House of Hope

When UPMC shuttered Braddock Hospital earlier this year, they left few of their programs operating in the borough. Among them is House of Hope. It provides shelter and supports homeless, drug-addicted pregnant women and new mothers through the early stages of recovery. UPMC might be moving the program out of Braddock- which would deal another blow to an already distressed community. This story is part of our continuing coverage of behavioral health issues. Listen to it here.

Former Mayview State Hospital Land Sold

The state has found a buyer for the land Mayview State Hospital sat on. It’s a coal company. They‘re paying a half million dollars for nearly two hundred acres - that includes a coalmine.

Early estimates of what the land would go for were in the multiple millions. After all, it covered South Fayette and Upper St Clair townships - two of the more affluent communities in the area.

That it would go for less than what it was worth was expected- this was good land but old buildings filled with asbestos and lead paint that would most likely be demolished.

But the agreement the state made to sell the land for $505,505 dollars to Aloe Brothers LLC of Mount Washington has left members of the mental health community deeply disappointed. State Senator John Pippy who co-chaired the Mayview task force said he was also let down by how much the land sold for.

Advocates wanted the land to be sold at a fair market price and for the proceeds of the sale to go into a trust for community based mental health services to benefit those the hospital had served. The more money for the land –the more in the trust.
Mayview State Hospital opened in the late 1800’s and housed and treated thousands of people for mental illness. It closed in 2008.

The state- ordered appraisal valued the land at 7.8 million. But the buildings were a 13 million liability. That left the land at an appraisal of negative 5.2 million.
John Paul Jones is Director of the Governors Southwest Regional Office.

The appraisal was not made public and the land was put on the market. They received two bids- the losing bid was for 130,000.

The state will retain mineral rights.

Concerns of Marcellus shale oil drilling were raised at a public hearing held in St. Clair Township on Thursday night. State Senator John Pippy who co-chaired the land task force said as legislators they would try to prevent that from occurring.

Disappointment was expressed repeatedly by many of those attending the meeting who said the land should have sold for more. They said the sale could have been a great source of revenue for services potentially strained by state budget cuts.

Rev. Sally Jo Snyder, with the Consumer Health Coalition has been helping organize members of the mental health community to advocate through this process. The task force was set up to talk assess the environmental and economic use of the land. Their advocacy shifted the discourse. So, aside from the disappointment in the assessment and sale of the land, she says there have been victories. A memorial for what the hospital was and the thousands of people that passed through it will be on the property. And it has been empowering for those that have come out to speak at the meetings.

Last month, Senator Pippy introduced Senate Bill 1339, which would place the net proceeds of the sale into a mental health and retardation services account that would be handled by the state Department of Public Welfare. With the sale of the land, after accrued state costs that would be about 350,000 thousand dollars.
Listen to the full report by DUQ's Erika Beras.

Tobacco Free Allegheny Holds Meeting

Tobacco Free Allegheny held their quarterly meeting on Thursday at The United Way Headquarters on Thursday. The meeting focused on the connection between the brain, smoking and gambling.

Casinos in Pennsylvania allow smoking which experts say fuels the urge to gamble in the brain. Two addiction specialists from Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic made presentations.

In September, data from a casino air quality report revealed that nearly 300 nonsmoking casino workers in the state will die from illnesses stemming from secondhand smoke.

Pennsylvania Autism Census Released

Governor Edward Rendell released The Pennsylvania Autism Census today. According to the report, Pennsylvania will see a rise in the number of people with autism.

Prior to the report, the state had no accurate means to determine how many people were in need of services. They now have an idea of how many people there are and where they live.

The state will face a crisis as the number increases and those that are under 18 become adults.

In 2005 about 20,000 people in the state were living with autism. The number will be 25,000 by next year.

In 2005, more than 1,400 adults were living with autism in the state. That number will increase by 179% to more than 3,800 in 2010 and more than 10,000 by 2015.

Rendell says this report is a good tool in determining where services are needed and what they should be.

Problem Solving Courts Approved by PA Senate

With a unanimous vote the PA Senate approved legislation that would statutorily authorize the implementation of problem solving courts in the Commonwealth. Problem solving courts include, among other options, mental health courts and drug courts. The goal is to divert non-violent offenders from jail cells and into supervision programs. The courts are intended to encourage rehabilitation and lower corrections costs. State Senator Jane Orie of McCandless says, "As a former prosecutor and a strong advocate for improving our drug rehabilitation and mental health systems, I believe this legislation is crucial to helping those in need and to improving public safety." "These courts will reduce prison overcrowding and improve cooperation between our criminal justice system and drug and alcohol and mental health systems," says Orie. Allegheny County recently established a veterans' court and has been praised for its success. The law would not force counties to create the special courts but the measure makes it easier to get funding if a county should be interested. According to Sen. Orie, the average cost of building a new prison in Pennsylvania is $200 million and the cost of housing a prisoner can run as much as $30,000 a year. She says approximately 20% of Pennsylvania’s prison population suffers from mental illness. Orie says, “In many cases, we are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to incarcerate mentally ill patients or those with addictions who would benefit far more from treatment, medication and counseling.”

Prevention Point

Prevention Point Pittsburgh turned fourteen years old recently.

The local needle exchange works out of the Health Department's building in Oakland.

We take a look at their history - from their beginnings in Pittsburgh to the history of needle exchanges elsewhere.

Listen to the story here.

Crisis Intervention Officers

Some Pittsburgh Police officers are learning to respond to youth with mental health disorders.

The officers, who have all undergone a forty-hour crisis intervention training undergo an additional eight hour training where they take a crash course in child psychiatry -learning about social and emotional development, mental health disorders and what services are available for children and teenagers in the county. They also learn how to speak to children and about medications and their side effects.

Youth with mental health problems often come in contact with the police for behavior that can be the result of their disorders.

The training is a partnership between Allegheny County's Department of Behavioral Health and The Pittsburgh Police Bureau.

Fifty officers will be trained in the youth portion of the problem.

Listen to a longer version of the story HERE

Volunteer Psychiatrist Offers Free Services Downtown

Six months ago, Catholic Charities free health clinic recruited a psychiatrist who sees patients one day a week.

Earl Brink had been retired from the practice for eleven years. He had worked in private practice and at hospitals throughout his career.

The clinic opened in late 2007 and has seen roughly 3,500 patients, mostly for physical and dental services. They serve people who make enough so that they don't qualify for free health care but not enough that they can afford to buy plans. In the Pittsburgh area, there are roughly 70,000 people who fall into that category.

Miracle League of Southwestern Pennsylvania Opens

The Miracle League and Field of Southwestern Pennsylvania opened on Saturday in Cranberry Township.

The League is open to all children in the region with physical or cognitive disabilities. It gives them the opportunity to play baseball in an organized league, with the assistance of a buddy who is on the field at all times.

It took nearly three years for the field and league to be built. Donations came from non-profits and from corporations, including Pirates Charities, the Philanthropic Arm of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Among the donors was second baseman Freddy Sanchez who was born with a clubbed foot. He was at opening day, along with his family and several teammates.

136 children are enrolled in the league. The children play on a rubberized surface made of ground-up tires. It is all one height so there are no tripping impediments and children in wheelchairs or who use walkers can access it.

PEAL conference

Thursday wrapped up the two-day third annual PEAL conference in Cranberry.

The PEAL center - Peal standing for Parent Education Advocacy Leadership is a federally-funded local non-profit that aims to help the families of those with special needs. Educators and health specialists were also at the conference.

Those there learned of services available to them and listened to speakers from around the country.

Personal Needs Allowance

A long struggle to get more spending money into the hands of over 9,000 personal care home residents came to an end earlier this year.

The personal needs allowance is the amount of money residents of personal care homes keep out of their supplemental security income every month. Since 1993, it was $60.

Personal care homes are private, state-regulated boarding houses for the elderly or those with disabilities. Approximately 50,000 people live in 1,500 of these homes in Pennsylvania.

For years, advocates, legislators and private citizens worked to get a raise in the allowance.

Late last year, the federal government increased social security benefits for those residents, giving them an additional $25 a month.

Residents say they are happy with the raise.

To listen to a longer version of this story click here:

Shopping for Health Care

Bipolar Disease in Children

A new study from The University of Pittsburgh found that children of bipolar parents have an increased risk of early-onset bipolar disease. They are also at a higher risk for other mood and anxiety disorders.

The study took over eight years to conduct and involved nearly 400 Pittsburgh area children.

Chief researcher Dr. Boris Birmaher said the time spent was necessary for accuracy.

"You have to follow the kids over time and observe the kid very carefully before you can make the diagnosis,'' he said.

According to the National Institute of Health, bipolar disease, also known as manic-depression, is a brain disorder that causes drastic shifts in a person's mood and ability to function. It typically develops in late adolescence or early childhood.

The study, published Monday in The Archives of General Psychiatry, was funded in part by federal dollars.
Listen to an audio version of this story.