News Clips
Coloradans living with mental illness say comments after El Paso, Dayton mass shootings further stigmatize
By: Jessica Seaman
August 8, 2019
Once again, as the nation reels in the aftermath of back-to-back mass shootings, mental health is a focus of discussion, with President Donald Trump on Wednesday saying of the perpetrators: “These are people that are really mentally ill, mentally disturbed.”
“It’s a mental problem,” Trump said — echoing comments by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and others — before flying to Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, cities where gunmen killed 31 people and injured dozens more in two separate shooting sprees over the weekend.
But ...
Coloradans living with mental illness say comments after El Paso, Dayton mass shootings further stigmatize
By: Jessica Seaman
August 8, 2019
Once again, as the nation reels in the aftermath of back-to-back mass shootings, mental health is a focus of discussion, with President Donald Trump on Wednesday saying of the perpetrators: “These are people that are really mentally ill, mentally disturbed.”
“It’s a mental problem,” Trump said — echoing comments by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and others — before flying to Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, cities where gunmen killed 31 people and injured dozens more in two separate shooting sprees over the weekend.
But ...
Colorado counties with highest suicide rates are most opposed to ‘red flag’ law
By: Rob Low
August 6, 2019
DENVER -- Supporters of Colorado's "red flag" law say the measure is more likely to prevent suicides than mass shootings, even though it's the recent mass shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio that led President Donald Trump to embrace red flag laws as a way to reduce gun violence.
In Colorado, more than half of the state's 64 counties have declared themselves Second Amendment sanctuaries opposed to the the red flag law. Many of those counties have the state's highest gun suicide rates, according to statistics provided to FOX31 ...
Colorado’s New Psychiatric Advance Directive Process Goes Into Effect Aug. 2, 2019
July 31, 2019
Effective Aug. 2, 2019, Colorado law pertaining to behavioral health-related advance directives is changing. Under current law, an adult may establish advance medical orders for scope of treatment, allowing an adult to establish directives for the administration of medical treatment in the event the adult later lacks decisional capacity to provide informed consent to, withdraw from, or refuse medical treatment. However, Colorado House Bill 19-1044 will create a new “behavioral health order form” so that an adult may communicate his or her behavioral ...
Mental Health Colorado names new president, CEO
Staff Report
July 29, 2019
A new president and chief executive officer has been selected to lead Mental Health Colorado, an advocacy organization for mental health and substance use.
Vincent Atchity will provide strategic leadership to help Mental Health Colorado achieve its mission of promoting mental wellness, ending stigma, and ensuring equitable access to mental health and substance use services, according to a news release.
Atchity served as executive director of The Equitas Project, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to disentangle mental health and ...
Mental Health Colorado gets new CEO
By: Sentinel Staff
July 27, 2019
Mental Health Colorado selected Vincent Atchity as the nonprofit's new president and CEO, the organization announced Thursday.
Atchity previously served as executive director of the Equitas Project, a nonprofit that worked with the mental health and criminal justice systems.
Mental Health Colorado started in 1953 and works to advance treatment for mental health services across the state.
"Every Coloradan has a role to play in supporting improved mental health," Atchity said in a press release. "There can ...
Atchity replaces Romanoff as the head of Mental Health Colorado
July 25, 2019
Mental Health Colorado has a new leader, now that Andrew Romanoff is running for U.S. Senate.
The non-partisan advocacy nonprofit named Vincent Atchity its permanent president and CEO Thursday.
Nancy VanDeMark led the 65-year-old organization on an interim basis since Romanoff, the former speaker of the Colorado House, stepped down late last year after four years. VanDeMark is the former director of the Office of Behavioral Health at the Colorado Department of Human Services.
Atchity has been the executive director of The Equitas Project, which ...
What more can be done to stop cyberbullying?
By: Joe St. George
July 23, 2019
DENVER -- Cyberbullying is a story the Problem Solvers have covered for years.
From suicides in schools to recent harassment of Shanann Watts' family, the question is: what more can be done?
That was a topic during the first-ever National Mental Health Summit at East High School Tuesday.
In attendance was Rick Padilla, who lost his son Jack to suicide earlier this year. Jack was a student at Cherry Creek High School.
Padilla says he believes technology companies can offer some solutions. He is working with companies on ...
Why experts say it’s important to talk to your kids about suicide
By: Jordan Chavez
July 22, 2019
DENVER — Another high school in Colorado is dealing with the loss left by suicide.
Grandview High School in Aurora notified parents this weekend a senior took her own life. Her death comes less than two weeks after a former student who graduated just last year also ended her life. The school's principal urged parents in a letter to have conversations with their kids.
Sarah Davidon, the research director and child and adolescent strategy director at Mental Health Colorado shared her expertise on how parents can talk to their ...
Leadership Interview: Nancy VanDeMark, Ph.D., Interim President and CEO Mental Health Colorado
July 8, 2019
Nancy VanDeMark has worked in the mental health and substance use field for more than 30 years, most recently as director of the Office of Behavioral Health in the Colorado Department of Human Services. She previously worked as a consultant, an executive-level administrator of a substance use treatment organization and a research director. Her work has focused on improving mental health and substance use services for individuals with the most complicated needs.
Ascent: You've been working to improve mental health and substance use services for individ...
