Download the October Update Here: Michigan Psychiatric Care Improvement Project October Update

Ongoing work has been occurring across our state in an effort to improve mental health crisis services for individuals, children and youth who need them.  Two of the groups focused on making improvements include The Michigan House CARES Task Force and Michigan Psychiatric Admissions Workgroups. The work and discussions of these groups have evolved into the Michigan Psychiatric Care Improvement Project (MPCIP) which is currently working to improve crisis services throughout Michigan.

The Michigan Psychiatric Care Improvement Project is currently focused on creating a 2-part crisis system that will:

1. Be available for anyone, anytime, anywhere which will include MiCal a statewide Crisis and Access Line, Mobile crisis services and stabilization services/facilities; and
2.  Improve/increase/integrate available intensive crisis services needed by individuals, children and youth with more significant behavioral health and/or substance use issues.

Download the document above to learn more about current initiatives and work including MiCal Michigan’s Statewide Crisis and Access Line; 988 Coalition; Psychiatric Bed Registry; Crisis Stabilization Units; Mobile Crisis Units; and more.

A recent study by the Kaiser Foundation outlined some of the factors contributing to poor mental health and substance use outcomes among children and youth during the pandemic. Check out the full report Mental Health and Substance Use Considerations Among Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic here.

This year’s conference “We Shall Overcome: Advocacy to Activism”  is dedicated to coming together as families, youth, professionals, peers, teams and systems to find ways to better support the needs of children and youth with mental health challenges.

Don’t miss this opportunity to share your expertise, ideas and examples on how we might address some of the barriers we collectively face in order ro create real change and a mental health system that works for youth with mental challenges and their families.

Click here Requests for Presentations  to learn more or  submit a proposal today.

We truly are stronger together and what a better time than this moment to come together as a community dedicated to children’s mental health, to create or renew our connections, share our expertise, support one another, spread some much-needed hope and finally find solutions to the issues we collectively face. Together we can and will create a Michigan where all kids with mental health challenges get the help and support they need when they need it creating a brighter future for them  us all!

Conference sessions should be geared toward families of children, youth, or young adults with mental health challenges, as well as the community partners who support them. Workshops will be 75 minutes in length. Presentations that reflect this year’s theme and include an individual/individuals with lived experience are preferred. Proposals that showcase family/community partnerships, creative change efforts, innovative strategies to increase family voice and access to mental health services and supports and those that highlight the importance of family-driven, youth guided care, family voice/choice and peer support will also be given priority. The information requested below will be used to select conference sessions and ensure presentations meet the needs of our audience and theme of this year’s conference.

**This year’s event is all about coming up with ideas on how to collectively improve things for kids and families and then moving them into action, so proposals that include or partner with an individual or individuals with lived experience will be given preference in selection.

Bridge Michigan just released a three part report on a mental-health crisis facing Michigan children and teens.  The series introduces you to families and hospital ER doctors and nurses left to care for children in distress who can’t get the mental-health treatment they deserve, sometimes for weeks. And it begins a conversation on policy solutions to help thousands of young people in crisis.

Click here to read segment one in its entirety.

Click her for the July 1st article Bureaucracy but no beds -Emergency rooms confront ‘tidal wave of sadness’ among young patients.

Click here for the July 2nd article A child mental-health fix takes early action, more help. Here are 7 ideas. 

The Children’s Defense Fund recently released the 2021 State of America’s Children’s State Factsheets. Each state factsheet gives you a snapshot of how well children are protected, supported, and cared for in your state by exploring several areas of childhood well-being—from child poverty rates to health insurance coverage and from early childhood enrollment to high school graduation rates.

They invite all of us to  learn how children are doing in our state today and then join them in the fight to improve the odds for all children, country-wide.

Click  here to view Michigan’s Fact Sheet.

We are so pleased to have WILX help us to spread the news about ACMH’s upcoming Children’s Mental Health Awareness Event # WalkInMyShoes!

Click here to view the April 6th WILX LANSING interview.

Click here to view the Fox 17 in Grand Rapids interview. Here’s the link: