National Council on Disability (NCD) Seeks Public Input on Emerging Trends Involving People with Disabilities

http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2008/public_consultation.html

DATE EXTENSION: Comments must be received by August 7, 2008

The National Council on Disability (NCD) is gathering public input for a study of emerging issues and trends affecting the lives of people with disabilities to use in NCD’s next annual progress report to the President and Congress, "National Disability Policy: A Progress Report" -- required by Section 401(b) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended. This input will help in achieving policies that guarantee equal opportunity for all individuals with disabilities, and aid them in achieving economic self- sufficiency, independent living, and inclusion and integration into all aspects of society.

Access the URL above to learn more about how you can participate and submit comments.

Source: CMHS CONSUMER AFFAIRS E-NEWS JULY 29, 2008

To access archived CMHS E-News, click here:

https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa?A1=ind0806&L=cmhs_adca_enews

Peer Partnership to Host Webinar

The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) Peer Partnership is hosting a Webinar on August 12, 2008, on “The Complementary Roles of Peer Specialists and Professional Staff.” The Webinar is part of DBSA’s peer specialist continuing education program. For more information, see the link below:

http://www.softconference.com/dbsa/sessionDetail.asp?SID=112069

Human Rights Groups Sponsor Vigil to Mourn Shocking Emergency Room Death

To demand an end to the appalling human rights violations that resulted in the death of Esmin Green, a coalition of human rights activists and community members is holding a demonstration on Friday, July 25, beginning at 5 p.m. (with a candlelight vigil at 8:30 p.m.) at Kings County Hospital Center, Psychiatric Emergency Room, Building G, 606 Winthrop Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. Green, who had been involuntarily committed, collapsed in Kings County Hospital Center’s psychiatric emergency room on June 19 after having waited for nearly 24 hours for a bed to become available. She lay sprawled on the floor for more than an hour before the medical staff took any notice of her – and that notice consisted of someone’s standing over her and prodding her body with a foot, according to The New York Times. By then, it was too late: Green had died. According to the Associated Press, Green, a mother of six, sat waiting for a bed to become available for nearly 24 hours before she collapsed onto the floor. Further, according to the New York Civil Liberties Union, facility staff possibly falsified documents, stating that Green was “up and about, went to the bathroom” and was “sitting quietly in the waiting room” although videotapes confirmed that she had not moved from her position on the waiting room floor.

Sources: http://www.theopalproject.org/vigil.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/12/nyregion/12about.html