Welcome to the Spring 2009 Issue of "In the Loop"

In this issue

• Featured Story: MST Professionals Recognized for Outstanding Performance for Serving At-Risk Youth
• Announcements from MST Services and MST Institute
• MST Community Updates and Announcements
• New MST-related Publications and Articles

MST Professionals Recognized for Outstanding Performance for Serving At-Risk Youth

MST Services presented the first-ever Sustained Excellence Awards (nicknamed "the ESSIES") and the Whatever It Takes Awards during the 2009 International MST Conference held at the Embassy Suites and Convention Center in Charleston, South Carolina, this past March.

These Sustained Excellence Awards were presented to teams and therapists based on their ability to adhere to the MST treatment model. This award will be presented on an annual basis to teams and therapists to provide public recognition for sustained levels of performance. Selection for these awards was based on feedback from the families about their experience with MST.

The "Whatever It Takes" Awards are given on an annual basis to individuals, families, programs, or organizations that have demonstrated creative, out-of-the-box thinking, persistence and dedication to do "whatever it takes" to accomplish positive outcomes for youth and their families undergoing MST.

The award recipients are:

Sustained Excellence Awards

Therapist Awards:

Lori Yerkey	Crisis Intervention Center of Stark County	Ohio
Thomas Dinkins	KS Consultants	Pennsylvania
Dan Iachini	Hempfield Behavioral Health	Pennsylvania
Matthew Voorbach	Families and Youth Inc.	New Mexico
Murshel Lewis	Applewood Centers Inc.	Ohio
Rebecca Young	Crisis Intervention Center of Stark County	Ohio
Rachael Helms	Family Resource Center	Ohio
David Benjo	Adelphoi Village MST	Pennsylvania
Peggie Williams	Henry & Rilla White Foundation Inc.	Florida
Rhonda Baker	TeamBuilders Counseling Services Inc.	New Mexico
Pauline Draper	Henry & Rilla White Foundation Inc.	Florida
Jim McCoy	Adelphoi Village MST	Pennsylvania
Trahern LaFavor	Henderson Mental Health Center Inc.	Florida
Holly Bliss	The Buckeye Ranch	Ohio

Team Awards:

Los Angeles County MST	California
Hempfield Behavioral Health	Pennsylvania
Crisis Intervention Center of Stark County	Ohio
Jewish Adoption and Foster Care Options	Florida
Connecticut Junior Republic	Connecticut

Whatever It Takes Awards

Markishia Webb	Community Solutions Inc.	Connecticut
Angelia Watson	Community Solutions Inc.	Connecticut
Jill Hoch	Community Solutions Inc.	Connecticut
Karen Edwards	Intensive Supervision Program	Australia
MST Eindhoven Team		Netherlands
M. Williams, T. Busch, K. Kehoe and S. Alexander	Advanced Behavioral Health	Connecticut
Honorable Judge Basinski	Lorain County Juvenile Court	Ohio

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Announcements from MST Services and MST Institute

MSTI Enhanced Website2.0
A demonstration of the new MSTI Enhanced Website 2.0 (EW2) was available at the International Conference. This version will be available in June 2009. A new, enhanced version of the Program Implementation Data Report and a new Dashboard Report will be included in this version. Updated webinars and training guides will be available before the go-live date in June.

Webinars for MST professionals
Web site training is available via webinars on several topics, and these trainings will be updated in the near future to include information related to EW2 (see above). Registration is limited to 15 telephone connections and is offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Go to http://www.mstservices.com/training.php and click on "Webinar Registration" to sign up. Access to the Internet and a telephone connection are required to participate.

MSTI Follow-up Interview
The MSTI Follow-up Interview service is now available to programs that are also using the TAM-R Data Collection service. For additional information about this service, please contact Molly Brunk at molly.brunk@mstservices.com.

Web Services Order Form
A new web services order form has been posted on the MST Institute website. This update includes a revised rate of $25/family/month for TAM-R data collection for new collection contracts. Existing TAM-R data collection contracts are not affected by this rate change.

MSTI Online Survey
There were 380 responses to the MSTI online survey. Thank you so much for your input!! Responses will be used to help improve TAM-R data collection. MSTI will be following up with those individuals who noted that they would like to speak to someone about improving their data collection.

Conference Material Available Online
Karen Blasé's opening plenary materials are available via the mstservices.com web page, under Training/MST International Conference. Those interested in accessing other training materials from the International Conference should consult with their MST expert.

New Edition of MST Book
The new edition of the Guilford Press MST book has been published. The 5-Day Orientation Training materials are being reviewed to determine if revisions will be made in light of new material contained in this new edition. Please continue to use the 1998 edition of the MST Book for the 5-Day, until this process has been completed. An update on this effort will be provided in the next In the Loop.

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MST Community Updates & Announcements

River Oak was awarded the Best Practice Award by the Council of Mentally Ill Offenders in California
The Council on Mentally Ill Offenders (COMIO) has designated two projects to receive the 2009 Best Practices Award. These projects, one juvenile and one adult, are recognized for their effectiveness in measuring the successful treatment of mentally ill patients/clients to decrease the likelihood of future involvement with law enforcement and corrections and increase the individual's likelihood of effectively transitioning back into the community.

River Oak Center for Children began implementing Multisystemic Therapy (MST) in 2004, in collaboration with the Sacramento County Probation Department. This was expanded in 2007, to include Sacramento County Mental Health, Quality Group Homes, and Panacea Incorporated. The objectives of the program, which focuses for 3-5 months on youth ages 10-17, are to reduce anti-social behavior, improve family problem-solving, and enhance positive school and vocational involvement. Nearly 200 clients have been served and 400+ additional children and family members have benefited from the MST approach. From 2004 to 2008, 73% graduated, 72% of the youths were living at home at time of discharge, 84% were in school or working, 82% had no new arrests, and 81% of parents demonstrated the skills necessary to handle future problems. The approach of an effective use of outcome measures offers a strong case for measuring an individual's successful completion of the program.

Hawaii Program Director Honored
On March 13, the Hawaii Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers recognized the contributions of MST Network Partner Program Director Haaheo Mansfield, LCSW, ACSW, MSW, with a Social Worker of the Year Award for Lifetime Achievement. Haaheo has more than 25 years of combined experience in social services in Hawaii, including executive leadership, advocating for native Hawaiian families, work in educational, residential and outpatient treatment settings, and outreach with families and communities. She is highly regarded by colleagues and peers for her commitment to the field and excellence in practice. She serves as Vice President of Programs for Parents And Children Together (PACT), one of the largest social service nonprofits in the state, which includes six MST teams. Across professional settings, Haaheo is a torch-bearer, who leads by example. Uncompromising in her commitment to "doing the right thing" for the community-at-large and, in particular, for those consumers she serves, Haaheo is able to ask the same of others who work with her. Please join us in congratulating Haaheo for this distinguished accolade!

Welcome New MST Teams

Catholic Charities of Buffalo	Erie County MST JJ3	NY
Catholic Charities of New York	Erie County MST JJ2	NY
Children's Village	CV MST PSB	NY
Families and Youth Inc.	Team FYI#2	NM
Mars Home for Youth	Mars Beaver County	PA
Life Changing Solutions, LLC	Metropolitan Circles Team 1	LA
Life Changing Solutions, LLC	Life Changing Solutions Team 2	LA
Southwest Family Guindance Center + Institute	SW Family PSB Team 1	NM
Youth Villages	Greensboro4	NC
Tides Family Services	The LasSallians	RI
Touchstone Behavorial Health	PHX-PSB	AZ
Community Solutions, Inc	Region 5	GA
Community Solutions, Inc	Berks County II	PA
Community Solitions, Inc	Lycoming/Sullivan PA	PA
Community Solitions, Inc.	Pike/Wayne PA	PA
Mars Home for Youth	Venango II	PA
Savio House	NE PSB	CO
Youth Villages	Dothan2	AL

Quarterly "Whatever It Takes" Recipients
The following individuals received "Whatever It Takes" recognition this past quarter. These individuals, teams, or programs have demonstrated creative, out-of-the-box thinking, persistence and dedication to do "whatever-it-takes" to accomplish a positive MST outcome for MST youth and their families. Congratulations to the following recipients!

Jon Lund	Holbeck, Leeds, England
Lisa Reiter-Lavery	Durham, NC
Anne Dailey	Pennellville, New York
Tina Pack	Strousburg, PA
Cathy James	London, UK, England
Edie Zars	Benton Harbor, MI
Kimberly Pascucci	Buffalo, NY
Jim Hallett	Honlulu, HI
Ute Fursteneau	Weinfelden, Switzerland
Mark Anthony Wilson	Waterbury, CT

Know Someone Going the Extra Mile?
Consider nominating them for the MST "Whatever It Takes" recognition program. This program is an ongoing effort to recognize those individuals throughout the MST community who demonstrate creative, out-of-the-box thinking, persistence and dedication to do "whatever it takes" to accomplish a positive MST outcome for MST youth and their families.

Each of these nominees will receive a letter of recognition and a Certificate of Merit. In addition, each will be considered for the Annual "Whatever It Takes" Award that will be presented at the next International Conference.

Nominate Someone for Whatever It Takes

MST Jobs
Please remember to utilize the free MST jobs Web site, http://www.mstjobs.com/, as a part of your agency's staff recruitment strategy. You can post positions as well as review resumes of applicants, who are looking for MST-related opportunities and who have posted their resumes on the site.

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New Publications

The following MST-related publications are available:

• 281 Sheidow, A. J., & Henggeler, S. W. (in press). Multisystemic Therapy with Substance Using Adolescents: A Synthesis of the Research. In N. Jainchill (Ed.), Understanding and Treating Adolescent Substance Use Disorders. Kingston, NJ: Civic Research Institute.
• Schoenwald, S.K., Sheidow, A.J., & Chapman, J.E. (in press). Clinical supervision in treatment transport: Effects on adherence and outcomes. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.
• 335 Borduin, C.M., Schaeffer, C.M., & Heiblum, N. (2009). A randomized clinical trial of multisystemic therapy with juvenile sexual offenders: Effects on youth social ecology and criminal activity. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology, 77, 26-37.
• 336 Letourneau, E.J., Henggeler, S.W., Schewe, P.A., Borduin, C.M., McCart, M.R., Chapman, J.E., & Saldana, L. (2009). Multisystemic therapy for juvenile sexual offenders: 1-year results from a randomized effectiveness trial. Journal of Family Psychology, 23, 89-102.
• 337 Schoenwald, S.K., Chapman, J.E., Sheidow, A.J., & Carter, R.E. (2009). Long-term youth criminal outcomes in MST transport: The impact of therapist adherence and organizational climate and structure. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology.
• 338 Swenson, C.C., Schaeffer, C.M., Tuerk, E.H., Henggeler, S.W., Tuten, M., Panzarella, P., Lau, C., Remmele, L., Foley, T., Cannata, E., & Guillorn, A. (2009). Adapting multisystemic therapy for co-occurring child maltreatment and parental substance abuse: The building stronger families project. Emotional & Behavioral Disorders in Youth, 3-8.
• 339 McCollister, K.E., French, M.T., Sheidow, A.J., Henggeler, S.W., & Halliday-Boykins, C.A. (2009). Estimating the differential costs of criminal activity for juvenile drug court participants: Challenges and recommendations. The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, 36(1), 111-126.

All MST-related publications can be located at: www.musc.edu/psychiatry/research/fsrc/pubs.htm

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This newsletter has been developed as a communication tool to keep everyone well informed about news, events and issues that impact the greater MST community. We encourage you to explore the contents of this newsletter and provide us with your feedback. Feel free to make recommendations for what you would like to see in future issues. Suggestions can be directed to intheloop@mstservices.com.