One of a Kind Mental Health Event to be Held

Uvalde Memorial Hospital (UMH) is hosting a Behavioral Health Symposium on May 3^rd at SSGT. Willie De Leon Civic Center. Led by the UMH Crossroads program, this event is one of a kind for the region, focusing on providing professionals, in a variety of fields associated with mental health in any capacity, with the knowledge and tools to continue improving their skills.

Mental health is a growing epidemic in the country and the State of Texas. In Texas alone, 1 in 5 adults will experience a mental health concern this year, and twenty percent of children ages 9-17 have a diagnosed mental illness. With statistics like these, progress in fields related to mental health has the potential to change and save lives. This event is tailored for professionals, but also open to the public. Continuing education units (CEUs) are available for nurses, licensed social workers, licensed professional counselors and licensed counselor social workers for 6.75 hours.

Check in and breakfast for the Symposium will begin at 8:00am., followed by a welcome and introduction given by The Honorable Camile G. DuBose. Keynotes speaker, Tara Rolstad, will begin at 8:30am. Rolstad is an advocate, author, and speaker who left a career as a nonprofit executive to help raise her nieces who lived with severe mental health illnesses. Rolstad is a dynamic speaker who gets real about mental health because she believes, “it affects everyone… with a brain.”

Other topics discussed will be disabilities and crime as related to mental illness, by Debbie Benavides, licensed professional counselor; the dynamics of domestic violence, by Elda Garcia, with Southwest Family Life Center; pre and post prevention of suicide, by licensed professional counselor James Denning; and Texas ethics in mental health, led by Charles W. Downing, JD.

Following focus topics will be a speaker question and answer panel. Closing remarks and CEU certificates will be given at the end of the event at 4:30pm.

There is a $50 event registration fee, as required by CEU regulations, and breakfast and lunch will be provided for participants. Interested individuals can register and pay online by May 2^nd at www.umhtx.org/events/BHS. Registration and payment by check is also accepted.

Event partners for the Behavioral Health Symposium include premier sponsors Community Health Development Inc. and H.E. Butt Foundation; platinum sponsor University Health System; gold sponsor Uvalde Memorial Hospital Medical Staff; silver sponsor Uvalde CISD; and bronze sponsors, UMH Chief Financial Officer’s Group, Southwest Border AHEC, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Workspace Solutions, and Victoria Emergency Associates.