Support and Treatment Groups (see below)*
A peer-run semi-monthly support group for hoarders and clutterers is held by MHA-SF. Stay tuned for more information about our upcoming treatment group coming soon.

ICHC Training Institute(see below)**
MHA-SF holds trainings for services providers who work with those who compulsive hoard through the ICHC Training Institute.

Public Policy and Advocacy
MHA-SF coordinates efforts to reduce the eviction of people who compulsively hoard through the San Francisco Task Force on Compulsive Hoarding.

Annual Conference
A conference on compulsive hoarding and cluttering is held annually by MHA-SF.

Educational Resources
MHA-SF also provides other educational resources on compulsive hoarding and cluttering, including brochures, books, DVDs of our annual conferences and keynote presentations, and other materials.

Information and Referrals
MHA-SF offers information and referrals for compulsive hoarding.

Consulting
MHA-SF offers on-site or telephone fee-for-service consulting to other non-profits and local governments on how to set up hoarding programs and bring stakeholders together to reduce eviction and homelessness due to compulsive hoarding. For more information about MHA-SF consulting services call Belinda Lyons at 415-421-1882.

SF Hoarding Task Force (see below)***

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*

Support Group for People Who Compulsively Hoard and Clutter-Flyer

Compulsive hoarding and cluttering is the acquisition and failure to discard a large number of possessions, appearing to be useless or of limited value, in an attempt to decrease stress and anxiety. This serious and prevalent problem can lead to eviction and homelessness. It is often a feature of several psychiatric disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention deficit disorder, and major depression, and can be cause or aggravated by problems associated with increasing age or physical disabilities.

We offer support groups for people suffering from compulsive hoarding and cluttering twice a month, at 6:00pm on the second Monday and fourth Wednesday of each month, at MHA-SF.

 

**

ICHC Training Institute

MHA-SF holds trainings for housing providers, In-Home Supportive Services workers, case managers and other professionals who work with those who compulsively hoard through the development of a Hoarding and Cluttering Training Institute. The Training Institute provides half day and day-long trainings for specialized professions on compulsive hoarding. Trainings for professionals will provide Continuing Education Units (CEUs). All training participants receive an MHA-SF Certificate of Completion. Trainings are provided by MHA-SF staff, Michael A. Tompkins Ph.D. of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy and other local experts affiliated with MHA-SF.

Trainings focus on harm-reduction rather than treatment, per se. Harm reduction assumes that it is not necessary to stop all compulsive acquiring, or to clear homes completely in order to stop harm, and proposes that the goal of stopping all acquiring or removing all clutter is unrealistic. Harm reduction emphasizes improving the safety, health and comfort of persons who hoard, while also improving relationships between the person who hoards and his or her family members or caregivers.

 

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San Francisco Task Force on Compulsive Hoarding

The San Francisco Task Force on Compulsive Hoarding launched in the summer of 2007, convening representatives from major city departments, non-profit housing and service providers, and others to strategize on how to facilitate collaboration among service systems that is needed to implement multi-disciplinary strategies on compulsive hoarding. Task Force Members represent various backgrounds and organizations, including landlords (non-profit landlords, San Francisco Apartment Association), city departments (including DAAS, CBHS, City Attorney’s Office, Mayor’s Office on Disability), legal, mental health, and others. Task Force members will give presentations to the group on their area of expertise (e.g. indicators for unsafe conditions, guidelines for working with people who hoard, and who to contact for help). The Task Force will coordinate its efforts with the work of two groups that are currently meeting: a group of City employees that meets to discuss specific hoarding cases and the Mental Health Association of San Francisco’s (MHA-SF) annual hoarding conference planning committee. The Task Force is co-chaired by the Mental Health Association of San Francisco and the City and County of San Francisco Department of Aging and Adults Services.

Task Force Goals:

• Identify gaps and barriers in service
• Assess current services and needs
• Identify best practices to improve coordination of services and eviction prevention to reduce eviction and improve quality of life for compulsive hoarders
• Raise awareness among the public and policy makers
• Facilitate information exchange among various service providers so as to improve service linkages and coordination
  
• Make policy recommendations
• Conduct PR campaign about compulsive hoarding issues
• Create and present final report in 2009

Objectives:
Identify what is needed to reduce evictions and improve the quality of life for compulsive hoarders in San Francisco and facilitate information exchange among various service providers so as to improve service linkages and coordination. Develop a mechanism for continually coordinating available services, identifying ways to use existing resources to prevent eviction for compulsive hoarders, and identifying gaps in services and needs.

Outcome:
Improved coordination of services among those providing services to compulsive hoarders, and significant reduction of gaps and barriers to services.

Evaluation:
Progress toward goals will be measured by Task Force membership, attendance, presentations made at meetings and evaluation survey reports completed by Task Force members.

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Posted on Sunday, December 23, 2007 @ 15:41:04 ICT by Donna