Products and Resources Catalog

This presentation reviewed the history of evidence-based treatments for borderline personality disorder and the components common to all effective treatments, with a specific focus on Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Good Psychiatric Management. In addition to explaining both treatments’ components, theory, and evidence base, this presentation discussed the costs and benefits of each one and the situations in which they can be most effectively used.   Presenter: Dr. Choi-Kain is currently the Director of the Gunderson Personality Disorders Institute (GPDI), an internationally recognized center of training for empirically supported treatments for borderline personality disorder (BPD) and research on outcomes as well as the social cognitive mechanisms targeted in these interventions.   View a recording of this 1/10/24 session here. 

ABOUT THIS RESOURCE This summary describes the goals, processes, challenges and results Northwest MHTTC and partners faced implementing an evidence-based lifestyle intervention at a Certified Community Behavioral Health Center (CCBHC) as well as lessons and considerations that can be applied to other implementation projects.    ADDITIONAL RESOURCES All materials created for the STRIDE lifestyle intervention implementation project including self-paced courses, a curriculum package and more information about the STRIDE lifestyle intervention.   Terms of use and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) disclosure statement

Differentiating between autism and schizophrenia spectrum disorder can be quite difficult, particularly in adolescents and young adults. This educational webinar reviews the two diagnoses and how to differentiate between them. For individuals who have both disorders, figuring out which one is actually contributing to the patient’s impairment can be challenging, and this webinar will address this concern. Finally, how to treat those with autism, those with psychosis, and those with both disorders is reviewed.   Presenter: Dr. Jean A. Frazier is the Executive Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center at UMass Chan Medical School. This event was in collaboration with MAPNET (Massachusetts Psychosis Network for Early Treatment). View a recording of this 3/24/23 session here. 

Despite having multiple new medications every year for the treatment of depression, schizophrenia, and mood disorders, the outcomes have not improved as expected. We have moved from a psychodynamic-oriented framework to a biological one, but are still not having the desired outcome. Medication non-adherence and treatment resistance remain big issues daily. It is well known that people with a trauma history have more tendency to be non-adherence to treatment. Taking into consideration the psychodynamic and psychosocial aspects at the time of prescribing can play a significant factor to improve the treatment outcome.   View a recording of this 3/8/2023 session by Raul Condemarin, MD. here.

August 26, 2022 This talk reviewed the team-based approach to medication management in early psychosis treatment, including the role of non-prescribers in supporting positive health behaviors for patients experiencing early-course psychosis. The speakers presented recent updates in our understanding of psychiatry for early-course psychosis and led a discussion on medication management with two individuals with lived experiences of psychosis.   To watch the recording, go to: https://harvard.zoom.us/rec/share/SegPS3stMmh6w5MULwWvF7rTy2sRfYmIswubJGF1rHdsLYsEDSqKmrGRnsG6enVT.RIyjouVCSxPRSyzn   Matcheri Keshavan, MD is the Stanley Cobb Professor and Academic Head of the Harvard Department of Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He has conducted early psychosis intervention and research for nearly three decades, and has published over 600 papers and 4 books on psychotic and related disorders. He edits the Elsevier journal Schizophrenia Research and is on the editorial Board of several other journals, including the Journal of Early Intervention in Psychiatry.   Dr. Schooler is Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences Center, New York, NY.  She is a fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, the Collegium Internationale Neuropsychopharmacologicum (CINP), the American Psychological Association, and the American Psychological Society.  Dr. Schooler has been President of the American Psychopathological Association and the Association for Clinical Psychosocial Research, an elected Councilor of the CINP and a member of the SIRS Board of Directors.   Charles Stromeyer works in stocks investing, advising startup companies, & doing research in artificial intelligence. He has helped with pioneering multiple industries such as AI- based programmatic marketing, the intercloud & deep learning- based software coding assistants, & the startups he helped have since raised more than $6 billion in funding. He was awarded the Deval L. Patrick Commonwealth Innovation Award. Charles is also a member of the Consumer Advisory Board (or CAB) at the at the Psychosis Research Program of the MMHC Public Psychiatry Division of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA. His hobbies include music, movies & neurobiology, and he especially enjoys mentoring young people, including 14 individuals in the Forbes 30 Under 30 lists.    Nate Schwirian is also a member of the CAB at MMHC. He has an interdisciplinary Bachelor of Arts degree from UMass Amherst and an Associate of Science degree in Biotechnology from MassBay Community College. He currently works with Tunefoolery Music (a group of musicians in mental health recovery), where he works as an audio technician, performer, and meditation group facilitator.   This webinar is part of an initiative by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)’s New England Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Network (MHTTC), which provides training, technical assistance, and tool and resource development to enable states and mental health practitioners to provide recovery-oriented practices within the context of recovery-oriented systems of care (see https://mhttcnetwork.org/centers/new-england-mhttc/home).   This webinar was co-hosted by the Massachusetts Psychosis Network for Early Treatment (MAPNET, www.mapnet.online).  

August 11, 2022 Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experience a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared towards any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.

July 7, 2022 Coordinated specialty care for early psychosis is an evidence-based treatment model aimed at fostering resilience and recovery for individuals who have experience a first episode of psychosis or are at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Each webinar will be co-presented by a professional with expertise in that component of care, as well as an individual with lived experience who can speak to how this aspect of care was meaningful in their journey towards recovery. This series is geared towards any individuals that are new to working on an Early Psychosis Specialty Team – including students, clinicians, prescribers, supported employment specialists, family clinicians, and peer specialists.    

  Objectives:  Discuss mental, behavioral, and developmental conditions for which medications are appropriate Discuss basic best practices for treatment of common behavioral health conditions Identify misconceptions about common psychotropic medications for children and adolescents Describe the process for requesting expert behavioral health consultation to manage mild to moderate behavioral health concerns in primary care  Presented by: Cynthia R. Ellis, MD Dr. Cynthia Ellis is a Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in the Department of Developmental Medicine at the Munroe-Meyer Institute for Genetics and Rehabilitation. She is board certified in Pediatrics, Developmental/Behavioral Pediatrics and Neurodevelopmental Disabilities. Dr. Ellis received her medical degree from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and completed residency training in Pediatrics and fellowship training in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Medical College of Virginia/VCU. She has been practicing in the field of Developmental/Behavioral Pediatrics for over 20 years. She has extensive clinical, research, and educational experience with children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and behavioral/emotional disorders. Her clinical expertise is in the psychopharmacological management of children with developmental disabilities and other behavioral disorders. She has also published extensively in the field. Dr. Ellis is the Director of the Munroe-Meyer Institute’s MCH-funded LEND (Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities) and ALA (Autism Leadership Academy) Interdisciplinary Training Programs. Dr. Ellis has served as the medical director for numerous public school and interdisciplinary community-based programs and as a research consultant in the field of developmental disabilities. She also participates in a number of other leadership positions on committees and boards.     Learn more about this series: Tele-Behavioral Health Consultation (TBHC) Primary Care Webinar Series    

March 16, 2022   to watch the recording, go to: https://youtu.be/l2QUKbyD4rk   The program describes a novel approach to engaging patients with psychosis and their families. We seek the development of true collaboration. Critical in this approach is establishing a community of individuals with a common interest that provides support for each other. The support allows the treatment team to secure the patient's trust, develop a therapeutic relationship and do the hard work of creating an optimal clozapine regimen. This session will go on to:   describe how we develop clozapine regimens that minimize predictable side effects and optimize benefits;  share our results in improving patient outcomes. Presenters: Robert Laitmain, MD & Matcheri Keshavan, MD  

  View the presentation recording: Alcohol is STILL a Drug: Medications for AUD The Alcohol is STILL a Drug: Exploratory Webinar Series explores what we know about alcohol use disorder and the ways it affects every person in the U.S. today.  In the November 2, 2022 presentation, Randall Webber, MPH presents an overview of the FDA-approved medications for alcohol use disorder.  Click "Download" above to access the webinar transcript and infographic.    

Several forces have converged over the last decade to call for a reconsideration of how to view, discuss, prescribe, and assess medications for effectiveness in the care of persons with serious mental illness and/or substance use disorders. This document briefly reviews these issues and describes the point of convergence as being patient-centered medicine. We offer these six evidence-based principles, illustrated using clinical vignettes, for promoting self-management in individuals with mental illness and/or addictions: Elicit the person’s and family’s perspectives on the concerns bringing them to care. Assess the person’s and family’s perceived needs and priorities, including any cultural preferences (e.g., ethnic, sexual, spiritual). Identify the person’s short- and long-term goals. Identify medication targets that indicate that the person is overcoming barriers to life goals or increasing their quality of life (beyond symptom reduction). Prescribe medication as one component of an overall self-management plan that builds on personal and family strengths. Identify and address barriers to self-management, including the need for additional supports (e.g., transportation, child care, reminders, environmental modifications).    

Psychopharmacology is largely a social intervention, meaning that HOW a treatment takes place is important. (Psychotherapy, on the other hand, is actually a biological intervention.) A placebo is a treatment with a chemically inactive substance that has an effect on an individual. Differences in age, sex, biology, history, and more can all impact the efficacy of medications. For these reasons, it often takes several trials for an individual to find what works for them. There is research on alternative treatments, medications, and even supplements that may provide support for individuals with mental health conditions. This guide was created with funding from the Great Lakes Mental Health Technology Transfer Center and is based on material presented by Dr. David Mays on July 13 and 15, 2021. WAFCA serves as the Wisconsin partner for the Great Lakes Mental Health Technology Transfer Center.

ABOUT THIS RESOURCE This 75-minute webinar addresses opioids, overdose and and Naloxone administration. Topics include: What are opioids and opiates? How do these substances work and affect us? "Fentanyl 101" How to recognize and respond to opioid and stimulant overdoses How to administer naloxone The economics of opioids Reflecting on how the current crisis with opioids developed And more! RESOURCES Presentation slides Highlights & Key Concepts Document   Additional Resources The Opioid Crisis and the Black/African American Population: An Urgent Issue; a report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Words Matter - Terms to Use and Avoid When Talking About Addiction and Words Matter: Preferred Language for Talking About Addiction from the National Institute on Drug Abuse International Overdose Awareness Day Overdose Education & Naloxone Distribution - Washington State Department of Health Overdose Prevention resources from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Overdose Prevention - the National Harm Reduction Coalition Addiction Technology Transfer Center Network Supporting Recovery from Opioid Use: A Peer’s Guide to Person-Centered Care from the Northwest Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC) Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) steps from the Red Cross Naloxone How to use Naloxone for a Drug Overdose from the Washington State Department of Health Opioid Overdose Basics: Responding to Opioid Overdose from the National Harm Reduction Coalition Where to find naloxone in Washington State Washington State Department of Health Standing Order to Dispense Naloxone Harm Reduction Resources Principles of Harm Reduction from the National Harm Reduction Coalition Harm Reduction 101: a recorded webinar from the Northwest MHTTC North America Syringe Exchange Network   FACILITATOR Sean Hemmerle Sean Hemmerle is the Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution Consultant at the Washington State Department of Health (DOH). He facilitates statewide naloxone distribution to organizations that work with people at risk of experiencing or witnessing overdoses. Before joining DOH in 2019, Sean worked as a Community Health Outreach Worker for the Tacoma Needle Exchange. Sean received a BA in Cultural Anthropology and Social Welfare in 2017 from The Evergreen State College- Olympia.   

ABOUT THIS RESOURCE Using medication to support recovery is more than learning to swallow pills on schedule. In this webinar, Pat will conclude presenting 8 challenges on the journey to use medications optimally to support recovery and practical strategies for supporting folks on this journey. Learn more about the webinar series here. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Presentation slides Handouts for Part 1 and Part 2: Meds and My Health; en español Los medicamentos y mi salud My Concerns about Meds; en español Mis preocupaciones sobre los medicamentos My Personal Medicine; en español Mi Personal Medicine Finding Personal Motivation to Use Psych Meds; en español Encontrar la motivación personal para utilizar la medicina psiquiátrica My Side Effect Plan; en español Mi plan para efectos secundarios How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Mood Stabilizing Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos estabilizadores del estado de ánimo How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Antipsychotic Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos antipsicóticos How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Antidepressant Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos antidepresivos How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Anti-Anxiety Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos contra la ansieda Balancing My Beliefs and Values; en español Equilibrando mis creencias y valores Med Fatigue: Advocating for Deprescribing; en español Medicación Fatiga A Message to My Future Self; en español Un mensaje para mi yo futuro Psychiatric Medicine and Me; en español Medicina psiquiátrica y yo Racial Bias and My Self-Care Plan; en español Sesgo racial y mi plan de cuidado personal   FACILITATOR Patricia E. Deegan, PhD Patricia "Pat" Deegan's mission is to help activate and empower mental health services users in their own recovery and to provide peer supporters and clinicians with the know-how to support people in their recovery journey. She is uniquely positioned to fulfill her vocation because she was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager, went on to get her doctorate in clinical psychology and today leads a company run by and for people in recovery. She is a thought-leader in the field of mental health recovery, has numerous peer-reviewed publications, has held a number of academic appointments, and has carried a message of hope for recovery to audiences around the world. In addition to her work on the CommonGround Program, she consults with OnTrackNY and has helped the team at the Center for Practice Innovations develop an innovative model for engaging young people under the NIMH RAISE Study. The model is now being adopted nationally.

ABOUT THIS RESOURCE Using medication to support recovery is more than learning to swallow pills on schedule. In this webinar, Pat Deegan presents 8 challenges on the journey to use medications optimally to support recovery. She also teaches practical strategies for supporting folks on this journey. Learn more about the webinar series here. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Presentation slides Handouts for Part 1 and Part 2: Meds and My Health; en español Los medicamentos y mi salud My Concerns about Meds; en español Mis preocupaciones sobre los medicamentos My Personal Medicine; en español Mi Personal Medicine Finding Personal Motivation to Use Psych Meds; en español Encontrar la motivación personal para utilizar la medicina psiquiátrica My Side Effect Plan; en español Mi plan para efectos secundarios How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Mood Stabilizing Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos estabilizadores del estado de ánimo How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Antipsychotic Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos antipsicóticos How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Antidepressant Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos antidepresivos How I Will Know Medicine is Helping Me: Anti-Anxiety Meds; en español Cómo sabré que la medicina me está ayudando: medicamentos contra la ansieda Balancing My Beliefs and Values; en español Equilibrando mis creencias y valores Med Fatigue: Advocating for Deprescribing; en español Medicación Fatiga A Message to My Future Self; en español Un mensaje para mi yo futuro Psychiatric Medicine and Me; en español Medicina psiquiátrica y yo Racial Bias and My Self-Care Plan; en español Sesgo racial y mi plan de cuidado personal   FACILITATOR Patricia E. Deegan, PhD Patricia "Pat" Deegan's mission is to help activate and empower mental health services users in their own recovery and to provide peer supporters and clinicians with the know-how to support people in their recovery journey. She is uniquely positioned to fulfill her vocation because she was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager, went on to get her doctorate in clinical psychology and today leads a company run by and for people in recovery. She is a thought-leader in the field of mental health recovery, has numerous peer-reviewed publications, has held a number of academic appointments, and has carried a message of hope for recovery to audiences around the world. In addition to her work on the CommonGround Program, she consults with OnTrackNY and has helped the team at the Center for Practice Innovations develop an innovative model for engaging young people under the NIMH RAISE Study. The model is now being adopted nationally.

This is a psychopharmacology consultation line with Dr. Rajiv Tandon & Dr. Matcheri Keshavan.   Slides:           

On August 5th, we held an online discussion session led by Dr. Ken Duckworth, MD, Chief Medical Officer of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.  To access a copy of this presentation, click here. 

The Pacific Southwest MHTTC curated a series of topical resource sheets to help you find high-quality tools and information on caring for yourself, your families, and the communities you serve. This resource sheet focuses on self-care, coping strategies, and anxiety management tips that anyone can use. It also includes tools specifically for people living with a mental health condition. Click the "View Resource" link above to download, or view all available resource sheet topics.

This webinar, presented by Dr. A. Eden Evins, is designed for those who treat and prescribe medications for people with schizophrenia spectrum, bipolar and serious mood disorders who smoke tobacco. It introduces recent clinically-relevant information that should influence treatment practices and improve provision of evidence-based care for nicotine dependence for people with serious mental illness who smoke.     Speaker A. Eden Evins, MD, MPH  Dr. A. Eden Evins is founder and director of the Center for Addiction Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, and The Cox Family Professor of Psychiatry in the Field of Addiction Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Evins holds an MD from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston and an MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Evins studies the efficacy of pharmacotherapeutic cessation aids in smokers with and without serious mental illness, and the effect of nicotine on cognitive performance in those with and without schizophrenia. She has conducted a series of studies that have changed clinical practice guidelines for tobacco-smoking cessation for those with and without serious mental illness, including a multi-site study in six US states and a PCORI Large Pragmatic Trial which enrolled over 1100 tobacco smokers in Greater Boston. Dr. Evins has been honored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for her work.     Additional Resources References for this presentation Presentation by Dr. Evins. This file is password-protected; contact the Northwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center for the password at [email protected].  

Recording of the webinar titled "Suicide and Opioids," originally held on September 25, 2019.   Download the slides

Recording of the webinar Assessing Organizational and Systems Readiness for Access to Appropriate Care Levels, originally held on August 8, 2019.   Slide Presentation Older Adult Fact Sheet

On August 22nd, we held a consultation line with Dr. Roscoe Brady and Dr. Matcheri Keshavan, where they addressed specific bipolar-related psychopharmacology questions. 

On August 14th, we held a webinar on "Non-Adherence and its Management in Early Course Psychotic Disorders". Dr. Matcheri Keshavan discussed the causes of non-adherence, approaches to identifying non-adherence, and the management non-adherence in patients in the early course of psychotic disorders. 

On July 11th, we held a psychopharmacology consultation line with Dr. Matcheri Keshavan, where he addressed specific psychosis-related psychopharmacology questions.