Health Care Video
In Our Own Words: Improving Care for People with Disabilities
Released as an unlimited run for health care providers everywhere, “In Our Own Words: Improving Care for People with Disabilities” is a two-part video series on Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid’s YouTube channel. The first installment, Communication, began June 14. The second, Understanding, dropped June 21. Both are subtitled in Spanish. Enlightening and powerful, the voices featured in this production reveal with sheer frankness what works and what doesn’t work for members of the disability community in healthcare settings. Produced in partnership with the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration and Special Olympics Minnesota, the intended audience for the series are health care professionals. But anyone can learn and benefit. Distributors will be Mid-MN Legal Aid’s Minnesota Disability Law Center—direct to providers—but key distributors will be health care recipients themselves. The channel has many other useful free videos. FFI: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mid+minnesota+legal+aid+channel
Conference
Register for symposium
The PACER Symposium on Students with Mental Health and Learning Disabilities is 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Wed, Aug. 16 at Minneapolis Convention Center. Registration fee is $40, and includes lunch. Clock hours will be available at the end of the symposium. Join PACER for a full day of informative, engaging sessions on current best practices related to children’s mental health and learning disabilities. Parents, educators, administrators, and other professionals will learn strategies to more effectively support students at school and at home. One keynote presenter is Sheletta Brundidge, Emmy Award-winning comedian, radio host, television anchor, newspaper columnist, and best-selling author of children’s autism books. She is also the mom of children with autism, and founder of ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com, an online podcasting company that provides culturally competent commercial production. FFI: FFI: PACER, 952-838-9000, 800-537-2237, www.pacer.org
Children and families
PACER workshops sampling
PACER Center offers many useful free or low-cost workshops and other resources for families of children with any disabilities. Some in-person workshops are offered at PACER Center and also offered online. Other workshops are wholly online and livestreamed at this time. Advance registration is required for all workshops. At least 48 hours’ notice is needed for interpretation. Check out PACER’s website and link to the newsletter of statewide workshops that allows participants to pick and choose sessions designed for their needs. Access Press only provides a sampling of the workshops offered.
Managing Money: Tools to Help Increase Financial Independence is 2-3 p.m. Wed, July 12. The workshop for parents and consumers will showcase tools that help to develop money management skills to support independent living. Tools will focus on understanding and counting money, planning a budget, and tracking money spent. Online.
Location: Online Web Streaming Communication with School Staff in the IFSP Process is 6:30-8 p.m. Tue, July 25. Families of young children with Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs) will learn skills to effectively communicate with the other members of their IFSP teams so the IFSP reflects their concerns and priorities and the strengths and needs of their child. The workshop is rescheduled from July 18. Online. FFI: PACER, 952-838-9000, 800-537-2237, www.pacer.org
Info & Assistance
Many classes available
NAMI Minnesota (National Alliance on Mental Illness) has set up a wide variety of free and in-person online mental health classes. Choices include Hope for Recovery, Transitions, Ending the Silence, Understanding Early Episode Psychosis for Families, In Our Own Voice, Family to Family, Positive Psychology, Creating Caring Communities, smoking cessation, a suicide prevention class called QPR – Question, Persuade and Refer, a special QPR class for Agricultural Communities and many more.
NAMI Minnesota’s Online Support Groups moved to a new and improved platform, HeyPeers. HeyPeers provides a safe, easy to access environment exclusively designed for online support group meetings.
The classes and online support groups are designed for family members and caregivers, persons living with a mental illness, service providers, and also the general public. Find a complete listing of these classes and how to join in by going to namimn.org and clicking on “Classes” or go straight to https://namimn.org/education-public-awareness/classes/scheduled/
