Suicide Prevention Topic for October Forum

About 30,000 Americans die by their own hands each year. Thus, in October, a panel of experts will gather in Nashville to discuss issues and consider what can be done to prevent such tragic loss.

DMHMR Commissioner Elisabeth Rukeyser said the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Conference, scheduled October 7-8 at the Regal Maxwell House, will look toward "advancing the national strategy for suicide prevention."

Headlined by Dr. David Satcher, former CEO for Meharry Medical College and now United States Surgeon General, a nationally renowned faculty will seek to link research and practice.

"Suicide is a very preventable cause of death," said Rukeyser. "Experts tell us that people who are thinking of taking their own lives give signs. They act differently, show indications of depression, anxiety, hostility or anger. Learning to recognize these warning signs may save lives.

Rukeyser Participates in White House Conference on MH

Mental Health and Mental Retardation Commissioner Elisabeth Rukeyser was among 300 persons invited to participate in the first White House Conference on Mental Health.

The June gathering brought consumers, providers, advocacy groups, researchers, business leaders and elected officials together to examine new treatments and approaches to recovery from mental illnesses among people of all ages.

Rukeyser said the conference focused "on ways to promote understanding and prevent the stigma that has such negative effects on employment,

personal lifestyle and the need for individuals to seek early treatment." The event was chaired by Tipper Gore, the president's mental health policy advisor.

Elisabeth Rukeyser, Commissioner

Task Force Looks at Issues, Actions for Persons With Mental Illness in Criminal Justice System

A special task force was appointed by DMHMR Commissioner Elisabeth Rukeyser in May to look at issues and consider a course of action for Tennesseans with mental illness who are involved in the criminal justice system.

Rukeyser said the 25-member Criminal Justice Task Force, which includes professional and lay representatives of the mental health and law enforcement fields from all regions of the state, is a collaborative effort of the DMHMR, the Tennessee Mental Health Planning Council and the Davidson County Sheriff's Office.

Co-chaired by Davidson County Sheriff Gayle Ray and George Haley, president of the Planning Council, the group is charged with examining several areas relative to providing services to persons while incarcerated and after they are released from the criminal justice system.

Special committees have been appointed to do an in-depth study on key areas of concern including:

Rukeyser said she expects the task force to lead to a more comprehensive mental health/criminal justice policy that clearly defines best practice guidelines and the methods to achieve them. She also said the study should lead to more effective use of scarce resources and possible changes to Title 33 of the Tennessee Code Annotated.

While the primary focus of the task force is adults with mental illness, co-occurring issues of alcohol and drug abuse or mental retardation will also be considered.

The group will submit recommendations to Rukeyser by June, 2000. Task Force Members include:

Gayle Ray, Sheriff Davidson County Nashville

George Haley, President, Tennessee Mental Health Planning Council, Nashville

Jeff Blum, Public Defenders Office Nashville

Deborah Farrell, NAMI Memphis

Liz Ledbetter, DMHMR, Nashville

Stephen Bush, Shelby County Public Defenders Office Memphis

Howard Burley, MD Assistant Medical Director, Magellan Behavioral Health, Nashville

Anne Brooks, Volunteer Behavioral Health Care Systems Cookeville

Joyce Laben, MSN, RN, CS Treadway Clinic, Nashville

Joe Culp, Bureau of TennCare Nashville

Glenn Sneed, Clover Bottom Developmental Center, Nashville

Dwight Van deVate

Knox County Sheriff's Office Knoxville

Charles Smith, Metro-Nashville Police Department

Donna Crum, Bureau of Alcohol & Drug Abuse Services Nashville

Mack Garner, Public Defenders Office, Maryville

Kenneth Cohen, Nashville

Leonard Lococo, Department of Correction, Nashville

Martha Owen, 23rd Judicial District Attorney's Office Ashland City

Sara Wallace, Tennessee Corrections Institute, Nashville

David Bumpus, Sheriff or Anthony L. Clark, Henry County Sheriff's Office, Paris

Ed Rothstein, Hand in Hand Drop-In Center, Lawrenceburg

Robert Vaughn, Executive Director, Carey Counseling Center, Paris

James Ramsey, District Attorney 7th Judicial District, Clinton

Jim McCord, Dyer County Executive, Dyersburg

Pat Dishman, Office of Criminal Justice Programs, Nashville

David Woolfork, Sheriff Madison County, Jackson

Yvonne Madlock, Director Memphis/Shelby County Health Department, Memphis

MH Planning Council Elects New Officers

The Mental Health Planning Council elected new officers for 1999-00. They are George Haley, Nashville, president; Sita Diehl, Nashville, vice president; Pat Williams, Murfreesboro and Verdine Thompson, Athens, co-secretaries; and David Guth, Nashville, immediate past president.

These officers assumed their duties effective July 1, 1999. The next council meeting is scheduled for August 13.