Coordinators in Memphis

The Resident Security Coordinators maintains and monitors the TMHCA Beers-Van Gogh Center in Memphis, TN.  The Resident Security Manager must be able to work effectively in a team environment. EDUCATION: High school diploma or equivalent.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS: Apartment complex setting working with formerly homeless mental health consumers that are tenants. Must be a mental health consumer: A mental health consumer is someone that has met at some point in their adult life the following definition: an adult with a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder of sufficient duration to meet diagnosable criteria as specified within DSM-IV that has resulted in functional impairment which has substantially interfered with or limited one or more major activities. Resident Security Coordinators will work 32 hours weekly. Hours are nights and weekends. Starting Salary is $10.00 hourly. Applicant must have a clean criminal background history. Please fax resumes to TMHCA at 615.383.1176 Attention Housing Director.

The Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association will offer two FREE Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) trainings in February 2012.

The first two-day training will be February 20-21, 2012 from 9am-4pm and the second training will be February 23-24, 2012 from 9am-4pm. Both trainings will be at Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association office in Murfreesboro, TN  located at 416-A Medical Center Parkway.

Each trainee will receive a Free MHFA Workbook and 12 CEU’s for attending the course. Lunch is on your own.

Mental Health First Aid is a groundbreaking public education program that  helps the public identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. Mental Health First Aid presents an overview of mental illness and substance use disorders in the U.S. and introduces participants to risk factors and warning signs of mental health problems, builds understanding of their impact, and overviews common treatments.

Mental Health First Aiders learn a 5-step action plan encompassing the skills, resources and knowledge to help an individual in crisis connect with appropriate professional, peer, social, and self-help care. Mental Health First Aid USA course has benefited a variety of audiences and key professions, including: primary care professionals, employers and business leaders, faith communities, school personnel and educators, state police and corrections officers, nursing home staff, mental health authorities, state policymakers, volunteers, young people, families and the general public.

To Register please send the following information:

• Name
• Address
• City, State, Zip
• Phone
• Email
• Organization you represent (if applicable)
• A 50 word essay on why you want to attend MHFA training

Send to: Kbrasher@tmhca-tn.org

For More Information: Karen Brasher at 423 775-3206

This MHFA training is provided through a partnership of Tennessee Mental Health Consumers’ Association and UnitedHealthcare Community Plan Tennessee.

Please join us on Capitol Hill as we gather together and show our elected officials that behavioral health consumers and their families are educated, united and WE VOTE!   Unless appropriate action is taken by Governor Haslam and the members of the Tennessee General Assembly, today’s fragile community behavioral health infrastructure will edge closer to collapse.  Thousands of Tennesseans will bear the burden of diminished behavioral health programs and services.

Date: March 6, 2012
Time: 8:30 am to 4:00 pm, registration begins at 8:30am, light breakfast will be available
Location: War Memorial Plaza, Nashville, TN
To Register (and have box lunch reserved): Eventbright Day on the Hill Page

Attendees will be given the information needed to communicate with legislators about the necessity of having a healthy behavioral health system and will be armed with the talking points to support the need.
Throughout the morning, speakers will share their views on the state of the behavioral health system in Tennessee.
A Box lunch will be served at midday.

* Please register for the event in order to have a lunch reserved *

Phoenix Art Gala sponsored by Healing Arts Project, Inc. – HAPI – includes an Art Auction featuring original work of HAPI artist with dimensional and visual art in a variety of styles and mediums. Phoenix Awards recognize persons and groups who have committed time and effort to further the arts in recovery.

HAPI provides the opportunity for persons with mental illness and addiction disorders to express creativity through art, increase self-esteem and self-confidence, and to combat stigma within the community about these disorders.

Date: February 16th, 2012

Time: 5:30pm is the Art Auction, 6:30pm is the Dinner and Phoenix Awards Presentation

Location: Millennium Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville

Tickets: $100 for an individual ticket

Sponsorships:

• Gold – $1,000 table for 10
• Silver – $500 for 5 seats
• Bronze – $300 for 3 seats

For more information: (615) 594-4642 or visit http://www.nowplayingnashville.com/event/detail/441515331

Join us for a day to renew memberships, learn about legislative approaches and connect with friends in the mental health community.  Lunch will be available to those who RSVP.  Please indicate if you have dietary restrictions when you RSVP.

East TN

Feb. 10, 2012 from 10am-3pm

218 Western Avenue, Knoxville

To RSVP for East: kbrasher@tmhca-tn.org or call (865) 310-9356

Middle TN

Feb. 8, 2012 from 10am-3pm

521 Mercury Blvd., Patterson Park, Murfreesboro

To RSVP for Middle: lgarner@tmhca-tn.org or call (888) 539-0393

West TN

Feb. 3, 2012 from 10am-3pm

Madison Complex, 319 C3 North Parkway, Jackson

To RSVP for West: labbott@tmhca-tn.org or call (731) 660-3275

The state recently held its annual budget hearing for TennCare.  According to the budget presentation below there is a 1.25% proposed cut to TennCare providers and 8.5% in cuts to mental health providers.  Potentially this represents nearly 10% in cuts to mental health services provided through TennCare.

To read a Public News Service story on the cuts

To watch the TennCare hearing

TennCare Budget Presentation