ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION DISASTER MENTAL HEALTH NEWSLETTER

Learning From The Past and Planning For The Future


MENTAL HEALTH MOMENT
April 12, 2002

"We can't all be heroes because someone has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson				
				
				
				

				

				
				

				

				

				

					

						

										

Short Subjects
						
						
						
					
				
			
				

					

						

						
						

LINKS
						
						


						
						
Mental Health Moment Online
						
						

CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS:
			

The Red Cross Disaster 
Mental Health Services-I 
(DMHS-I) course will
be offered in Cheyenne, WY 
on Friday-Saturday, May 3-4, 2002.						
						

June 11 - 15, 2002
Third International Conference on Child & Adolescent Mental Health
Location: Brisbane, Queensland, AUSTRALIA
Contact: Conference Secretariat: Tracy Collier, Elsevier Science, The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford  OX5 1GB, UK 
Tel: +44 (0) 1865 843 297; Fax:  +44 (0) 1865 843 958; Email: t.collier@elsevier.co.uk
						

NIMH Meeting Announcements						
						
				
June 21-23, 2002
17th Annual Adult Development Symposium (The Society for Research in Adult Development)
Location: PACE PLAZA CAMPUS, New York, NY, USA

June 26 - 29, 2002 
Head Start's 6th National Research Conference
Location: Washington, DC, USA

June 28-30, 2002
4th Conference, Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI)
Location: Toronto, CANADA
						
				
International Conference on Surviving Trauma With Dignity Baku, AZERBAIJAN REPUBLIC  July 5-13, 2002
Contact: Alexander M. Cheryomukhin, Director of the International Department, Azerbaijan Psychologists Association, 18 Nizami str. 93, Baku 370000, Azerbaijan Republic
E-mail: alexcherpsy@yahoo.com
						

Public Safety Workshop: The Effective and Responsible Use of Psychological Tests in Pre-Employment Selection


Saturday, May 4, 2002

Baltimore, MD at the Admiral Fell Inn

Target: 
psychologists who screen public safety personnel, police chiefs/sheriffs, public safety administrators

Registration Amount:
 $250.00 (early registration before April 15, $200.00)
Contact:

Elaine Arnold

NCS Assessments

P.O. Box 1416

Minneapolis, MN 55440

Phone: 952-939-5923

Fax: 952-939-5132

Email: earnold@ncs.com

Housing Contact: Admiral Fell In,
 
conference rate of $159.00/night avail. through April 3

Phone: 1-800-292-4667

Hotel website:
 http://www.AdmiralFell.com
 
Comments:
 NCS Assessments website:
 http://assessments.ncspearson.com

 
						
						
			
						

						
						
						
						
						

						

						
						

						



				

POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER HIGH IN NYC AFTER SEPTEMBER 11

In the early aftermath of September 11, the rate of depression and
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among New Yorkers was about twice
the usual US rate, according to study results recently released.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/430766?srcmp=psy-032902
				


SEXUALLY ABUSED BOYS HAVE PERSISTENT SOMATIC, PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS

Boys who were victims of sexual abuse at a school in the UK did not seem
to experience an excess of health problems, but those they did have were
likely to continue for longer than a year after the abuse was stopped
and the perpetrator jailed.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/430675?srcmp=psy-032902
						

ELDERLY EXPECTATIONS OF MEDICAL CARE

Elderly patients may be satisfied with their physicians, even though
they were concerned about the physician's technical proficiency or
they had been misdiagnosed in the past, according to Penn State
researchers. "Our study found that if patients were treated by
physicians who they really liked and were very caring, they might not
leave the practice even if they were misdiagnosed and, therefore, did
not trust the physician," says Judith E. Hupcey, assistant professor
in the School of Nursing. "They would, however, be more vigilant and
therefore monitor their visits more closely." Hupcey, Mary Beth
Clark, assistant professor of nursing, and Christina Hutcheson and
Virginia Thompson, recent master's degree recipients, used focus
groups to investigate interactions of elderly, community-dwelling
outpatients and their primary care physicians. They reported their
findings at the recent Scientific Session of the Eastern Nursing
Research Society at Penn State. For the full story by A'ndrea Elyse
Messer, visit http://www.
psu.edu/ur/2002/elderlyexpectation.html

LACK OF SEROTONIN RECEPTORS IN INFANCY MAY LEAD TO LATER ANXIETY

Findings from a recent animal study suggest that infants who lack a
serotonin receptor in the early postnatal period may be at risk of
developing anxiety as an adult.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/430787?srcmp=psy-032902

May 15-17: National Rural Health Association 25th Annual Conference, 

Hyatt Regency Crown Center Hotel,

Kansas City, MO.

Sponsored by the National Rural Health Association. The health care industry has been undergoing significant change in recent years, and rural areas experience change with increased magnitude over urban counterparts.  NRHA expects approximately 800 attendees at this year's conference. The conference presents general and concurrent sessions that address the issues and needs of those work, practice and live in rural or isolated areas. 
						
						
					
				
				
				
	
	
				
				
					
				



THE PRACTICE OF LEADERSHIP

Throughout history, men and women have changed the world through their strength of will and 
courage of conviction. Such extraordinary people find something within themselves to change 
the way things are. They are able to inspire others to follow them, despite the odds. In the 
rotunda of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. are inscribed the following words 
penned by Thomas Jefferson: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created 
equal...endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights."

While we can marvel at the vision of a Walt Disney or a Henry Ford who created new ways of 
entertainment and transportation, there have been only a handful of people in history who 
have had the audacity to declare a new state of human rights. Prior to the words written 
in the American Declaration, people did not have rights. Kings had rights. There was no 
special privilege to just being human. It was an extraordinary act of courage to declare such 
a new reality. It inspired men and women to action and ultimately to the action of war. People 
voluntarily gave their lives because they yearned for freedom of expression, found it, and 
declined forever to forfeit it.

The feeling of passion evoked by the Jefferson Memorial represents a standard of leadership. 
True leaders, through the integrity of their values, communication, and action, have been able 
to inspire others to act differently. They accomplish this, not by forcing them to act differently, 
but by creating a clear glass for them to see themselves, their deepest desires and finest 
motivations, and act accordingly.

There are those who believe that leadership is only about creating change. The error of such 
a belief is demonstrated by the fact that leadership was one of the most written about subjects 
in the past decade. While leaders do indeed drive change, in a world that is changing at an 
incredible speed, societies still feel that they are missing leadership. The missing link is that 
inspiration is also central to leadership. What is missing is not change. What is missing is 
inspiration which provides the meaning of change.

In our modern world, inspiration has not always been necessary for success. For example, 
manual worker productivity is not dependent on inspiration. Rather, it is dependent on 
the efficiency of a system of doing work. As technology has displaced manual tasks, organizations 
are correctly viewing new ideas and the spirit to work on them as driving the future. As a 
result, inspiration has become a prerequisite to progress. Ideas have become more valuable 
than hands. Leaders of these organizations have to be able to stimulate new ideas and new 
ways of applying those ideas in the workplace and society. Innovation is the output being 
sought. In such a world, it is more important how people respond to the leader than if they
respond to the leader.

Metaphors for leadership are changing from "general" to "coach", from "charismatic boss" 
to "orchestra conductor". Leaders are attempting to not only play the musical notes correctly, 
but are also trying to create music that fills the room. In the fields of music and art and at the 
highest levels of team sports, everyone can sense differences between participating with 
energy and passion and just participating. In order to be effective, leaders must now ask 
themselves, "How do I tap into that passion?" "How can I connect with the part of myself and 
of the other person that actually cares?" "How can I inspire them and me?"

Leaders are more concerned than ever with recruiting and motivating others to act as they 
would act if they were working for great personal stakes. In the new world of technology, ideas, 
contribution, and innovation are the key words. It takes a competent and trustworthy individual 
at the helm to develop the kind of atmosphere where the human spirit can speak with all of 
these results.

Today, leadership is personal and public. A leader's actions and words (and the relationship 
between the two) are the primary tools of inspiration. This is new, and uncomfortable, 
ground for many leaders. As Collins and Porras (1994) point out:
 
"Some managers are uncomfortable with expressing emotion about their 
dreams, but it's the passion and emotion that will attract and motivate others." (p. 234).

This has been pretty rough for many aspiring leaders because it requires some personal 
involvement which wasn't previously required. This type of leadership doesn't start with a 
promotion. It starts with a personal decision about what is important and with the desire to 
be an agent, through inspiring and guiding others, and to make that something real.

The information explosion and the use of the internet have heightened the need for stimulating 
leaders. Naisbitt (1990) coined one of the most predictive phrases of the late twentieth century: 
"High Tech, High Touch". He foresaw that, to the extent that technology replaced humans in 
repetitive tasks, we would need new ways to effect human connection. Technology would not 
supplant connection. It would intensify the need for it. His prediction is borne out in listings 
of America's best-selling books over the past decade. These include: "Men are from Mars, 
Women are from Venus"; "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff...and It's All Small Stuff"; and "Chicken Soup 
for the Soul". These books, and others like them, establish new ground rules for connecting 
with ourselves and others. They may seem sappy for organizations and to many others, but the 
people who buy and read them work in organizations.

We want to connect. We care about human behavior more than we care about the workings of 
our computer. While some organizational CEOs decry the movement toward making their personalities 
as much a part of organization coverage as the organization itself, there is good reason for it. 
Locke (1998) has put it this way: 

"The catch is that trust can only be restored through personal 
action...and personal contact, the only means to deal effectively 
with declining trust, is also subsiding rapidly. On the other hand, 
the probability of people suddenly beginning consistently to exchange 
personal views and attitudes with others is unlikely under conditions 
of serious mistrust." (p. 196).

Some executives believe that trust is merely a matter of consistency. As they measure it, "trust" 
is the same as "predictability". However, they tend to find themselves with dissention among 
those who work with them. It would seem obvious that being predictably self-serving or thoughtless 
does not generate much trust. Shaw (1997) has stated that: 

"Trust is a matter of getting results, acting with integrity, and demonstrating 
authentic concern." (p. 20). 

Schools, workshops and other forms of training teach how to get results. However, integrity 
and authentic concern are conveyed in personal actions and words. Reality relentlessly drives 
us toward deeper trust and connection. Leaders increasingly depend on others to provide ideas 
and actions to enrich and enhance the new realities they foresee.

The fundamental need is for innovation. Innovation stems from expressed passion. Passion will 
be expressed for things we truly care about. We will follow with our hearts only those we respect.
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REFERENCES

Collins, J. and Porras, J. (1994). Built to Last. New York: Harper Business.

Locke, J.L. (1998). The De-voicing of Society. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Naisbitt, J. (1990). Megatrends 2000. New York: Morrow.

Shaw, R.B. (1997). Trust in the Balance: Successful Organizations on Results, 
Integrity, and Concern. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

To search for books on disasters and disaster mental
health topics, leaders, leadership, orgainizations,
crisis intervention, leaders and crises, and related 
topics and purchase them online, go to the following url:

https://www.angelfire.com/biz/odochartaigh/searchbooks.html
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               Contact your local Mental Health Center or   
               check the yellow pages for counselors, psychologists,   
               therapists, and other Mental health Professionals in   
               your area for further information.
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                        George W. Doherty
                        O'Dochartaigh Associates
                        Box 786
                        Laramie, WY 82073-0786

MENTAL HEALTH MOMENT Online: https://www.angelfire.com/biz3/news