The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence - New Jersey (NCADD-NJ) serves as the lead agency of the Client-Directed, Outcome-Informed (CDOI) treatment improvement project. They will be sponsoring a conference for the purpose of instructing Addiction Specialists about the experience of emplementing the CDOI Approach on a National and Local Level. The conference will be held at the Crowne Plaza, 390 Forsgate Drive, Jamesburg, NJ on June 11, 2008. The conference registration fee is $50.00 and includes lunch. The complete brochure and more information is available by clicking above or by calling 609-689-0599 ext 7002.

PARTICIPANTS WILL:

• Understand the basic tenets of the CDOI approach
• Learn about the national experience and impact of CDOI implementation
• Hear about the impact of CDOI on requirements with regard to documentation in other locations
• Learn how outcome rating scale graphs can reflect clinical progress
• Hear about the experience of the New Hope Foundation in implementing the CDOI approach and its impact on the organization and client care

The May/June 2008 issue of the Alliance for Health Homes newsletter is now available.  You can get the latest update on environmental issues by clicking here on Alliance Alert.

The Consumer Product Safety Commissioner has joined forces with Safe Kids USA, American Red Cross and Florida Congresswoman Schultz in an effort to reduce the number of child drownings and injuries this summer.  Included in the article are tips for parents to help prevent drownings.  Click here for more information

Here is a free Pause Recipe Book. Enjoy!

pregnant-pause-recipe-book.pdf

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Take a Pregnant Pause for Mother’s Day

This Mother’s Day, the Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalitions of Cumberland and Salem Counties are asking moms-to-be to take a pregnant pause—from alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drugs.

Avoiding these substances is a fail-safe way to prevent certain birth defects that are lifelong, permanent, and irreversible. It’s also easier than ever, thanks to the Pregnant Pause Beverage Blast recipe book, a free resource with 20 alcohol-free cocktails for pregnant women.

The Beverage Blast book and other pregnancy health tips will be the focus of two upcoming Pregnant Pause events this May.

Friday, May 16, 2008

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Annual Community Day

110 Cohansey Street, Bridgeton

Thursday, May 22, 2008

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Memorial Hospital of Salem County

310 Woodstown Road, Salem.

Both events are co-sponsored by the Southern New Jersey Perinatal Cooperative and the New Jersey Coalition for Prevention of Developmental Disabilities, with funding support from the Governor’s council on the Prevention of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities.

Click on the link below for more information.

pregnant-pause-5-08.pdf

The Coalition for Healthy Communities invites you to join their 3rd annual Pedaling for Prevention bicycle tour.  This event is scheduled for Sunday, September 7, 2008 from 9:30 am to 2:00 pm at Johnson Park, Grove 4 in Piscataway.  You can choose your activity by your physical stamina:

• ride a 50 mile bicycle tour
• ride a 20 mile bicycle tour
• go on a 5 k run or walk and the park 

Lots of other activities will be taking place too that include helmet fittings, bike safety checks, informational tables, and a silent auction.  Click on the pink tab above to register for these fun events. 

Screening women of childbearing age for the presence of mental health disorders, substance abuse and domestic violence is an important aspect of health care. The Northern New Jersey Maternal and Child Health Consortium will be sponsoring a conference to address these women’s behavioral health risk factors.   The event will be held on Wednesday, May 28, 2009 at the Chilton Memorial Hospital in Pompton Plains.  You can view the full brochure by clicking above.

What You Can Do to Keep Kids Safe is an easy to use checklist for parents.Safe Kids USA has produced this checklist to mark it’s 20 anniversary.

You can download the checklist below.

2008-safety-checklist.pdf

“Sex, Lies and Stereotypes - How Abstinence-Only Programs Harm Women and Girls” details the possible unintended effects of abstinence-only education.  This report was sponsored by Legal Momentum in partnership with the Human Rights Project at Harvard Law School and the Program on International Health and Human Rights at the Harvard School of Public Health.  These organizations convened a roundtable which brought together experts from a wide range of disciplines to consider the impact of abstinence-only programs on women and girls. 

Legal Momentum was founded in 1970 as the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund.  It is the nation’s oldest legal advocacy organization dedicated to advancing the rights of women and girls.  It has served as a leader to establish public policies to secure equalaity and justice for women.  Legal Momentum’s work includes employment and housing rights, domestic violence, equal pay, health and many other important issues.

Over the past several weeks, we have posted a number of articles about environmental toxins.  Due to the way the chemical industry is regulated in the United States, very few of the 60,000 or more chemicals on the market have ever been tested to determine their possible detrimental effects on human health and development.    Concern has been expressed that recent studies by the CDC and other federal agencies have documented the presence of numerous toxins in the blood of a broad cross section of Americans. 

Actions taken by the European Union is resulting in the establishment of some regulatory control over chemical testing and product safety in the United States.  Toxic Inaction: Why Poisonous, Unregulated Chemicals End Up In Our Blood by Mark Schapiro, recently published in Harpers, describes the effects of REACH - Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation Chemicals - in establishing global standards for the chemical industry.  Because of international trade of virtually 1,000s of products, REACH is igniting a revolution as to how chemicals are tested and  managed as well as impacting upon how production and trade decisions will now be made around the world. 

For an interesting website on toxins in infant and children’s care products and toys, click here.