Archive for » March 28th, 2012«

28 Mar 2012

Airline crew member mental health in spotlight after captain’s breakdown

A JetBlue flight made an emergency landing in Amarillo, Texas, Tuesday after the pilot had a “medical situation” and had to be restrained by passengers. NBC’s Tom Costello reports.

Two recent incidents in which airline crew members behaved alarmingly and had to be restrained by passengers have raised questions about when and how aviation workers are screened for mental health problems.

On Tuesday, JetBlue captain Clayton Osbon, 49, was locked out of the cockpit by his co-pilot after he began acting erratically on Flight 191 from New York to Las Vegas. The captain, since charged with interfering with a flight crew and now getting medical care, was upset when he couldn’t get back into the cockpit and began yelling about an unspecified threat linked to Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Osbon “became increasingly agitated,” and several passengers grabbed the pilot, “tackled him to the ground” and sat on him, passenger Tony Antolino told TODAY’s Ann Curry.

It is not yet clear if anxiety or mental health issues led to Osbon’s behavior. JetBlue said in a blog post that it will not share further details about the captain’s “private life.”

Osbon’s last medical exam was four months ago, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told msnbc.com. “He has a clean record, no incidents or accidents and the FAA has not taken any type of enforcement action against him,” the agency said in a statement.

JetBlue CEO Dave Barger called the pilot, who was suspended on Wednesday, a “consummate professional.”

JetBlue CEO Dave Barger speaks out after a JetBlue flight made an emergency landing due to a pilot’s mid-air meltdown.

Earlier this month, an American Airlines flight attendant was removed from a flight after becoming combative and talking about the airline’s bankruptcy and 9/11 on the plane’s public-address system. Officers were also told that the 43-year-old woman was bipolar and was not taking her medication at the time, according to a police report on the incident.

John Cox, an aviation safety consultant and former airline pilot, told the Associated Press that incidents in which pilots become mentally incapacitated during a flight are “pretty rare.” He said he could only recall two or three other examples in the more than 40 years he has been following commercial aviation.

While uncommon, these incidents have shown how crew member mental health is an important aspect of flight security and can be exacerbated by the high-stress environment of commercial flying.

The FAA requires that airline pilots have a first-class medical certificate, which must be renewed annually if the pilot is under 40 and every six months if the pilot is older than 40. To receive the certificate, pilots undergo a physical examination by an FAA-designated physician. A psychological assessment is not part of the evaluation, but the physician can order testing if deemed necessary. The pilots are responsible for disclosing all existing physical and psychological conditions and may have their certificate revoked if they withhold that information. 

The FAA grounds pilots who disclose that they are being treated for depression or request treatment. The pilot has to be “stable” for 12 months before returning to the cockpit.

A pilot undergoing treatment for depression is required to provide a report from a psychiatrist which details the diagnosis, course of treatment and possible side effects from medication. The pilot also has to submit to psychological testing and prepare a written statement describing his or her use of antidepressants.

The FAA can make an exception for pilots who take one of four antidepressants approved by the agency as safe to use for treating mild-to-moderate depression. In these instances, medical certificates are given on a case-by-case basis. 

Tony Antolino and Laurie Dhue, passengers aboard the JetBlue flight that made an emergency landing after the pilot had a mid-air meltdown, talk to TODAY’s Ann Curry about the bizarre incident.

Of the 120,000 U.S. commercial airline pilots, 27 have taken advantage of the anti-depressant policy and have been permitted to fly while using the approved medications, according to the FAA. The agency does not have a similar policy regarding anxiety disorders or medications.

The FAA, which has said that depression “can lead to distraction and make it difficult for a pilot to focus,” implemented the anti-depressant policy in 2010. 

“I’m encouraging pilots who are suffering from depression or using antidepressants to report their medical condition to the FAA,” said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt in a statement at the time. “We need to change the culture and remove the stigma associated with depression. Pilots should be able to get the medical treatment they need so they can safely perform their duties.”

The Air Line Pilots Association and the US Airline Pilots Association, both pilots’ unions, have yet to respond to msnbc.com’s requests for comment.

Dr. David Ballard, an expert on mental health policies in the workplace at the American Psychological Association, says the FAA’s policy is fairly unusual because it must balance airplane and passenger security and the rights of the individual employee. Still, Ballard says, requiring employees to disclose mental health disorders can lead to a chilling effect and prevent them from seeking treatment in the first place. 

When addressed, a mental health disorder can be very treatable. “You obviously don’t want someone who is going to be unable to perform their job duties safely and effectively,” Ballard said, “but just because someone has a mental health disorder, that doesn’t mean they won’t be able to do their job well.”

Unlike pilots, flight attendants do not undergo a medical examination, and airlines are not permitted to ask about mental health conditions. Flight attendants are certified by the FAA after completing a rigorous training program that emphasizes first-responder skills in emergency situations. Should a flight attendant seek treatment for a mental health condition, his or her FAA certification will not be endangered.

Corey Caldwell, a spokesperson for the Association of Flight Attendants, a union with nearly 60,000 members, says that training and a probationary period provide many opportunities to identify crew members who might have debilitating mental health conditions that could be triggered by tense situations. 

“I think it’s important to remember that the American Airlines flight attendant was a 23-year-veteran,” said Caldwell. “Over two decades she’d been performing that [first responder] role. These two high-profile examples … are not necessarily systemic of the population at large, but they do highlight extremely stressful situations [crew members] undergo on a daily basis.”

Caldwell says that union members have increasingly reported in the past years that the stress of their profession is “escalating.” Between the post-9/11 focus on security threats, the strain of airline bankruptcies and labor negotiations, and the fatigue that results from tighter schedules, the job now takes a greater emotional toll than it once did.

AFA offers members access to an employee assistance program, which provides mental health resources on request. Members can also report concerns they may have over the behavior or well-being of fellow attendants and, if needed, the AFA will get that individual help without involving airline management.

JetBlue and American Airlines crew members do not belong to the AFA, though JetBlue said on Wednesday that it does offer an employee assistance program, and that, “crew members are also able, and expected, to call a safety time-out should they need it, and the company will support them 100 percent.”

“I don’t think these instances will stigmatize the profession,” said Caldwell. “They’ll help shed light on the seriousness and stressfulness of this job on a daily basis.”

The Associated Press and NBC 5 contributed to this report.

Related stories:

Rebecca Ruiz is a senior editor at msnbc.com and a Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellow.


Similar news:
Category: Mental Health  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

Court won’t reconsider bone marrow payments ruling

A federal appeals court says it won’t reconsider a ruling that allows bone marrow donors to be paid for their donations like blood donors.

In December, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a decades-old government practice that made such compensation a crime.

The court said a technological breakthrough makes the process of donating bone marrow nearly identical to giving blood plasma.

On Tuesday, the court declined the Obama administration’s request to reconsider the ruling. The administration now has 90 days to petition the U.S. Supreme Court.

Department of Justice spokesman Charles Miller says the administration is reviewing its options.

The nonprofit patient advocacy group Institute for Justice called the original ruling a “major national shift in bone marrow donation policy” and said payments will encourage more donations.


Similar news:
Category: Donations  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

Settlement ends 5-year fight in NY over Brooke Astor’s estate; millions freed …

Westchester County Surrogate Judge Anthony Scarpino signed the agreement Wednesday afternoon. State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced the details.

Astor died in 2007 at the age of 105.

Schneiderman said the settlement benefits several institutions, principally the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the New York Public Library and New York City’s public schools.

He said it cuts by more than half — to $14.5 million — the amount going to Astor’s son, Anthony Marshall.

Marshall and the charities had disagreed on which of several wills and revisions expressed Astor’s true intent. In the midst of the estate battle, in 2009, he was convicted in Manhattan of taking advantage of his mother’s dementia, partly by engineering changes to her will. He has appealed.

That case shocked New York, where Astor was a popular woman-about-town well into her 90s.

Other charities benefiting from the settlement include Central Park and Prospect Park in New York, the Bronx Zoo, Historic Hudson Valley, Carnegie Hall, New York University, Rockefeller University, the Pierpont Morgan Library, the city’s Animal Medical Center and Trinity Episcopal Church.

The attorney general’s office stepped into the case to protect the charities, and Schneiderman said he was happy that the agreement “honors Mrs. Astor’s final wishes and benefits New York’s landmark educational and cultural institutions.”

Anthony Marx, president of the Public Library, said the settlement means Astor’s legacy “can continue as she intended.” Thomas Campbell, director and CEO of the Met, also said Astor’s intentions had been honored.

Waddell Stillman, president of Historic Hudson Valley, called the settlement “amazing” and said it “avoids costly litigation that would have depleted Mrs. Astor’s estate.”

Scarpino said in 2007, at a court session involving 15 lawyers, that he feared the attorneys “will be happy to litigate this matter to the very end of this stream of money that’s there.”

That brought comparisons to Dickens’ novel “Bleak House,” in which a large inheritance led to a case that persisted for generations. By the time it was settled, almost nothing was left for the descendants.

In the Astor case, three descendants who were minors when the case began have turned 18 in the meanwhile. Anthony Marshall’s son, Philip, who opposed his father in court, is another beneficiary.

A call to Anthony Marshall’s lawyer, Ken Warner, was not immediately returned.

The settlement does not detail the current size of the estate, but in 2007 it was estimated at $198 million. It also does not specify how much each party is receiving, but Schneiderman said it establishes a $30 million Brooke Astor Fund for New York City education.

Under the 2002 will that forms the basis for the settlement, the Met and the Public Library were to get 25 percent each of the amount going to charity.

Codicils that would have given millions more to Anthony Marshall at the expense of Astor’s charities were ignored. Marshall’s share is reduced by $12.3 million, which he must repay the estate because of his criminal conviction.

Astor donated millions to the arts and the poor after the 1959 death of her husband, Vincent Astor, heir to a fortune generated in real estate and the fur trade by his great-great-grandfather, John Jacob Astor.

While Brooke Astor’s estate was substantial, it was dwarfed by some others. Leona Helmsley, the real estate queen who died the same year, left more than $4 billion to charity.

Astor’s estate may soon be worth a little more, however. Some of her designer jewelry, furniture and decorative arts are being auctioned in September at Sotheby’s. Her Westchester estate was recently sold for $6.4 million.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


Similar news:
Category: Charities  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

Airline crew member mental health in spotlight after captain's breakdown

A JetBlue flight made an emergency landing in Amarillo, Texas, Tuesday after the pilot had a “medical situation” and had to be restrained by passengers. NBC’s Tom Costello reports.

Two recent incidents in which airline crew members behaved alarmingly and had to be restrained by passengers have raised questions about when and how aviation workers are screened for mental health problems.

On Tuesday, JetBlue captain Clayton Osbon, 49, was locked out of the cockpit by his co-pilot after he began acting erratically on Flight 191 from New York to Las Vegas. The captain, since charged with interfering with a flight crew and now getting medical care, was upset when he couldn’t get back into the cockpit and began yelling about an unspecified threat linked to Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Osbon “became increasingly agitated,” and several passengers grabbed the pilot, “tackled him to the ground” and sat on him, passenger Tony Antolino told TODAY’s Ann Curry.

It is not yet clear if anxiety or mental health issues led to Osbon’s behavior. JetBlue said in a blog post that it will not share further details about the captain’s “private life.”

Osbon’s last medical exam was four months ago, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told msnbc.com. “He has a clean record, no incidents or accidents and the FAA has not taken any type of enforcement action against him,” the agency said in a statement.

JetBlue CEO Dave Barger called the pilot, who was suspended on Wednesday, a “consummate professional.”

JetBlue CEO Dave Barger speaks out after a JetBlue flight made an emergency landing due to a pilot’s mid-air meltdown.

Earlier this month, an American Airlines flight attendant was removed from a flight after becoming combative and talking about the airline’s bankruptcy and 9/11 on the plane’s public-address system. Officers were also told that the 43-year-old woman was bipolar and was not taking her medication at the time, according to a police report on the incident.

John Cox, an aviation safety consultant and former airline pilot, told the Associated Press that incidents in which pilots become mentally incapacitated during a flight are “pretty rare.” He said he could only recall two or three other examples in the more than 40 years he has been following commercial aviation.

While uncommon, these incidents have shown how crew member mental health is an important aspect of flight security and can be exacerbated by the high-stress environment of commercial flying.

The FAA requires that airline pilots have a first-class medical certificate, which must be renewed annually if the pilot is under 40 and every six months if the pilot is older than 40. To receive the certificate, pilots undergo a physical examination by an FAA-designated physician. A psychological assessment is not part of the evaluation, but the physician can order testing if deemed necessary. The pilots are responsible for disclosing all existing physical and psychological conditions and may have their certificate revoked if they withhold that information. 

The FAA grounds pilots who disclose that they are being treated for depression or request treatment. The pilot has to be “stable” for 12 months before returning to the cockpit.

A pilot undergoing treatment for depression is required to provide a report from a psychiatrist which details the diagnosis, course of treatment and possible side effects from medication. The pilot also has to submit to psychological testing and prepare a written statement describing his or her use of antidepressants.

The FAA can make an exception for pilots who take one of four antidepressants approved by the agency as safe to use for treating mild-to-moderate depression. In these instances, medical certificates are given on a case-by-case basis. 

Tony Antolino and Laurie Dhue, passengers aboard the JetBlue flight that made an emergency landing after the pilot had a mid-air meltdown, talk to TODAY’s Ann Curry about the bizarre incident.

Of the 120,000 U.S. commercial airline pilots, 27 have taken advantage of the anti-depressant policy and have been permitted to fly while using the approved medications, according to the FAA. The agency does not have a similar policy regarding anxiety disorders or medications.

The FAA, which has said that depression “can lead to distraction and make it difficult for a pilot to focus,” implemented the anti-depressant policy in 2010. 

“I’m encouraging pilots who are suffering from depression or using antidepressants to report their medical condition to the FAA,” said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt in a statement at the time. “We need to change the culture and remove the stigma associated with depression. Pilots should be able to get the medical treatment they need so they can safely perform their duties.”

The Air Line Pilots Association and the US Airline Pilots Association, both pilots’ unions, have yet to respond to msnbc.com’s requests for comment.

Dr. David Ballard, an expert on mental health policies in the workplace at the American Psychological Association, says the FAA’s policy is fairly unusual because it must balance airplane and passenger security and the rights of the individual employee. Still, Ballard says, requiring employees to disclose mental health disorders can lead to a chilling effect and prevent them from seeking treatment in the first place. 

When addressed, a mental health disorder can be very treatable. “You obviously don’t want someone who is going to be unable to perform their job duties safely and effectively,” Ballard said, “but just because someone has a mental health disorder, that doesn’t mean they won’t be able to do their job well.”

Unlike pilots, flight attendants do not undergo a medical examination, and airlines are not permitted to ask about mental health conditions. Flight attendants are certified by the FAA after completing a rigorous training program that emphasizes first-responder skills in emergency situations. Should a flight attendant seek treatment for a mental health condition, his or her FAA certification will not be endangered.

Corey Caldwell, a spokesperson for the Association of Flight Attendants, a union with nearly 60,000 members, says that training and a probationary period provide many opportunities to identify crew members who might have debilitating mental health conditions that could be triggered by tense situations. 

“I think it’s important to remember that the American Airlines flight attendant was a 23-year-veteran,” said Caldwell. “Over two decades she’d been performing that [first responder] role. These two high-profile examples … are not necessarily systemic of the population at large, but they do highlight extremely stressful situations [crew members] undergo on a daily basis.”

Caldwell says that union members have increasingly reported in the past years that the stress of their profession is “escalating.” Between the post-9/11 focus on security threats, the strain of airline bankruptcies and labor negotiations, and the fatigue that results from tighter schedules, the job now takes a greater emotional toll than it once did.

AFA offers members access to an employee assistance program, which provides mental health resources on request. Members can also report concerns they may have over the behavior or well-being of fellow attendants and, if needed, the AFA will get that individual help without involving airline management.

JetBlue and American Airlines crew members do not belong to the AFA, though JetBlue said on Wednesday that it does offer an employee assistance program, and that, “crew members are also able, and expected, to call a safety time-out should they need it, and the company will support them 100 percent.”

“I don’t think these instances will stigmatize the profession,” said Caldwell. “They’ll help shed light on the seriousness and stressfulness of this job on a daily basis.”

The Associated Press and NBC 5 contributed to this report.

Related stories:

Rebecca Ruiz is a senior editor at msnbc.com and a Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellow.


Similar news:
Category: About Mental Health  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

Harming our future: Alabama’s risk is great if Affordable Care Act is struck down

Today is the third and final day that the Supreme Court will hear arguments over the constitutionality of the 2010 Affordable Care Act. Alabama is among the 26 states suing to keep the law from taking effect.

That means Alabama is spending money to take away the promise of health insurance for 16 percent of its residents who, according to research by the Kaiser Family Foundation, lack health insurance. Further, it means Alabama, a state government which just this month ordered another round of budget cuts, is spending scarce resources to take away health insurance from its own people.

In other words, state crime labs close, and Alabama finds money to fight a federal law.

The state’s courts are reducing staff and shrinking the number of days for trials, and Alabama finds money to fight a federal law.

State mental-health services are facing the ax, and Alabama finds money to fight a federal law.

Public schools are being asked to do more with less, and Alabama finds money to fight a federal law.

We could go on, but the point is made. Montgomery has its priorities, and apparently removing the promise of health insurance to those currently uninsured is at or near the top of the list.

Let’s imagine then what happens if Alabama and the other plaintiffs are successful.

The Affordable Care Act’s design was to better distribute the risk, which is the point of insurance. Otherwise, those with insurance eventually pick up the tab for the uninsured when they get sick and need treatment, usually in an inefficient manner where the costs are triple or more.

Getting to this better place requires a health-insurance mandate, a notion originally promoted in this country by a conservative think-tank, the Heritage Foundation. Twenty years or so ago, the individual mandate was all the rage for conservative politicians who wanted to stop the freeloaders who were a drag on the system.

Six years ago, a Republican governor from Massachusetts pushed through health-care reform that included the mandate. Today, Mitt Romney tries to keep as much distance as he can between himself and his policy, which, by the way, did insure more Bay State residents without substantially driving up costs.

That is Massachusetts, a state with a reputation for liberal politics and schools that out-perform any other state in the nation. Alabama has a reputation for conservative politics and schools that lag behind the rest of the United States. Alabama’s history is one where the federal government has historically been forced to swoop in to take care of problems Montgomery wouldn’t face.

As in times past, Alabama is pushing back, and harming the future of its own residents in the process.

So, imagine the Supreme Court strikes down the Affordable Care Act as unconstitutional. What comes next for the uninsured? For Alabama, the answer is easy: Nothing.


Similar news:
Category: Mental Health  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

Donated books find fresh readers with a little help from Friends

Friends of Gig Harbor Library volunteers Pat and John West look over some recent book donations while sorting through to categorize the books. They look at the overall quality to determine if it can be sold or sent for recycling.

Ric Hallock | Gig Harbor Life

Friends of Gig Harbor Library volunteers Pat and John West look over some recent book donations while sorting through to categorize the books. They look at the overall quality to determine if it can be sold or sent for recycling.


Kindles may be on fire and ebooks may seem to be the wave of the future in the publishing industry, but just ask anyone associated with the Friends of Gig Harbor Library and they will confirm that good old-fashioned books are still quite popular with readers on the Peninsula.

At prices of typically $1 (or less) per book and magazines going from .25 to .50 cents, Friends raised more than $25,000 for the local library branch last year. That’s quite an accomplishment, considering the non-profit organization only uses three kiosks in the library to sell its donated books.

Like the retail market, the world of donated books has its highs and lows — points when they are flush with books and other times when they are low on donations.

“Usually in the fall we get lots and lots of books. We sell a lot of books in the winter,” said Pat West, a longtime member of the Friends of Gig Harbor Library. “We’re at a low point right now.”

The two aisles of shelf space the library provides the group in the back rooms of the library attest to their current need. Sometimes brimming full of volumes, the shelves now are mostly bare.

Particularly conspicuous by its absence is the non-fiction, a preferred category with local readers. “In Gig Harbor, science fiction is not popular,” West said. In fact, Harborites are rather particular — not just about the genres — but also about a book’s physical appeal.

“A hardcover that’s missing its dust jacket is hard to sell,” West admits. Pat’s husband, John, also a volunteer with Friends, said they sometimes sell an entire encyclopedia set because someone wants it for its decorative appeal.

“When we get old books with nice bindings, those sell as decorations,” he said.

Some buyers even come in perusing the Friends shelves, looking for bargains they can resell for a profit.

“One guy used his handheld device to plug in the ISBN of the various books, to see what was selling,” John West said.

Books will sit on the shelves for a few weeks and those that don’t get any movement, the Friends pull, moving them off to wholesalers, selling them online and — as a last resort — shipping them off to be recycled.

Some books cross their shelves more than once, as people re-donate after reading. Friends can track when books come through a second time because they mark the books when categorizing them.

Funds raised by Friends are donated to the library through the purchase of items the library otherwise couldn’t afford on its limited budget.

“We provide some equipment (bookshelves, carts, chairs) and some building improvements,” Pat West said.

A big investment provided by Friends is the funding for many of the children programs and all of the adult programs at the library, from reading times to art classes and flower arranging to handwriting analysis. They also fund a Christmas and opera program.

“Basically, whatever the library asks us to provide, we provide,” Pat West said.

“They are a wonderful group,” said Kathleen Wolf, Librarian at Gig Harbor for the past two years, the second busiest branch in the Pierce County Library System behind South Hill. “They’ve spent money on the collections, bought us a new paperback rack, bought computer tables and chairs. They even bought a really nice staff chair.”

Wolf added the group purchased a $5,000 disc cleaner a couple of years back — making the GH branch the only library in the countywide system that can clean CDs and DVDs so patrons don’t have to wait for discs to get sent away for cleaning before being checked out.

Funding for all of the organization’s activities is raised through book sales and all the books sold by the group come in as donations by local residents.

“If you have books, we’d love to have them,” Pat West said. Donations can be brought to the library during regular hours either at the back door (ring the bell) or bring the donations into the library.

“We would be in pretty sorry shape without the Friends,” Wolf said. “They supplement what we do. We love our Friends.”

Book donations sometimes hold surprises

Book donations to the Friends of Gig Harbor Library come in all shapes, sizes and conditions. The volunteers sort through the titles with an eye for knowing what will fly off the shelf and what will gather dust, and sort accordingly.

They never know when something of high value will walk in the door.

John West, a longtime volunteer with the organization, said items one might think would fetch a high price aren’t really wanted at all.

“The other day we had the concise Oxford English Dictionary, two volumes, come in — complete with a magnifying glass. It looks like a $100 set, we got $10,” he said. Another time they received a brand new copy of the complete Oxford English Dictionary — all 25 volumes. The only taker was another library.

One day — about 15 years ago — amid a box of donated books, a handwritten inscription in German was found inside one book, signed by Albert Einstein.

“Fortunately, our library staff is very knowledgeable, and they remembered who brought the donation in,” said Pat West, John’s wife and also a volunteers with Friends. “We were able to call them and ask if they meant to donate that book.” It was returned to the donor. Pat said the estimated value of that book was about $28,000.

Mostly what they find are old photographs, cards and handwritten notes used as bookmarks.

John West keeps an eye out for books by Beatrix Potter, an English author best known for her work, “The Tale of Peter Rabbit.” She wasn’t popular at the time of her writing, but her early edition books are highly sought after by collectors today.

Technical books also prove popular, such as manuals on looms or tying fishing flies.

“A U.S. Navy publication, a technical book on submarines, sold for $80 online,” John said.


Similar news:
Category: Donations  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

BTIG Expands List of Charities to Participate in 10th Annual Commissions for …

NEW YORK, March 28, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ –
BTIG LLC, a global financial services firm specializing in institutional trading and related brokerage services, will hold its 10th Commissions for Charity Day on April 18, 2012.

The international Commissions for Charity Day has raised more than $17 million from equity, fixed income and derivative trading commission profits over the past decade in support of various nonprofit organizations. In the past nine years over 300 different children’s charities have benefitted. The BTIG event is unique in that it is a client driven event. BTIG clients nominate charities and non profits for donation consideration. BTIG encourages clients to select child focused organizations.

This year’s annual celebrity-filled event will support dozens of organizations that deal with important children’s issues. A list of past recipients can be viewed here- Charity Recipients.

Kelly Ripa, Matt Dillon, David Diehl, Miss USA Alyssa Campanella, Joe Namath, Eli Manning, Tom Coughlin, Justin Tuck, Rex Ryan, John McEnroe, Joe Girardi, Michael J. Fox, Reggie Jackson, Nick Swisher, Mark Teixeira, Jorge Posada, Allan Houston, Bode Miller and Jim Boeheim are now among the celebrities who will be attending this year’s Commissions for Charity Day in BTIG’s offices around the country in support of the event.

The first BTIG Commissions for Children’s Charity Day was held in 2003 and raised funds for three charities. The BTIG Commissions for Charity Day is now a worldwide event, with all BTIG branches and affiliates participating.

“We are thrilled that so many of the charities we have helped over the years have again been nominated for the tenth anniversary of our event,” said Scott Kovalik, Co-Founder of BTIG. “Our charity day has become a widely anticipated occasion for our clients, our employees and our celebrity traders alike. We look forward to making another record donation this year.”

About BTIG

BTIG LLC is a premier institutional brokerage and fund services company. BTIG continues to build its global franchise around a broad and experienced group of professionals who are leaders and experts in their respective fields. Founded in 2002, BTIG, including through its affiliates, employs nearly 400 professionals in five different countries. BTIG serves customers from all over the world and offers services in 11 areas: Equity Trading, Equity Derivatives, Futures Trading, Convertible Securities, Prime Brokerage, Outsource Trading, Fixed Income, Direct Market Access, Capital Markets, Equity Research and Corporate Access.

BTIG has nine domestic offices: New York, San Francisco, Dallas, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Greenwich, Red Bank and Orinda. The firm also has four overseas affiliates: London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney.

BTIG LLC is a member of FINRA and SIPC

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Caroline Harris at 212.279.3115, ext. 222, charris@cjpcom.comEmily Sackett at 212.279.3115, ext 117, esackett@cjpcom.com Jennifer Mermel at 212.593.7972, jmermel@btig.com

SOURCE BTIG LLC

Copyright (C) 2012 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

Comtex


Similar news:
Category: Charities  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

NZ-born Pacific youth 'vulnerable' to mental health risk

Young Pacific people born in New Zealand are more vulnerable to
mental health problems than those who migrate here, a mental health
specialist says.

While youth suicide is a major problem in New Zealand generally,
young Pacific people who grow up here are even more likely to have
depression or make suicide attempts, Dr Siale Foliake, Counties
Manukau DHB clinical director for Pacific Mental Health, said
today.

“If you look closely at any society, there are forces at work
that either make us more vulnerable to mental health problems or
they make us more resilient,” Foliake told TV ONE’s Breakfast.

Story continues below…

“There’s something about growing up in an urban context in New
Zealand, perhaps away from our connections back home, that make our
young people more vulnerable.”

Foliake’s comments come ahead of an Auckland symposium next week
which will focus on mental health, addiction and disability issues
within New Zealand’s Pacific community.

The rates of post-natal depression among Pacific women are
22-24%, compared with 12-14% in other cultures, and this may be
having a flow-on effect, Foliake said.

“It may not show itself until the teenage years but it certainly
has an impact on the development of the growing child,” he
said.

What is the solution?

The high suicide risk for young Pacific people has prompted a
network of Pasifika psychologists, graduates and psychology
students, called Pasifikology, to host next week’s conference.

Dr Monique Faleafa, national manager of Le Va and a member of
Pasifikology, said Pacific people in New Zealand must be part of
the solution if suicide statistics are to drop.

“The New Zealand suicide prevention strategy clearly identifies
that suicide prevention strategies aimed at Pacific peoples need to
be tailored for those peoples, and mindful of specific cultural
contexts and beliefs,” Faleafa said.

“It makes no sense to develop solutions which are not based in a
cultural context.”

Foliake said many mental health services for Pacific people are
funded to pick up the problems once they have occurred.

Pacific youth struggle to find their identity in New Zealand and
more effort needs to be put into helping them do so, he said.

“There really has to be a shift in the way that the health
system works in terms of doing more preventative work and putting
funding into earlier stages of a child’s life.”

  • Email this article
  • Print this article
  • Text size
    +
    -
  • more…

Latest NZ News Video



  • ONE News Minute 6pm update: Mar 28 (1:12) 

  • Terence O'Brien (Source: TVNZ News at 8)
    Minister determined to change Mfat culture – expert (5:58) 

  • The catwalk at Dunedin Fasion Week (Source: ONE News)
    Dunedin Fashion Week underway (1:40) 

Similar news:
Category: About Mental Health  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

Magistrate refuses Newton mental health bid

Updated March 28, 2012 16:34:16


Actor Matthew Newton leaves the Downing Centre Court

Matthew Newton’s lawyer says the actor was mentally ill at the time of the alleged offence.

Matthew Newton’s lawyer has failed in a bid to have the actor’s assault case dealt with under the Mental Health Act.

Newton, 35, is charged with punching taxi driver Mohsen Khayami, 66, in the left side of the neck while he was seated in his taxi at Crows Nest in northern Sydney on December 4.

Newton, the son of show business couple Bert and Patti Newton, is also charged with punching Mr Khayami twice in the region of his head.

His lawyer, Chris Murphy, has told a Sydney court that Newton was mentally ill at the time of the alleged offence.

He asked for the matter to be dealt with under section 32 of the Mental Health Act, which imposes a treatment plan.

But Magistrate Ellen Skinner has refused and the case will return to court next month.

Mr Murphy told the court Newton, who is in the United States, was suffering from bipolar and obsessive compulsive disorder at the time of the alleged incident.

He asked the magistrate to allow Newton to remain in America, where he said arrangements had been made to place the actor under the care of an experienced nurse.

He asked Ms Skinner to “fulfil the hopes” of section 32 and divert Newton from the criminal system.

Under this section, charges can be dismissed, either entirely or with conditions, including undergoing treatment.

Police prosecutor Rick Mansley opposed the application, saying “there’s no surety in this court (Newton) is going to get the treatment he needs”.

“My friend is saying leave him over in America. Let him do his own thing,” Mr Mansley said.

“We don’t even know what that is.”

Ms Skinner said she was not satisfied it was in the public interest to deal with Newton under the Mental Health Act and adjourned the matter for hearing at Downing Centre Local Court on April 10.

Mr Murphy said he intended to appeal the decision.

AAP

Tags:

courts-and-trials,
crime,
assault,
law-crime-and-justice,
actor,
crows-nest-2065,
nsw,
australia,
united-states

First posted March 28, 2012 16:34:16


Similar news:
Category: Mental Health  Tags: ,  Comments off
28 Mar 2012

Magistrate refuses Newton mental health bid

Updated March 28, 2012 16:34:16


Actor Matthew Newton leaves the Downing Centre Court

Matthew Newton’s lawyer says the actor was mentally ill at the time of the alleged offence.

Matthew Newton’s lawyer has failed in a bid to have the actor’s assault case dealt with under the Mental Health Act.

Newton, 35, is charged with punching taxi driver Mohsen Khayami, 66, in the left side of the neck while he was seated in his taxi at Crows Nest in northern Sydney on December 4.

Newton, the son of show business couple Bert and Patti Newton, is also charged with punching Mr Khayami twice in the region of his head.

His lawyer, Chris Murphy, has told a Sydney court that Newton was mentally ill at the time of the alleged offence.

He asked for the matter to be dealt with under section 32 of the Mental Health Act, which imposes a treatment plan.

But Magistrate Ellen Skinner has refused and the case will return to court next month.

Mr Murphy told the court Newton, who is in the United States, was suffering from bipolar and obsessive compulsive disorder at the time of the alleged incident.

He asked the magistrate to allow Newton to remain in America, where he said arrangements had been made to place the actor under the care of an experienced nurse.

He asked Ms Skinner to “fulfil the hopes” of section 32 and divert Newton from the criminal system.

Under this section, charges can be dismissed, either entirely or with conditions, including undergoing treatment.

Police prosecutor Rick Mansley opposed the application, saying “there’s no surety in this court (Newton) is going to get the treatment he needs”.

“My friend is saying leave him over in America. Let him do his own thing,” Mr Mansley said.

“We don’t even know what that is.”

Ms Skinner said she was not satisfied it was in the public interest to deal with Newton under the Mental Health Act and adjourned the matter for hearing at Downing Centre Local Court on April 10.

Mr Murphy said he intended to appeal the decision.

AAP

Tags:

courts-and-trials,
crime,
assault,
law-crime-and-justice,
actor,
crows-nest-2065,
nsw,
australia,
united-states

First posted March 28, 2012 16:34:16


Similar news:
Category: Mental Health  Tags: ,  Comments off
« Previous Entries
  • RSS
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Twitter