Ignite Pongo Training: Spring 2024
2024-06-29 10:00 - 15:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Virtual
On Saturday June 29th, Pongo Poetry Project will host the spring edition of its Ignite Pongo training series. Through Ignite Pongo, attendees will learn and practice Pongo techniques for facilitating powerful personal poetry that inspires healing, growth, and community.
In this immersive training, attendees will hone their skills as a Poetry Mentor, learn how to remove barriers to self-expression, and encourage honesty from survivors of difficult life experiences. Register here to attend Ignite Pongo, and gain the knowledge and skills you need to create therapeutic poetry programming based on their trauma-informed approach.

2024 NAMI WA State Conference
2024-09-28 - 2024-09-29 | Yakima Convention Center, 10 North 8th Street , Yakima, WA, 98901, United States
The 2024 NAMI WA State Conference will be held at the Yakima Convention Center and will be starting mid day September 28th through mid day September 29th.

Conference Agenda
Highlights
· Welcome Keynote Speaker: Congressman Adam Smith – Author of Lost & Broken: My Journey Back from Chronic Pain and Crippling Anxiety
· 45 Year Anniversary Dinner & Costume Dance – theme 1979, the year our founding!

Workshops
· Sparking the Parent/Child Conversation About Mental Health – led by a teen and a parent
· Age of Consent: What it Means for Families
· Eliminating Stigma Through Education: The Mental Health Instruction Library
· CREATING SAFE HAVENS AT WORK: THE ROLE OF MANAGERS AND EMPLOYERS IN PROMOTING RECOVERY-FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENTS
· Peer Support for 55+
· From Parity to Patient Protections: How State Insurance Laws Can Improve Access to Care
· Office of Behavioral Health Advocacy: Who we are and how we support our community
· Occupational Therapy: A New Option for Behavioral Health
· Shining Light into Dark Places: The healing power of TMS
· Culture if Prevention, Prevention is Culture – Presented by the Yakama Nation

Plenary Sessions
· Intersection of Mental Health, Homelessness, and the Criminal Justice System
· The Seattle Times: Lost Patients of Northern State Hospital
· 2024 Legislative Roundup and 2025 Vision

MORE INFORMATION HERE

Ignite Pongo Training: Autumn 2024
2024-11-02 10:00 - 15:30
On Saturday November 2nd, Pongo Poetry Project will host the autumn edition of its Ignite Pongo training series. Through Ignite Pongo, attendees will learn and practice Pongo techniques for facilitating powerful personal poetry that inspires healing, growth, and community.
In this immersive training, attendees will hone their skills as a Poetry Mentor, learn how to remove barriers to self-expression, and encourage honesty from survivors of difficult life experiences. Register here to attend Ignite Pongo, and gain the knowledge and skills you need to create therapeutic poetry programming based on their trauma-informed approach.

Get Certified in the Pongo Method
2025-03-31
After three decades of leading effective and healing youth poetry programming in the Seattle area, Pongo is ready to share its tried-and-true techniques with educators, clinicians, and community leaders from across the country. Pongo’s certification program will empower individuals with the tools and support to create new poetry writing projects using its proven, trauma-informed poetry writing methodology. As a result, Pongo will create a national network of Pongo-inspired poetry writing projects, supporting youth who have experienced trauma across the country.
Contact: info@pongopoetryproject.org

Pongo Poetry Project Background
Pongo Poetry Project is a Seattle-based nonprofit that uses personal poetry to facilitate healing among youth coping with devastating traumas. Our mission is to engage youth in writing poetry to inspire healing and growth. At the heart of our program is the Pongo Method, an evidence-based, trauma-informed technique for teaching poetry, created in collaboration with child psychiatrists, expressive writing therapists, and academics. Pongo’s approach offers youth a safe, gratifying way to express feelings about some of the worst experiences imaginable, including abuse, neglect, and exposure to violence.

2025 Washington Behavioral Healthcare Conference
2025-06-11 - 2025-06-13 | Three Rivers Convention Center, 7016 W Grandridge Blvd, Kennewick, WA, 99336, United States
We look forward to providing an opportunity for the behavioral health community to come together, to share best practices about life-saving treatment and supports, and to feel inspired about being the helpers. Although our state and nation face new uncertainties, the need for behavioral health services and resiliency is higher than ever. Our focus remains on the vital importance of expanding access to behavioral health care, including community-based treatment and peer support services. We must continue to address the effects of structural racism and include new and diverse voices who are essential to helping shape our path forward and meeting the needs of all Washingtonians.
We’ll weave these themes together when we meet in Kennewick in June, hearing from community providers, regional and national experts, and people with lived experience to share their wisdom, knowledge, and tools. We’re especially excited to introduce the 2025 WBHC keynote speakers:

Nora McInerny, an author, creator & podcaster who specializes in difficult conversations, including on resilience & grief
Stephen Loyd, MD, an expert on the treatment of opioid use disorders
James Forman, Jr., JD, a professor at Yale Law School & Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Locking Up Our Own: Crime & Punishment in Black America

To see the full lineup of the WBHC, click on the Agenda tab at the top of this page. Or, if you’re ready to register, click on Register Now to get started!
We hope you’ll join us in Kennewick for the 2025 WBHC!

Ignite Pongo Training: Spring 2025
2025-06-14 10:00 - 15:30
On Saturday June 14th, Pongo Poetry Project will host the spring edition of its Ignite Pongo training series. Through Ignite Pongo, attendees will learn and practice Pongo techniques for facilitating powerful personal poetry that inspires healing, growth, and community.
In this immersive training, attendees will hone their skills as a Poetry Mentor, learn how to remove barriers to self-expression, and encourage honesty from survivors of difficult life experiences. Register here to attend Ignite Pongo, and gain the knowledge and skills you need to create therapeutic poetry programming based on their trauma-informed approach.

Measurement-Based Care Webinar
2025-08-01 12:30 - 13:30, 2025-08-04 12:00 - 13:00
Are you providing Measurement-Based Care (MBC) for treatment of mental health disorders in your setting, thinking about it, or curious about how to get started? Join us to explore how MBC can enhance clinical practice to better support clients. Whether you’re brand-new to MBC or actively implementing, we’ll help you move your work forward.
Driven by the needs identified by attendees, follow-up consultations will be offered in September on 9/5, 9/15 and 9/17.
The webinar will cover the following:
– Introduction to the core components of MBC
– Debunk common myths
– Explore real-world examples and free tools
– Offer a space to connect and discuss implementation questions or goals

Eligibility: These webinars are designed for leadership within mental health service organizations responsible for implementing programs or practices. Attendees need to be working in HHS Regions 9 or 10.

Please register by Tuesday, July 29th, 2025

Ignite Pongo Training: Autumn 2025
2025-11-08 10:00 - 15:30
On Saturday November 8th, Pongo Poetry Project will host the autumn edition of its Ignite Pongo training series. Through Ignite Pongo, attendees will learn and practice Pongo techniques for facilitating powerful personal poetry that inspires healing, growth, and community.

In this immersive training, attendees will hone their skills as a Poetry Mentor, learn how to remove barriers to self-expression, and encourage honesty from survivors of difficult life experiences. Register here to attend Ignite Pongo, and gain the knowledge and skills you need to create therapeutic poetry programming based on their trauma-informed approach.

Leading Change That Sticks: ﻿Tools and Strategies for Mental Health Programs
2025-12-01 15:00 - 16:00
Leading change is hard amidst multiple demands, but you don’t have to do it alone. This interactive session brings leaders together to explore free practical tools, evidence-based strategies, and resources that make mental health program improvements achievable and sustainable.
Learn how the Pacific West Hub can partner with you at any point in your change process with experienced technical assistance and consultation. We’ll also share proven approaches for planning, implementing, and maintaining change—and invite your input so we can tailor our Hub support to your priorities.
Whether you’re leading a new idea, enacting requirements, or managing ongoing projects, we are here for you. Together, we’ll turn ideas into outcomes that last.
Attendees will:

Identify key steps for planning and implementing mental health program changes.
Explain principles of implementation models and how they apply to real-world challenges.
Access available free implementation support resources and know how to access them and connect with our team

Attendees should be working in HHS Regions 9 and 10 (AZ, CA, HI, NV, AS, MP, FM, GU, MH, PW, AK, ID, OR, and WA)

Communicating with Purpose: ﻿Effective Strategies in Mental Health
2025-12-11 13:00 - 14:30
Purposeful communication is essential for advancing behavioral health work, whether you’re engaging funders, agency leaders, peers, or communities. This session offers practical strategies to help you craft messages that resonate, build trust, and inspire action. You’ll learn how to identify what matters most to your audience, make your message compelling, and refine your approach for maximum impact.
Learning Objectives:

Identify three communication strategies and know when to use them.
Understand your audience and shape messages around what matters to them.
Access free communications tools that make your work easier to explain and easier to support.

Attendees should be working in HHS Regions 9 or 10 (AZ, CA, HI, NV, AS, MP, FM, GU, MH, PW, AK, ID, OR, or WA)

Free Learning Community! Mental Health Implementation in Action: A Team-Based Approach to Lasting Change
2026-01-29 14:00 - 15:00
Busy leaders, real projects, and practical tools. Implementing change is complex, but it doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. This learning community brings behavioral health leaders together to address real-world challenges using proven implementation strategies and collaborative support.
Your team of 2-3 people will bring an identified mental health implementation project to work on during this series. Whether you’re planning, implementing, or sustaining a mental health practice or program, this learning community will contribute new perspectives, actionable tools, peer insights, and a clear roadmap for lasting change.
Each session combines concise frameworks on core implementation topics, peer learning, and hands-on planning time. You’ll work on your own priorities, apply practical strategies, and leave with actionable next steps. Plus, receive two free tailored consultation sessions and access to implementation tools from the Pacific West Hub and CMHIS.
Team and Project Learning Objectives:

Articulate specific implementation barriers and facilitators.
Apply evidence-based implementation frameworks and strategies.
Identify and utilize tools and resources to plan, implement and/or sustain change efforts.
Problem-solve creatively with your team to address challenges.
Identify actionable next steps for your current priorities.

Peer Integration for Implementation Readiness: Building and Sustaining Peer Support Roles Across Systems
2026-03-24 14:00 - 15:30, 2026-03-26 14:00 - 15:00
*NOTE: This is a 2-part series. Register once to attend one or both sessions.
Join us on Tuesday, March 24, to learn more about key implementation considerations for integrating peer support roles within behavioral health systems. Participants will explore factors influencing successful peer integration, including role clarity, supervision structures, workflow alignment, and sustainment considerations. The session will highlight practical tools and examples to support implementation readiness across service settings.
On Thursday, March 26, participants will apply implementation concepts by examining their current peer integration approaches and identifying opportunities to strengthen role definition, supervision, and alignment with organizational goals. Guided coaching will support teams in adapting implementation strategies to their local context and planning next steps for sustaining peer roles.
Learning Objectives

Identify key factors that influence successful integration of peer support roles within behavioral health systems.
Describe common implementation challenges related to peer role clarity, supervision, and workflow alignment.
Recognize practical tools that support readiness and sustainment of peer roles.

This event is open to individuals working in HHS Regions 9 or 10: AZ, CA, HI, NV, AS, MP, FM, GU, MH, PW, AK, ID, OR, or WA.

Free! A Step at a Time: Implementing and Sustaining Psychiatric Rehabilitation Practices
2026-04-20 15:00 - 16:00, 2026-04-27 15:00 - 16:00
Meaningful recovery is about more than just feeling better, it’s about developing the skills and supports needed to navigate daily life. Psychiatric rehabilitation focuses on helping people strengthen daily living, work, and community participation skills while equipping staff to support that growth in their settings. Join national consultant and practitioner Lamarr Lewis for a two-part event designed to help organizations bring psychiatric rehabilitation practices to life and keep them thriving.

Learn more & register: https://www.cmhisupport.org/event/a-step-at-a-time-implementing-and-sustaining-psychiatric-rehabilitation-practices/2026-04-20/

Psychosis CARE 2026 virtual conference
2026-04-28 08:30 - 2026-04-29 14:00
The Psychosis CARE virtual conference, now in its fourth year, invites a broad audience (school staff, PCPs, mental health therapists, SUD professionals, law enforcement, families, individuals with lived experience, etc.) to gather virtually to engage in Community Awareness, Resources, and Education as it relates to Psychosis.
This annual event features breakout sessions led by speakers who are experts in the field of psychosis. Attendees can expect to learn more about early identification of psychosis, resources for supporting individuals experiencing symptoms of psychosis, resources for psychosis care available in Washington State, as well as opportunities to engage with other attendees.
Psychosis CARE represents a collaboration between the New Journeys network, Washington State Health Care Authority, the University of Washington SPIRIT Center, the Washington State University Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, and EnRoute, with funding support from SAMHSA.

Say It Out Loud Conference
2026-05-18 08:00 - 17:00 | Tulalip Resort & Casino, 10200 Quil Ceda Blvd, Tulalip, WA, 98271
This year’s theme, “Unapologetically Us! Bold Voices, Bright Futures,” is a full-on celebration of authenticity, resilience, and joy in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. Get ready for a day packed with energy, connection, and heart.
About the Conference:
Washington’s 2SLGBTQIA+-focused Say It Out Loud (SIOL) annual conference, funded by the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA), it is a unique gathering that brings together professionals, advocates, and community members to reduce disparities experienced by 2SLGBTQIA+ people. The conference focuses on whole person care, wellness and recovery, identity, self-determination, advocacy, and more.
Say It Out Loud is more than a conference — it’s a movement. It’s where visibility meets vulnerability, and where every voice matters. Together, we celebrate the beauty of being our full selves in a space that’s inclusive, trauma-informed, culturally grounded, and rooted in equity and care.
What’s in store:

Inspiring workshops and powerhouse speakers
Delicious food and lively entertainment
Real community connection and empowerment
Joy, laughter, and stories that spark hope and healing
Sponsorship Opportunities- see attached
Tables Available for vendors

Join us in community. Come as you are, and leave inspired, empowered, and louder than ever.

Advancing Access to Mental Health Services through Single Session Interventions
2026-05-21 09:00 - 10:00
What if therapy worked in one visit? Most evidence-based mental health treatments include 8–20 sessions, yet the average number of visits people receive is one. This mismatch has sparked interest in single-session interventions (SSIs)—structured, evidence-based programs designed to deliver meaningful benefit in one encounter.
Join the Pacific West Hub for a three-part series that will help leaders of behavioral health organizations and systems understand the potential impact of single-session interventions (SSIs) as an efficient, evidence-based approach to increasing access to mental health services and improving clinical outcomes. Each 1-hour session focuses on key issues related to selecting, implementing, and sustaining SSIs, with particular attention to fit within community mental health and public-sector settings.

Session 1: Foundations of SSIs (May 21 ~ 9-10 am Pacific)
Session 2: Implementation Lessons from the Field (May 28 ~ 9-10 am Pacific)
Session 3 Workshop: Apply here by June 8 (June 18 ~ 9-10 am Pacific)

Participants will gain a clear understanding of what SSIs are, where and when they can be most effective, identify implementation challenges, explore methods to encourage real-world use, and reflect on how local context shapes SSI design, delivery, and sustainability. An applied workshop in session three will support participants in moving from conceptual interest to concrete action through a structured implementation planning process.
Learning Objectives

Understand the current evidence base supporting SSIs, including outcomes and settings.
Identify common barriers to implementing single-session approaches in community mental health settings.
Learn practical strategies and implementation tactics that have facilitated successful uptake.

What Is Adaptation and Why Does It Matter? Guidance for Adapting Mental Health Practices and Programs
2026-06-24 13:00 - 14:00
Implementing mental health practices in real-world settings rarely goes exactly as planned. Adaptation is a necessary and powerful part of successful implementation. This series brings together nationally recognized implementation science experts to help behavioral health leaders, practitioners, and program developers understand how to thoughtfully adapt mental health practices while maintaining fidelity to what works.
Across three interactive, one‑hour sessions, participants will explore why adaptation matters, how it unfolds across different phases of implementation, and how to track and evaluate adaptations to strengthen impact over time. If you’re launching a new practice, refining an existing program, or supporting system-level implementation, this series offers practical guidance to help programs adapt to their context and more effectively meet the needs of the people they serve.
This series is open to all states and territories.
Session Dates:

Session 1: Wednesday, June 24 ~ 1-2:00 pm Pacific
Session 2: Wednesday, July 8 ~ 1-2:00 pm Pacific
Session 3: Wednesday, July 22 ~ 1-2:00 pm Pacific

Learning Objectives:

Understand the concept of adaptation and its importance in the implementation of mental health practices and programs.
Identify key principles of approaches to adapting evidence-based mental health practices.
Learn about practical methods to facilitate the evaluation and analysis process.
