Media Contact:
Elizabeth Zhani
Media Relations Specialist
630-792-5914
ezhani@jointcommission.org
(Oak Brook, Ill.—November 10, 2008) The Joint Commission and Joint Commission Resources (JCR) announce that the Fifth Annual Conference on Behavioral Health Care will be held December 9-10, 2008, at the Westin Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Ill. JCR is a not-for-profit affiliate of The Joint Commission.
The conference sessions will address topics of interest to employees across the behavioral health care continuum and will feature a keynote address by The Joint Commission’s President Mark R. Chassin, M.D., M.P.P., M.P.H.
Some of the sessions include:
- President and CEO of the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare Linda Rosenberg, M.S.W., will talk about current trends and issues in behavioral health care.
- A psychological first aid course for licensed behavioral health care providers. The course, offered in two parts, prepares American Red Cross workers to provide basic care, comfort and support to people experiencing disaster related stress. A certificate will be offered to those who complete both sessions.
- An overview of the new Hospital-Based Inpatient Psychiatric Services (HBIPS) core measure set will be given by Celeste Milton, M.P.H., B.S.N. R.N., associate project director in The Joint Commission’s Division of Research. Milton will discuss the results of the measure set pilot test, review the measure set and give specific details on each of the seven measures.
- Sharp Mesa Vista and Aurora Behavioral Health Hospital assisted in the evacuation of patients during the 2007 San Diego wildfires. Kathi Lencioni, M.P.H., F.A.C.H.E., Sharp Healthcare, will explain how they worked together to admit patients to two facilities during the five days that the wildfires raged, and how they provided emergency credentialing for nurses and physicians to assist with the transition.
A December 8 pre-conference “Behavioral Health Care Update: Leading the Way to Quality and Safety: Maximizing Your Accreditation Efforts,” also at the Westin Michigan Avenue, will offer two separate seminars to address the unique requirements of freestanding behavioral health care organizations and psychiatric hospitals. The seminars for both types of organizations will spotlight different aspects of the accreditation requirements to inform and update staff on current issues in accreditation including changes to the scoring system and the new electronic manual, E-dition. The psychiatric hospital seminar will also explain what surveyors will be reviewing in regards to clinical assessment of clients for suicidal and homicidal risk, environmental assessment for hanging and strangulation risk, and staff communication and participation in risk reduction efforts.
The cost of the main conference is $649. A discounted price of $599 per person is offered for teams of three or more. To register for this program use code 08100.
The cost of the pre-conference is $495 per person. When registering, freestanding behavioral health care organizations should use program code 08046, and psychiatric hospitals should use program code 08115.
To register for a program, please call Customer Service at 877-223-6866, or for more information or to register online please visit the JCR website at http://www.jcrinc.com/.
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