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A new statewide program launched in New Jersey will be the first of its kind in the United States aimed at suicide prevention among police officers, the Philly Voice reported. The New Jersey Resilience Program for Law Enforcement, announced Aug. 6 by Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal, comes in response to a white paper that found officers and firefighters are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty. Last year, for example, at least 167 officers nationally died by suicide, more than the total number of line‐of‐duty deaths, the white paper found. "We cannot fully comprehend the emotional and mental stress that our law enforcement officers suffer on a daily basis," Grewal said in a statement. "We owe it to them to not only combat the stigma associated with seeking help, but also to give them the tools they need to deal with the stress and trauma they endure." Since 2016, New Jersey has recorded 37 law enforcement officer suicides, which may be lower than the actual figure as these deaths are often underreported. The program is intended to serve as an addition to existing employee assistance programs and the longstanding Cop2Cop program that provides counseling to police officers experiencing challenges. Under the new program, officers will be required to complete a two‐day training module including lectures and practice exercises. "The constant exposure to society's most difficult problems can take an emotional toll on law enforcement officers that, if not addressed, can build up over time, often with tragic consequences," said Veronica Allende, director of the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. "Our goal is to teach law enforcement officers how to recognize and manage that stress to remain mentally healthy and avoid going down a dark hole." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports that New Jersey officials are contending that some aspects of a report issued by the Association for Children of New Jersey offer an inaccurate assessment of the Partnership for Children program, the state's initiative for emotionally troubled youths. Concern regarding the finding that contractor ValueOptions screened out 47 percent of calls; Claim by officials that these calls were not calls for service.

Although New Jersey providers of mental health services are working to support community members through telehealth and some return to in‐person services, there is a dearth of licensed social workers and licensed clinical workers to meet the demands across the state. Fueling the problem are delays, lack of communication and unclear processes regarding licensure, according to the National Association of Social Workers in New Jersey (NASW‐NJ), which says the long delays are causing a mental health crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports that New Jersey is seeking input on a document outlining state officials' ideas for managed mental health services under Medicaid. Areas in which the document is different from other states, including consumer choice, partnerships, medical necessity and outcomes.

A statewide student mental wellness initiative that the administration of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is touting as the first effort of its kind nationally is not winning universal acclaim in the state. Leaders in some school districts where students have been served in a smaller‐scale program said they are worried that momentum gained from that program will be lost under the announced change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the comprehensive Medicaid waiver application submitted by New Jersey state officials to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in September 2011. The waiver application was submitted pending the approval of the transition of the state's behavioral health services under a full-risk managed behavioral healthcare organization (MBHO) for the provision of input including the development of innovative delivery systems.

The article reports on the "Learning About Healthy Living (LAHL)" manual for people with serious mental illness which was developed by the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) in Newark. It is stated that the manual has been developed to help mental health professionals treating mental health patients with nicotine addiction for it provides a special group treatment intervention approach to stem tobacco addiction.

This article discusses staff and safety challenges facing Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in New Jersey. Topics covered include media reports on the increase in reported assaults at Greystone in 2017, the comment from Robert Davison of the Mental Health Association of Essex and Morris Inc. on the number of patients and psychiatrists of Greystone in 2009 as compared with 2017, and the claim of Ellen Lovejoy of the New Jersey Department of Human Services that Greystone is not overcrowded.

This section offers news briefs as of November 2, 2015. The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation on October 15 announced new grants to support the work of promising young scientists with innovative ideas in mental health research. Eskenazi Health officials announced plans top open a brain care innovation treatment center. The New Jersey Senate voted on October 22 to override Governor Chris Christie's veto of a gun control bill.

The article reports that over 200,000 school employees in New Jersey will get new options in their health plans, according to the Associated Press.

Cites the toll-free number announced by New Jersey officials to offer counseling services to people who are still suffering emotional effects from September 11, 2001 attacks.

Reports the acquisition of ClinSearch Inc. by CNS Clinical Trials in Kenilworth, New Jersey.