MENTAL
HEALTH ADVOCACY
BHSN provides education, advocacy, information and referral to the
community on all behavioral health issues. Our offices are located at
22 U.S. Oval, Suite 218,
on the former Air Force base in Plattsburgh, NY.
Advocacy is about making
changes to:
-
Getting access to mental health
services
-
The quality or kind of mental
health services received
-
Rights that have been violated
(protections under the Mental Health Act or other legislation,
discrimination, etc.)
-
A work situation (hiring and
firing, being treated unfairly, etc.)
-
Social assistance (eligibility,
losing assistance, being assigned to the wrong kind of assistance,
etc.)
-
Any other situation that needs
to be changed in order to have a better quality of life (such as
public education to eliminate stigma about mental health, social
assistance and/or poverty and class issues, etc.)
OUR GOALS:
-
To promote mental health in our community
-
To strengthen individuals and families so they may
improve their quality of life
-
To work for victory over mental illness
EDUCATION, INFORMATION & REFERRAL
Public education forms the base of many of BHSN's
program offerings. It is through education that people will come
to understand the roots of mental illness, family violence, child abuse
and begin to eliminate them from our society. We provide education
through outreach and by maintaining an in-house library of information
we make available to the public. Information and education is delivered on a
one-to-one basis or in a group setting.
Schools, human service agencies, and community
groups may request programs by contacting our downtown Plattsburgh
office at 518-563-8206, extension 135.
One of our programs which presents in a group setting is
the North Country Mental Health Players. The Players is a troupe
of trained amateurs serving the community by role-playing:
Presentations are offered for the purpose of portraying
a specific problem having specific effects on individuals
in a specific setting. The audience responds to the
portrayal with alternative problem-solving ideas. The critical concept
is the fact that behavior is truly a matter of personal choice which can
be altered in the light of new and relevant information. Since its
inception in 1980, the Players have provided response-provoking
vignettes to a broad variety of agencies, educational institutions,
professional groups, faith-based organizations as well as work
sites. Click here if you
would like to find out more about the Players.
The Ninth Season of our FREE Brown Bag Lunch
series continues on the fourth Monday of each month in the first
floor Meeting Room of the County Government Center at 137 Margaret
Street in downtown Plattsburgh. The programs
are from
11:45am to 1pm. BHSN cosponsors this series with the Champlain
Valley chapter of the National Alliance on
Mental Illness (NAMI:CV).
Click here to see the programs in our
current
season. Resource materials are provided at every session. Bring your lunch
or a snack and plan
to attend one, some or all in the series!
SUPPORT & ADVOCACY
We have always advocated for person in need, either
because they suffer from mental illness or have some other condition
that threatens their coping skills. Advocacy services may be as simple as providing a listening
ear or as in-depth as intervention with other agencies, the legal system, governmental
agencies, and educating legislators about issues relevant to the behavioral health needs
of the community.
We have established, with
the guidance of MHANYS, a Local Business Advisory Council. This council is
comprised of consumers, family members, business representatives and
mental health providers with the goal of devising strategies to increase
the employability of consumers through the philosophy that "people
who are ready to work, can!" Meetings are held quarterly at
the BHSN offices in Plattsburgh. The
Council has produced a PowerPoint presentation which allows members to
attend various community, civic and service organization meetings to
explain that mental illness alone is NOT a full time job! If you might
be interested in serving on this Council or scheduling a presentation
for your group, please click
here.
If you are
interested in dispelling the myths of advocacy, please visit the
Depression & Bipolar Alliance website by
clicking here.
COUNSELING
Referrals are offered to persons looking for appropriate
service providers to meet an individual's need. In addition to
trained personnel to help guide people to these resources, BHSN maintains an up-to-date directory of area providers.
Call 518-563-8206, extension 135, with your specific request.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
The Mental Health Advocacy is part of a local
non-profit organization providing high quality, affordable
rehabilitation, education, prevention and professional services.
As part of our education, outreach and advocacy here at BHSN, we ask for your
financial assistance in helping individuals as well as families;
please mail your tax-deductible contribution to:
Behavioral Health Services North
22 U.S. Oval
- Suite 218
Plattsburgh, NY 12903
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