An Issue of Serious Concern

NAMI Montana received this email and thought it should be shared. The email's author is quietly becoming one of the state's leading advocates for Montanans who live with mental illness who are incarcerated.

NAMI Montana, 

I must express some serious concerns about MSH forensic patients appearing before the parole board. No one on the parole board has experience or knowledge about mental illness and the success with medications, etc. I just got off the phone with a mother who is extremely upset that the parole board ordered a pre-release placement, where her son will not get the necessary mental health treatment. The treatment team had recommended a placement at a mental health center group home in Missoula. I have sat in on many parole board hearings where the parole board members intimidate and challenge a person on a GBMI commitment who is left speechless, anxious and shattered after the hearing. The parole board members are familiar with dealing with criminals, not persons who were determined to be Guilty but Mentally Ill.

I would like to see some changes with the governor’s appointments to the parole board. At least two members need to be familiar and comfortable with mental illnesses; either persons in recovery, family members, sympathetic providers, someone from NAMI—anyone who can provide knowledgeable and persuasive input regarding mental illness and how people can recover.

Thanks.

Janette Reget, LCSW

Fight Mental Illness Thursday - Service Dogs for Injured Soldiers

NAMI Friends,

Every second Thursday of the month is “Fight Mental Illness” Thursday. After fighting for children’s crisis services at the state-level last month, this month we’re moving to the federal level and fighting so soldiers with severe post-traumatic stress and/or mild traumatic brain injuries can access service dogs. Specifically, we’re asking supporters to sign this web petition, http://www.change.org/petitions/secretary-of-the-army-john-mchugh-change-the-army-s-restrictive-policy-on-service-dogs, asking the Secretary of the Army to change the Army’s service dog policy to make it clear that: (1) service dogs are not a treatment of last resort, (2) soldiers with service dogs will have housing accommodations where they can use their service dog, and (3) that the service dog accreditation standard be broadened to include other reputable service dog training organizations.

If you don’t feel comfortable signing a web petition, you can all the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army at 703-545-0672 and ask to leave a message requesting that the Secretary of the Army change the policy.  The Secretary of the Army probably doesn’t get a lot of call in requests, so you’ll have to be patient with the staff.

Here's an article from the Billings Gazette that describes why we're asking you to get involved in this fight. http://billingsgazette.com/article_ba319e78-23f6-5971-a4f1-c560b58c4cf5.html

Thanks for your help!

Matt

Matt Kuntz

Executive Director

NAMI Montana