Monthly Archives: July 2017

Historic calendar photo of Riverview Hospital. It opened in 1913 and at one time had 4,500 patients and 2,200 staff. Vancouver Sun

We fret about the future of the Riverview lands as if they were an idyllic place fixed in time, where any change to the way we use the lands, or any imaginative idea for them, is hard to countenance.

We should instead ask ourselves how the lands can best be used to help those who suffer from serious mental illness the historical legacy of Riverview and take it from there.

With that as our imperative, were proposing, as the backbone of the lands, an intentional community in which those with serious mental illness, stabilized in acute and tertiary care, will live together with others without a mental illness in an integrated community purpose-built to help the seriously mentally ill flourish.

Weve named the proposed community Riverview Village. Its a new and innovative option for the future.

A little bit of clinical background will help to understand the rationale, because the introduction of antipsychotics for those with schizophrenia has changed the paradigm from the days of the old Riverview Hospital.

Before antipsychotics, there was no satisfactory treatment for psychosis, with its delusions, hallucinations, paranoia, and related symptoms like catatonia. Antipsychotics deal with these symptoms and in most cases stabilize people, after which they can be discharged from hospital. Its why we no longer need a huge, institutional treatment complex on the Riverview lands, with a correspondingly huge number of patients and staff.

What happens after discharge, though? Antipsychotics dont help reintegrate people into society or expand their horizons. And, indeed, theres a whole other range of symptoms, ongoing chronic symptoms, that for many of those with schizophrenia pose great difficulty. Profound loss of motivation often accompanies such illness (avolition its called, in clinical language). Poor social interactions are another difficulty, exacerbated for many by their having fallen ill in their late teens when social skills are usually developed.

Dampened feelings and responsiveness, trouble with rhythm and clarity of speech, slowed movement, and cognitive deficit can be other difficulties.

These problems do not respond well to existing treatments. Unlike antipsychotics for psychotic symptoms, for example, theres currently no effective medication for them. Also, unlike acute-care treatment which is relatively brief, these challenges may last for the rest of peoples lives. Many people end up isolated and languish, with limited activities and seemingly bleak futures. They are said to be in the community, which sounds nice, but theyre not of the community. As long as they dont cause trouble, we may in fact not have any contact with them at all.

The intentional community were proposing both recognizes and addresses this new paradigm, where antipsychotics allow for deinstitutionalization but continuing chronic symptoms endure.

In the proposed community, those with a mental illness will establish real relationships with those without a mental illness, breaking their isolation. A community centre will anchor the village and a wide range of activities. Meaningful work will be arranged for those who can manage it. An arts hub is proposed, with studios and retail shops, whereby the mentally ill can connect with artists and craftspeople, and where those with an aptitude become part of that artistic community and sell their work. Community facilitators will help bring people together and keep the community vibrant.

Most of all, Riverview Village will give those with serious mental illness a true sense of belonging. It will bring the strength of community to bear, something already demonstrated in existing intentional communities with therapeutic objectives.

There will be critical clinical benefits as well from this community engagement and support. Relapses going through the revolving door in and out of acute care or the justice system will be reduced, with economic savings as a bonus. Acute and tertiary beds will be freed up, and also freed up by the increased access to housing.

Keep in mind what the goal is here: to help those with serious and persistent mental illness contend with their residual chronic symptoms and achieve a better quality of life.

Make no mistake, either, about how challenging those difficulties are and the degree of attention we should give to them. Even if theyre not dramatic and intrusive like psychosis, theyre every bit as serious in their own way. Dawn Velligan and Larry Alphs, two American specialists on the subject, remind us, in a clinical article in the Psychiatric Times, it may be that the negative (chronic, enduring) symptoms of schizophrenia contribute more to poor functional outcomes and quality of life for individuals with schizophrenia than do (psychotic) symptoms.

This is where the Riverview lands offer a unique possibility a community that those with a serious mental illness will be able to consider their own and where they will have the best chance to flourish.

Herschel Hardin is president of the Riverview Village Intentional Community Society.

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Opinion: Riverview Village aims to improve quality of life for mentally ill - Vancouver Sun

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Bethany Caruso, Emory University

(THE CONVERSATION) Imagine going through your day without access to clean, safe water in your home for drinking, cooking, washing or bathing whenever you need it. According to a new report from UNICEF and the World Health Organization, 2.1 billion people around the world face that challenge every day. And the task of providing water for households falls disproportionately to women and girls, especially in rural areas.

Water, a human right, is critical for human survival and development. A sufficient supply of biologically and chemically safe water is necessary for drinking and personal hygiene to prevent diarrheal diseases, trachoma, intestinal worm infections, stunted growth among children and numerous other deleterious outcomes from chemical contaminants like arsenic and lead.

I have carried out research in India, Bolivia and Kenya on the water and sanitation challenges that women and girls confront and how these experiences influence their lives. In my field work I have seen adolescent girls, pregnant women and mothers with small children carrying water. Through interviews, I have learned of the hardships they face when carrying out this obligatory task.

An insufficient supply of safe and accessible water poses extra risks and challenges for women and girls. Without recognizing the uneven burden of water work that women bear, well-intentioned programs to bring water to places in need will continue to fail to meet their goals.

Collecting water takes time. Simply to get water for drinking, bathing, cooking and other household needs, millions of women and girls spend hours every day traveling to water sources, waiting in line and carrying heavy loads often several times a day.

The new UNICEF/WHO report states that 263 million people worldwide have access to water sources that are considered safe, but need to spend at least 30 minutes walking or queuing to collect their water. Another 159 million get their water from surface sources that are considered to be the most unsafe, such as rivers, streams and ponds. Water from these sources is even more likely to require over 30 minutes to collect.

In a study of 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, UNICEF estimated that women there spent 16 million hours collecting water each day. Women in a recent study in Kenya reported spending an average of 4.5 hours fetching water per week, causing 77 percent to worry about their safety while fetching and preventing 24 percent from caring for their children.

When children or other family members get sick from consuming poor-quality water, which can happen even if the water is initially clean when collected, women spend their time providing care. These responsibilities represent lost opportunities for womens employment, education, leisure or sleep.

Water is heavy. The World Health Organization recommends 20-50 liters of water per person per day for drinking, cooking and washing. That amounts to hauling between 44 and 110 pounds of water daily for use by each household member.

And in many places, water sources are far from homes. In Asia and Africa, women walk an average of 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) per day collecting water. Carrying such loads over long distances can result in strained backs, shoulders and necks, and other injuries if women have to walk over uneven and steep terrain or on busy roads.

The burden is even heavier for women who are pregnant or are also carrying small children. Moreover, pregnant women worry that transporting these heavy loads will lead to early labor or even miscarriage.

Even when a household or village has access to a safe water source close to home, residents may not use it if they believe the water is inferior in some way. As one woman told my research team in India:

"

Tube well water quality is not good water is saline. Cooking is not good due to this water. Not good for drinking either. People are getting water from that neighbouring village. for cooking we get water from the river.

In this community, the neighboring village was at least a kilometer away.

Fetching water can also be very dangerous for women and girls. They can face conflict at water points and the risk of physical or sexual assault. Many of these dangers also arise when women do not have access to safe, clean and private toilets or latrines for urinating, defecating and managing menstruation.

Global demand for water is increasing. The United Nations forecasts that if current water use patterns do not change, world demand will exceed supply by 40 percent by 2030. In such a scenario, it is hard to imagine that womens and girls experiences will improve without intentional efforts.

When communities initiate programs to improve access to water, it is critical to ask women about their needs and experiences. Although women and girls play key roles in obtaining and managing water globally, they are rarely offered roles in water improvement programs or on local water committees. They need to be included as a right and as a practical matter. Numerous water projects in developing countries have failed because they did not include women.

And women should play meaningful roles. A study in northern Kenya found that although women served on local water management committees, conflict with men at water points persisted because the women often were not invited to meetings or were not allowed to speak.

Women who raise their voices about water concerns need to be heard. In Flint, Michigan, women were critical to revealingthe citys water crisis and continue to push for changes.

We also need broader strategies to reduce gender disparities in water access. First we need to collect more data on womens water burden and how it affects their their health, well-being and personal development. Second, women must be involved in creating and managing targeted programs to mitigate these risks. Third, these programs should be evaluated to determine whether they are truly improving womens lives. And finally, social messaging affirming the idea that water work belongs only to women must be abandoned.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called empowerment of the worlds women a global imperative. To attain that goal, we must reduce the weight of water on womens shoulders.

Editors note: This is an updated version of an article originally published on March 22, 2016.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article here: http://theconversation.com/women-still-carry-most-of-the-worlds-water-81054.

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Women still carry most of the world's water - San Francisco Chronicle

Group far surpasses economic development goal

CHESTERFIELD A 10-year evaluation of Virginia's Gateway Region has found that the economic development group is among the best in the nation.

Sustained Impact of Boston, Massachusetts, an independent evaluator fully funded by the Cameron Foundation recently completed the study. The in-depth study was conducted to thoroughly examine the VGRs practices and procedures and construct a benchmark of the organizations effects on economic development compared to other economic development groups across the nation.

The study stated that the VRG had undergone dramatic transformation over the past decade effectively becoming a global outreach vehicle for the region. The International Economic Development Council, the largest global non-profit membership organization of its kind based out of Washington, D.C., has developed the most widely accepted standard of best practice guidelines for the industry. The Sustained Impact study determined that the VGR has utilized many of these practices.

The results of the study were presented to the public at a luncheon held at the John Tyler Community College in Chester. There it was reported that the independent group had thoroughly analyzed material generated from the VRG including publications, in-house tracking metrics and articles along with reviewing various articles pertaining to the VGR. In addition, Sustained Impact also conducted interviews with VGR representatives as well as hosting consultations with economic development, workforce development and community development experts, reviewed professional publications specific to economic development in an effort to compare VGRs efforts and performance to the industry nationwide.

The VGR reported 10,785 jobs were created in new and existing businesses; a number substantially higher than its 2,200 job creation target. Victor Branch, VGR Chairman and Richmond Market President of Bank of America said, This report verifies that VGRs practices, activities and results are among the best in the nation as benchmarked against three nationally-recognized regional economic development organizations. The intensive review of the organizations major investments from The Cameron Foundation, communities and private stakeholders has been in essence a game changer for the region and the organizational use of those funds was in line with other successful programs around the nation.

The three nationally-recognized regional economic development organizations Branch referred to were selected by Sustained Impact from similar markets in Virginia and North Carolina. The study also concluded that the VGR had reported more announcements, job creations and capital investments from 2014 through 2015 than any of the other economic development organizations reviewed. And the VGR had done so with a noticeably smaller budget and fewer employees; reinforcing the findings of the VGRs efficiency and effectiveness in regional economic development.

I would like to thank the Cameron Foundation for funding this study and for their long-term support of the organization. This is a unique opportunity that validates the commitment of our Board of Directors and our communities to our business climate and the support we must provide to our business base in our region said VGR President and CEO Renee Chapline. This report provides us with a sturdy business case proving that our work is intentional, effective, and most importantly, that what we do for our eight communities truly matters.

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Study: Virginia's Gateway Region among best in the nation - News ... - Jackson County Newspapers

While the U.S. economy continues to recover from the Great Recession, there are things to celebrate, most notably the drop in unemployment. Unfortunately, the kind of gains seen by some groups in certain parts of the country are not experienced equitably by everyone. While the nation moves forward, a large percentage of the U.S. population continues to be left behind, including here in Racine County.

In 2015, the black unemployment rate in the City of Racine was 16 percent, twice the white unemployment rate of eight percent and the Hispanic unemployment rate was just over 13 percent. While unemployment rates declined in 2016, racial disparities have persisted over time. The infant mortality rate for all women in the City of Racine, regardless of race, is consistently higher than county, state and national rates. Though it has improved, the rate for black mothers still outpaces that of Hispanic and white mothers. Locally, graduation rates for black and Hispanic students attending Racine Unified schools have improved over time, but more work needs to be done.

This reality has consequences. It negatively impacts the education, health and financial stability of our community. Research tells us that inclusive communities where prosperity is shared equitably across racial and socioeconomic lines are more successful communities.

At United Way of Racine County, we determine everything we do from our initiative work to our funding decisions on available data, including what we hear from the community during our community conversations. What the data clearly demonstrates, and what we have heard, is that more often than not blacks and Hispanics experience some of our biggest economic and social challenges.

United Way works with an incredible group of community partners to build an educated workforce. We do this by focusing on what we consider to be the building blocks of a good life: education, income and health. Too often, quality access to these resources is out of reach for the black and Hispanic communities.

This is why United Way of Racine County, along with other United Ways throughout the nation, chose to focus much needed attention on the issues of race, equity and inclusion. United Ways have never shied away from tough issues. This is why we have held a number of community conversations with diverse groups of people during the past several months in order to hear the communitys thoughts on race and equity. These conversations are intentional, kitchen table-style discussions focused on capturing the concerns, aspirations and solutions related to these difficult issues.

Were also engaging another group of community partners including Higher Expectations for Racine County, the Johnson Foundation at Wingspread, the Racine Police Department and the Racine Unified School District, among others to help address the issues that arise from systemic racial disparities in our community.

Higher Expectations for Racine County was founded on a simple idea: those who care about our communitys future from parents and educators to civic leaders and local employers can accomplish more by working together, aligning efforts and sharing data.

Higher Expectations is working to build a fully capable and employed workforce here in Racine County. In order to accomplish that vision, we work from early childhood through post-secondary education and employment, with the goal of ensuring that every student regardless of race, zip code, age or family income can succeed.

This year, Higher Expectations in partnership with United Way of Racine County, the Racine Police Department, the Racine Unified School District and the Johnson Foundation, organized a local effort Race, Equity and Inclusion: A Leadership Program to Accelerate Results in Racine that brought 30 community leaders together to explore the complex challenges of race, equity and inclusion and develop action plans targeting the elimination of racial disparities from employment back through early childhood.

Together, United Way and Higher Expectations are learning more about how the community views these issues. People want to live in a community thats inclusive, safe and has a positive relationship between its citizens and law enforcement. They believe equal opportunity should exist for all races in the areas of education, jobs and housing, and participants would like to learn more about and work to directly and effectively address the racial and ethnic disparities in our community.

Later this month, Tiffany Jana will be the keynote speaker at United Ways Community Conversations Report Out event on July 25, where a report will be released sharing results from the most recent round of Community Conversations. Jana, co-author of Overcoming Bias: Building Authentic Relationships across Differences, will discuss her work in the area of diversity and inclusion management.

United Way of Racine County fights for the health, education and financial stability of every person in our community by forging partnerships with groups like Higher Expectations to mobilize the best resources, find new solutions to old problems and inspire individuals to join the fight against a common foe: our communitys most daunting social crises. To live better, we must Live United.

Rodney Prunty is the president of the United Way of Racine County. Jeff Neubauer is the executive director of Higher Expectations for Racine County.

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Commentary by Prunty & Neubauer: Race, equality & inclusion - Journal Times