By Benjamin Chambers, July 24 2009
Children and Juvenile Justice: Proposals for Improvements is the title of a new report from the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights. (If that interests you, you might also want to see this 2007 summary of trends in juvenile justice systems across 15 countries.)- 13 Myths and Facts about Drug Abuse and Treatment - an excellent short document from the Partnership for a Drug-Free America.
- Curious about using the Recovery Bill of Rights in your community? Then register for a free teleconference on the topic, scheduled for July 28th at noon PST/ 3pm EST, sponsored by Faces & Voices of Recovery. (You can even find the relevant PowerPoint -- and past teleconferences in the recovery advocacy series -- by following the link.)
- Call for presentations: the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) will be holding its 2010 National Conference on Juvenile and Family Law in Las Vegas; now's the time to submit your ideas for presentations.
- Policymakers looking for assistance choosing cost-effective drug abuse prevention programs can now turn to a report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) for help. SAMHSA also produced a new Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) offering a 4-step process to help clinicians address suicidal thoughts and behaviors in substance abuse treatment.
- Still more unsettling news about how the economy is forcing the elimination of programs that prevent youth violence. The article focuses on Chicago, where youth killings have spiked.
- Related post: For more information about the importance of youth violence prevention programs, check out this success story from Boston, where youth violence fell by two-thirds.
- Opposed to the "over-policing" of schools? The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) has published recommendations and examples of successful alternatives to metal detectors, school police, and criminalizing student discipline. Among other recommendations is the use of restorative justice practices.
- A good companion piece to the NYCLU report might be this brief from Child Trends on why youth don't participate in "out-of-school-time" programs. Here's the especially good part: it's based on feedback from the youth themselves. (You can also check out their report on the factors that influence "disconnected" youth to reconnect with school, employment, and so on.)
- Just in time for the debate over health care reform comes this Open Society Institute study showing that addiction treatment reduces health care costs.
- Addictions and mental health services lag far behind primary health care when it comes to investments in and staffing for "health information technology," according to a recent survey. Furthermore, the stimulus money allocated to beef up health information technology investments specifically excluded addictions and mental health services systems.
Updated: February 08 2018