Thank you to everyone who attended our HOME Conference event on Thursday, September 13th. We hope everyone enjoyed insightful sessions on how to best serve our clients, advocacy, and policy discussions. Special thank you to this year’s presenters; steering committee members; plenary speakers, Chuck Short, Norm Suchar, and Montgomery County Councilmember George Leventhal, volunteers, and staff for helping make this day a success!

If you were not able to attend, presentation copies are available for some sessions below:

2012 HOME Conference Session Presentations

Advocating for Change
Learning objectives:

1. To learn the specific benefits of advocacy.
2. To understand common challenges to integrating advocacy into service settings.
3. To identify specific actions possible to advance macro-level goals.
Advocating for change from mcchinmd

Borderline Personality Disorder
Learning objectives:

1. Identify the symptoms of Borderline Personality Disorder and understand why clients with this diagnosis can be challenging to work with.
2. Understand the basics of DBT.
3. Learn at least one skill in each DBT module to use with clients to promote more effective functioning.

Common Ground Model 100,000 Homes Campaign

1. Learn everything you ever wanted to know about the 100,000 Homes Campaign.
2. Definition of medically vulnerable.
3. Learn how to help end homelessness for our most vulnerable neighbors.

Complete Yoga, Complete You
Learning objectives:

1. This class will teach students the fundamentals of traditional yoga asana (postures), pranayama (breathing techniques) and will explore tools to incorporating the path of yoga as a lifestyle.  The class is accessible to all levels.
2. Both standing and seated postures will be introduced.
3. Some of the many benefits of yoga that will be explored include relaxation, better health and wellness, clear thought and detoxification. 

Criminal Justice
Learning objectives:

1. Will learn the types of program and services available to Montgomery County inmates who have behavioral health needs.
2. Will become familiar with the updated BHCS programs addressing the treatment and re-entry needs of inmates.
3. Will learn about diversion efforts for the mentally ill, also how the criminal justice system is involved.

De-Escalation Techniques
Learning objectives:

1. Motivations for violence.
2. Indicators that violence may occur.
3. De-escalation techniques.

Ethical Issues and Professional Boundaries 
Learning objectives:

1. Definitions related to boundaries and ethics.
2. Understand the difference between being a paid helper, a peer, or friend.
3. Understand dual relationships and how ethics protect employees and clients.
4. Discuss boundaries and importance of supervision in our daily work.

Emergency Preparedness
Learning objectives:

1. Describe the Cities Readiness Initiative (CRI). 
2. Define anthrax and how it is treated. 
3. Identify the roles of the Homeless Shelters during Closed-POD activation.

Healthcare 101
Learning objectives:

1. Obtaining an awareness of the major health problems encountered among people who are homeless.
2. Gaining knowledge into which clients should go immediately to the emergency room and which to refer for an appointment with primary care provider.
3. Being knowledgeable of the primary care providers who provide care to homeless clients.

Hearing Voices
Learning objectives:

1. Learn what auditory hallucinations are.
2. Experience 2 activities while wearing headsets that provide a similar experience to hearing voices, to better understand what the clients we work with who hear voices are experiencing.
3. Process with the group the experience and discuss how this experience can influence our work with clients and make us more effective and empathetic providers.

HEARTH ACT
Learning objectives:

1. Provide an overview of the significant changes the HEARTH Act makes to HUD’s McKinney-Vento homeless assistance programs.
2. Focus will be given to system-wide collaboration on providing housing and services.
3. Discussion of performance measures.

Hoarding
Learning objectives:

1. Identify the signs and symptoms of compulsive hoarding.
2. Using established assessment tools, differentiate among degrees of clutter & hoarding severity and choose an appropriate intervention.
3. Identify and compare interventions available for various hoarding behaviors.
4. Communicate effectively and reinforce interventions through intra- and inter- agency collaboration.

Implications for the Affordable Care Act
Learning objectives:

1. To identify the major provisions in the law that benefit very low income populations.
2. To understand the impact these provisions will have on those who are uninsured in Maryland.
3. To identify the challenges for providers in meeting increase in demand for services.

Mental Health 101
Learning objectives:

1. Learn how to work with challenging clients without getting into power struggles.
2. Build rapport with clients while maintaining appropriate boundaries.
3. Use client strengths and goals to drive interactions.
4. Remember that all interactions are interventions.

Money Matter$ Workshop-Financial Education
Learning objectives:

1. Learn ways to help clients examine their money values/habits.
2. Learn tips/tools on creating and sticking to a Spending Plan.
3. Why a credit report matters to clients and how to improve credit scores.
4. Basic debt management strategies.
5. Local financial education/counseling resources.

Motivational Interviewing
Learning objectives:

1. Increase our ability to help others enhance importance, confidence and readiness for making behavior change decisions.
2. Increase our ability to collaborate with others for change.
3. Increase our ability to elicit change talk within behavior change conversations.

Recovery-Oriented Systems of Care and Peer-led Services
Learning objectives:

1. Understand the local, state and federal efforts to support people in recovery beyond providing treatment.
2. Learn the new language of recovery management as we shift to focus on long-term support for a chronic disease over brief support during acute episodes.
3. Learn about the growing role for Peer Leaders in recovery support and how Maryland is moving toward credentialing Peer Mentors and Peer Support Specialists.

Removing Legal Barriers for Clients
Learning Objectives:

1. Gain a basic knowledge on helping their clients from a legal standpoint.  
2. Learn how to help clients with record expungement.
3. Understand the procedure for child support issues related to veterans.

Stress Management with Dr. Mark Bergel
Learning objectives:

1. Participants will learn to reduce their stress, which is a major factor in more than 75% of diseases in this country.
2. Create a more desired reality through realization, visualization, and other tools.
3. Gain a great sense of calm and control.

Stress Management with Jennifer Alfonso

1. Understand how irrational thoughts can increase negativity and decrease productivity.
2. Develop ways to combat irrational thinking.
3. Increase life satisfaction by learning skills to create more optimism.
4. Develop ways to combat stress.
5. Increase skills to incorporate more joy.

Substance Abuse 101
Learning objectives:

6. Understand what is “use”, “abuse”, and dependence of alcohol & other drugs.
7. Understand how substance use / dependence & co-occurring disorders intersect with homelessness and other social problems.
8. Learn the basics of “treatment matching” using medical necessity criteria (ASAM).
9. Gain basic knowledge of the County’s continuum of care & how adults access treatment services.

Trauma Informed Care
Learning objectives:

1. Participants will learn what trauma is, how it affects individuals—psychologically, developmentally, and neurobiological. Self regulation strategies will be explored.
2. Identify at least four strategies to reduce the likelihood of re-traumatization.
3. Explore a minimum of two ways trauma affects people development tally, psychologically and physiologically.

Understanding Essential Federal Benefits
Learning objectives:

1. Learn the differences between SSI (Title XIV) and SSDI/CDB/DWB (Title II) benefits.
2. Learn the differences between Medicaid and Medicare.
3. Learn about how to apply for the major cash benefits including utilizing the SSI/SSDI Outreach Access and Recovery (SOAR) program.

Veterans
Learning objectives:

1. Accessing Benefits.
2. Discuss Mental Health Services at VA:  the variety of services available.
3. Eligibility and Enrollment at the VA: who qualifies for services and how they can enroll.

2012 Steering Committee Members

Diane Aten, Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless

Kim Ball, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

Mary Bennett, Stepping Stones Shelter

Lauren Biggs, People Encouraging People

Sara Black, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

Laura Cecala, MCCH Board Chair

John Eckenrode, Shepherd's Table

Sharon Fischman, St. Luke's House and Threshold Services United

Jean Hochron, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

Amy Horton-Newell, American Bar Association

Danielle Jacques, Montgomery Cares Health Care for the Homeless

Susan Kuhn, Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless

Josiane Makon, Interfaith Works

Forest Offord, Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless

Amanda Riddle, Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless

Susie Sinclair-Smith, Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless

Susan Smith, Housing Opportunities Commission

Kristy Swartz, People Encouraging People

2012 HOME Conference Presenters

Jennifer Alfonso
Founder, Anger Management Techniques

Kenneth Barnum
Social Worker, Department of Veterans Affairs

Mark Bergel
Founder and Executive Director, A Wider Circle

Abby Burgess
Vice President, Bowman Systems, LLC

Elaine Byergo
Program Manager, Life Skills Program, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Tonier Cain
 Program Director, National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors

Barbara DiPietro
Director of Policy, National Health Care for the Homeless Council and Health Care for the Homeless, Inc

Sharon Fischman
Program Manager, Outpatient Mental Health Center and Crisis Residential Services, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Barrie Friedman
Director of Residential and Supported Living Services, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Joan Gillece
Program Director, SAMHSA Trauma Center

Berdina Henry
Supervisor, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Danielle Jacques
Nurse Case Manager, Montgomery Cares Health Care for the Homeless

Linda Kaufman
Eastern US Field Organizer, 100,000 Homes Campaign, Community Solutions

Bonnie Klem
Supervisor, Adult Protective Services, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

Catherine McAlpine
Manager, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

Delender McCants
Crisis Counselor, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Katie Meyer Scott
Director Pro Bono Programs, Homeless Persons Representation Project

Wendy Miller
Social Worker III, Montgomery County Division of Correction and Rehabilitation

Shalita Morris
Residential Supervisor, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Athena Morrow
Clinical Supervisor, Montgomery County Detention Center

Sue Rogan
Director of Financial Education, Maryland CASH

Teresa Schuster
Community Health Nurse II, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

Charles Short
Office of the County Executive

Susan Smith
Program Coordinator, Disability Services, Housing Opportunities Commission

Norman Suchar
Director of Capacity Building, National Alliance to End Homelessness

Antonia Tsutsumi
Therapist/Case Manager, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Adrian Wicker
Benefits Specialist, St. Luke’s House and Threshold Services United

Mary Witteried
Therapist, Montgomery County Crisis Center