Hello again,
This time of the year always passes by quickly, however this particular year has been especially busy. I wonder how a month has passed without a second notice...anyways I'm finding myself falling back into school/internship/work/leisure routine. There is a flurry of (ongoing) activity at the Morrison Institute and my supervisor, Dr. Erica McFadden is no exception; she typically works on 4 - 5 projects consecutively. One such project involves improving relations between the Phoenix Police Department and individuals suffering from mental health issues. By surveying this population, often many of whom are homeless, we hope the data will lead to a more comprehensive understanding of the underlying issues associated with mental health and how city services can be more adaptive and responsive to the mental health community.Over the past month, I have had the opportunity to visit local service providers, LodeStar Day Resource Center and Recovery Innovations. As these nonprofits serve individuals with mental health issues, we (Erica, myself and others involved in the project) chose to disseminate the surveys at these particular agencies. Both of these nonprofit organizations are located in the Downtown Phoenix area
for easy access.
What I've discovered is while there are services which cater to the homeless/ and individuals with Serious Mental Illness (SMI), it appears the city lack shelter for those without a permanent address. I may be going slightly off-topic, however the reason I bring this up, is misunderstanding and lack of communication may arise when a group of people have not been trained to deal with a population which face mental health issues. This requires unique training and a willingness for open communication. At first glance, an officer may not realize an individual is undergoing an episode which may result in circumstances that could have been avoided. Speaking to a number of individuals one of the recurring themes has been more emphasis on listening (communication) from the officers and hospital staff. As mentioned earlier, this project, Crisis System Response - city survey, is one of a handful I am currently working on.
I look forward to reading about others' workplace experiences and learning more about one another.
Until next time~
It sounds like your internship is very hands on and requires a great deal of interpersonal skills. I think you are absolutely right about the importance of listening. After all, "the quieter you become, the more you can hear", and the better the communication becomes. Best of luck with your internship!
ReplyDeleteHi Patrick,
ReplyDeleteI would agree with that perspective; listening is vital to communication. I am slowly realizing one can always improve in this area. Hope your internship is going well~
Thank you!
Hi Avanti,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading about the Morisson Institute and your work there. In regards to homeless individuals with mental health illnesses, I understand what you mean. While working at United Way in Atlanta most of our clients had some sort of mental health illness, with the most common being PTSD. What helped our case managers in working with clients was similar histories. The case managers serving on the VA grant were in fact Veterans themselves (and half of them had also experienced homelessness in the past). Having that background definitely helped them communicate, and ultimately help clients.