A Thought for Today

“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” — Carl Sagan

Recent Department of Health and Human Services Speech

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius recently gave a speech…

The Kim Foundation Welcomes Julia Hebenstreit

C&A Industries and The Kim Foundation are proud to welcome Julia Hebenstreit as…

Catholic Charities Celebrates 85 Years of Service

Since 1926, Catholic Charities has worked endlessly to serve and advocate for more than 75,000 voiceless, hungry, addicted, abused, and forgotten individuals annually throughout the Omaha area. Through its 11 main programs, and the efforts of nearly 400 amazing volunteers, staff, and board members, Catholic Charities works to feed the hungry, give shelter and safety to battered women and children, support individuals with mental illness, offer recovery and hope to those suffering from addiction, teach new skills to young and old, unite adoptive families, and so much more. In September, Catholic Charities celebrated 85 years of service to Omaha.

C&A Industries Annual Award Ceremony

The Kim Foundation Executive Director, Diana Waggoner, was recently honored at the C&A…

C&A Debuts 2011 Community Video

C&A debuted its 2011 Community Video at the most recent Leadership event. What…

Mental Health Care in Nebraska

Nebraska has attracted some incredible talent in the field of mental health; people who understand the illnesses, who understand the effects on families, and who understand the need for the state to change and to move into a new realm of healing opportunity. Rather than embracing their knowledge and leadership; however, we often appear to dig into our comfort zone ignoring wonderful opportunities to make Nebraska a health leader in the nation.

Nebraska continually ranks close to the bottom in the provision of mental health care. We seem to lack the political will to develop community-based treatment centers that have proven so effective in other states. We seem to lack the motivation to invest in additional healing opportunities for children. We seem to believe that short-term residential treatment is ineffective, yet we are persuaded to enlarge the prison system.

Consumer-Led Change and Research Programs Help Advance Mental Health Issues

Through our work at The Kim Foundation, we have had the privilege of visiting several service providers and consumer run programs these past two months. We are encouraged and pleased to see consumers continue to play an expanding role in determining the course of treatment for mental illnesses and we applaud those efforts. When the people directly affected by mental illness feel respected and confident, when they know their voices matter, they become more willing to share their stories, needs, and goals. Community service providers and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services then have the opportunity to respond by helping to implement appropriate community resources that meet those needs.

Trauma Informed Care Programs

When a person is involved in a traumatic event, like a car crash, a team of surgeons work to fix the physical damage that may have been caused. But how is the emotional and mental damage caused by the event resolved? Scott Carlson, a mental health professional and Director of Heartland School says that like any other wound left untreated, trauma will continue to fester in a person and can show up in acting out behaviors like ADHD and oppositional defiance disorder, or depression.