March is National Social Work Month, and here at the Hogg Foundation, we see firsthand the major role social workers play in the upkeep of mental health.
We are joined today by Catherine Wilsnack, a doctoral candidate in the Steve Hicks School of Social Work at the University of Texas at Austin. Catherine earned her B.S. in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her M.S.W. from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice. Prior to pursuing social work, she worked as a mental health clinician. She discusses the unique perspective that social workers have on mental health and the collaboration between academic researchers and practitioners at the heart of the field.
Mental Health in Schools
“Our hope is that this program will shift the culture,” Stephany Bryan says, “and it will definitely shift the culture in educational settings by being able to provide campuses with opportunities for learning new and innovative ways of providing appropriate services...
Integrated Health Care for Foster Youth
“What we set out to do was establish a system that would, in fact, cater to the needs of foster children in one place,” Jacquelyn McMillon says, “and that children did not have to go all over the city of Houston to get the most basic of care.” In 2015, the Texas...
Mental Health and Media: Stop Raising Awareness Already
“Awareness does not always associate with action or effectiveness,” Carrie Baron says. “Just because you’re aware doesn’t mean that you’re changing the situation.” Earlier this year, an article published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review urged organizations to...
Peer Support in the Criminal Justice System
“Coming out of the criminal system, for many, means starting over with nothing,” Zarate says. “Our objective is to reduce hospitalization, reduce recidivism, and have them be successful in re-entering the community.” The more we learn, the more obvious it seems that...
Political Climate as a Chronic Stressor
“In effect we’re sending stress signals to ourselves about which we can do nothing,” says Dr. Christopher McCarthy, Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. The overwhelming uncertainty and tense political climate has become a point of stress for many...
Hogg Foundation Policy Priorities 2017
“We have reason to be hopeful about where we’re at on mental health in this legislative session,” says Greg Hansch, public policy director for National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Texas. The Hogg Foundation recently released its list of policy priorities for...