Cenpatico Blog

October 8 Marks Depression Screening Day.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 14.8 million people suffer with Major Depression.

Depression can be treated. According to the National Institute of Health, up to 80 percent of people treated for depression start to feel better within four to six weeks of starting medicine, therapy, support groups or a combination of treatments.

As part of Mental Health America’s Campaign for America’s Mental Health, they’re offering a free, confidential Depression Screening.

To learn more about Depression along with other Behavioral Health Issues please check out our brochures.

This entry is filed under News.

Sitting in a large meeting hall about a month ago, a question came from one of the speakers I was listening to that that made quite an impact:

“How many of us have been affected in some way by Mental Illness?”

I turned to look at the other hundred or so people in that hall. Old, young, women, men, multiple races and nationalities, people dressed in three piece suits and those dressed in t-shirts and jeans, those who were known public figures and those who would blend in with the crowd…

Every hand in that room was up.

One of the greatest obstacles to recovery from mental illness is stigma. It stops people from being open about their problems and from getting the help they or a loved one need, but as I looked into the faces of those in that hall, there was no hesitancy, no shame, no meekness…

Every hand in that room was up.

Working for a Managed Behavioral Health Company I hear and see the stats on mental illness daily. One illness affects 1 out of 4, another, 4 out of 5, yet another 7 out of 10. I can tell you first hand those stats don’t tell the whole story…

Every hand in that room was up.

Mental Illness affects us all. Maybe it’s a loved one, a friend, a colleague, or a neighbor. Those who suffer from mental illness are not alone, those seeking help are not alone, and those who know someone with a mental illness are not alone…

Every hand in that room was up.

The odds are good we all know someone or have had our lives in some way touched by someone with a mental illness. I know it has touched my life…

My hand in that room was up.

October is a National Depression and Mental Health Screen Month. Within October is also Mental Illness Awareness Week (October 4-10,) Depression Screening Day (October 8,) and World Mental Health Day (October 10.) I encourage you to check out our News section each of those days to find links to learn more about each. Also please look around our site to learn more about mental illness by checking out our Behavioral Health Resources Section. Join us and our great Community Outreach Partners in becoming more aware of mental illness and fighting the stigma…

In other words, put your hand up.

Bobby DiPasquale

Web Specialist

This entry is filed under Blog.

October 4-10 marks Mental Illness Awareness Week. Started by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) in 1990, the Week is a joining together of Mental Health Advocates to not only raise the awareness of Mental Illness in our communities, but to fight the stigmas that can become a major roadblock to recovery.

To learn more about Mental Illness Awareness week click on the previous link and also make sure to check out some of the definitions and Myths and Facts of Mental Illness.

Also, during this week many PBS television stations will be broadcasting “Minds on the Edge: Facing Mental Illness.” Check the program’s listings for days and times it will be showing in your area. Help spread the word! Use this provocative, informative program to support advocacy for reform of the mental heath care system.

In addition Fred Friendly Seminars, Inc., which produced Minds has issued a challenge to people who register as friends on the program’s Facebook page. For whoever becomes the 1,000th person to register, they will donate $250 to the non-profit mental health organization of the person’s choice.

This entry is filed under News.

October marks the beginning of National Depression and Mental Health Screen Month.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 14.8 Million Americans suffer from Major Depression.  Depression occurs in 40-65% of people who have experienced a heart attack, in 10-27% of stroke survivors, and 25% of people diagnosed with cancer.

Depression can be treated. According to the National Institute of Health, up to 80 percent of people treated for depression start to feel better within four to six weeks of starting medicine, therapy, support groups or a combination of treatments.

As part of Mental Health America’s Campaign for America’s Mental Health, they’re offering a free, confidential Depression Screening.

To learn more about Depression along with other Behavioral Health Issues please check out our brochures.

This entry is filed under News.

Cenpatico was invited to participate in the 2009 fall National Managed Markets Summit sponsored as a biannual event by Pinsonault Associates. This event was held at the beautiful La Costa Resort in Carlsbad California September 22-24.

Cenpatico was one of 60 industry leaders invited to conduct a breakout session on topics central to health care reform for the more than 300 attendees. The program faculty consisted of key decision-makers from diverse organizations: commercial payers, Pharmacy Benefit Management Organizations, Employer Coalitions, Specialty Pharmacy Organizations, Medicare (Commercial and Government), State Medicaid Agencies, Group Purchasing Organizations, and other leading industry experts.

Our presentation focused on psychotropic medication utilization for children. Increased use of psychotropic medications is a global phenomenon and part of the broader context of increased prescription use generally. As the use of medications for children and adolescents has increased, the viewpoints in public discussion have become increasingly polarized and shrill. Proponents of medication note that under-treatment of psychiatric disorders in children/adolescents leads to a waste of human potential and that long-term adverse effects of mental illness can be prevented if treated early while anti-medication activists claim that medications are supporting poor parenting and are simply used as a means of control, discipline or convenience without considering the risks and potential long-term side-effects.

Cenpatico presented the results of our Psychotropic Medication Utilization Review (PMUR) process for the Foster Care population in the State of Texas. The review uses the best practice parameters approved by the Texas Department of State Health Services in 2005, and subsequently adopted in some form by multiple other states (AZ, FLA, TN, CT). Key elements of the PMUR process include real-time tracking of prescription use for foster children, peer-peer interaction with prescribers, prescriber profiling and quality of care review as well as increased educational efforts regarding the best practice guidelines for prescribers.

The presentation addressed ways to increase accountability for prescribing safely, increasing continuity of care and appropriate exchange of information between all treating practitioners. Polypharmacy has been substantially reduced by these efforts in the Texas Foster Care STARHealth program and there are many promising interventions that can be considered for other populations as well.

Cindy Peterson

Vice President, Clinical Operations

This entry is filed under Blog.