NAMI Hosts Children’s Consortium Celebrating 30 Years as Policy Forum

Posted on September 5, 2000

On September 8, 2000, the National Consortium for Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services will hold its quarterly meeting, and celebrate 30 years as the forum in the nation's capital that focuses on issues which today are at the forefront of national concern.

"Children and adolescents are our future," said Jane Boyer of the National Parent Teacher's Association (National PTA), who chairs the consortium, composed of 25 national organizations. "What affects them today inevitably shapes our nation thirty years from now. That is especially true when in talking about mental health issues."

"We are honored to host the Consortium on the occasion of its 30th anniversary," said NAMI executive director Laurie Flynn. "National policy and systemic reforms always must begin with the sharing information and ideas. The Consortium serves a vital function as part of a broader dynamic process."

Featured Speakers Include:

• Dr. Peter Jensen, Director, Center for the Advancement of Children's Mental Health (CACMH), established by the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute.
• Rolando Santiago of the Child, Adolescent & Family Branch of the U.S. Center for Mental Health Services.

In partnership with CACMH, NAMI mobilizes more than 200,000 members to carry messages about new research and evidence-based treatment throughout the country. The center concentrates on five areas of pediatric disorders: attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), major depressive disorders; anxiety disorders; obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) and youth suicide. Flynn serves on its executive board.

THE NATIONAL CONSORTIUM FOR CHILD & ADOLESECENT MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES MEMBERS

• American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
• American Academy of Pediatrics
• American Association of Children's Residential Centers
• American Medical Association
• American Orthopsychiatric Association
• American Psychiatric Association
• American Psychological Association
• American Society for Adolescent Psychiatry
• Association for Ambulatory Behavioral Healthcare
• Association of Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Hospitals
• Child Welfare League of America
• Children's Defense Fund
• National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
• National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems
• National Association of School Psychologists
• National Association of Social Workers
• National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors
• Zero to Three: National Center for Clinical Infant Programs
• National Community Mental Healthcare Council
• National Education Association Health Information Network
• National Federation of Clinical Social Workers
• National Mental Health Association
• National Parent Teachers Association
• Society of Professors of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
• Society for Research in Child Development