2008 General Meeting Topics

November 2008: Lieutenant Cara Westin, the Sacramento Police Department’s Night Watch Commander for the Downtown area, spoke about the training that officers receive to deal with the mentally ill. Lt. Westin’s unit interacts frequently with homeless people who have a mental illness. She talked about 5150 calls, gave tips for families who need to contact the police, and answered questions about dealing with law enforcement.

October 2008: Crossroads Employment Services spoke about the services they provide to clients helping them with Social Security benefits, SSI and SSDI. Dee Gavaldon and Vilma Rodregues explained how Social Security impacts employment and work incentives.

September 2008: Michael Paravagna, Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) Coordinator for the City of Sacramento, spoke about programs for individuals with disabilities, including mental disabilities and ways to access services.

July-August 2008: No meeting

June 2008: If you didn't attend this month, you missed a great, interactive meeting. Michelle Callejas, Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Program Manager was back again with her associate Kathryn Skrabo, talking this time about the Workforce Education and Training (WET) Component of MHSA. Michelle gathered pages of comments from meeting participants about the qualities they would most like to see in this new concept program. To get involved in a WET Workgroup and help with the development process, contact MHSA by phone at 875-6472 or email.

May 2008: Michelle Callejas, Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Program Manager, presented an update on MHSA accomplishments in the Sacramento area.

April 2008: Tom Wootton, author of The Bipolar Advantage and The Depression Advantage, spoke about changing the way we view and treat depression. Tom promotes his thought provoking view of depression as a potential source of profound growth, strength, and insight through writing, speaking and conducting educational seminars.

March 2008: Nancy Purtell, RN and CEO of Sierra Vista Hospital, spoke about Sierra Vista and plans to expand that hospital and others in the area to address the shortage of acute care psychiatric beds in Sacramento.

February 2008: Paul Powell, Associate Director at Transitional Living and Community Support, spoke about the various programs and services TLCS provides for people with psychiatric disabilities. TLCS housing programs include 30-day homeless shelters, one year transitional housing, cooperative housing and more. Support programs include homeless outreach, case management for people who have been in the criminal justice system, substance abuse recovery services and work re-entry programs. 

January 2008: Our speaker was Manoj V. Waikar, MD and Medical Director of Gardner Family Care Corporation, a private non-profit Community Mental Health Center in San Jose. Gardner provides mental health services to children, adolescents, adults and seniors with serious and persistent mental illness including schizophrenia and other psychiatric conditions. Dr. Waikar will speak on relapse awareness and prevention strategies for people with schizophrenia. See the flyer.