Education

NAMI Santa Clara offers education and training programs for consumers, family members, county agencies, and the general public. These programs draw on the experience of mental health consumers and family members who have learned to live well with their illnesses and are eager to help others.

NAMI Basics

Family to Family

Peer to Peer

Peer PALS

Provider Education Program

Parents and Teachers as Allies

Crisis Intervention Team

NAMI Basics Education Course
NAMI Basics is a free course for parents and other caregivers of children and adolescents living with mental illness. The 6 session course is taught by trained teachers who are also parents/caregivers of individuals who developed the symptoms of mental illness prior to the age of 13 years. The course provides the fundamentals a caregiver needs to care for themselves, their family, and their child who is living with a mental illness.

  • Learn the fundamental information necessary to be an effective caregiver for you, your family & your child.
  • All instruction and materials are free to class participants.
  • Taught only by trained parents and caregivers with the lived experience.
  • Get current information on mental illnesses, medication, research, crisis management, coping skills & much more.

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To obtain additional information, please contact the NAMI Office at (408) 453-0400.

NAMI Family-to-Family Education Program
The NAMI Family-to-Family Education Program is a free 12-week course for family caregivers of individuals with severe brain disorders (mental illnesses). The course is taught by trained family members. All instruction and course materials are free for class participants. Over 115,000 family members have graduated from this national program.

The course includes:

  • Current information about schizophrenia, major depression, bipolar disorder (manic depression), panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, borderline personality disorder, and co-occurring brain disorders and addictive disorders
  • Up-to-date information about medications, side effects, and strategies for medication adherence
  • Current research related to the biology of brain disorders and the evidence-based, most effective treatments to promote recovery
  • Gaining empathy by understanding the subjective, lived experience of a person with mental illness
  • Learning in special workshops for problem solving, listening, and communication techniques
  • Acquiring strategies for handling crises and relapse
  • Focusing on care for the caregiver: coping with worry, stress, and emotional overload
  • Guidance on locating appropriate supports and services within the community
  • Information on advocacy initiatives designed to improve and expand services

Course Brochure

Family-to-Family In Spanish

Family-to-Family In Chinese: Class Topic List

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Class Sign Up

Next class: Classes start in the first week of January, April and September.

To sign up for the next Family-to-Family class contact NAMI Santa Clara at (408) 453-0400 or use the sign-up form below and we will contact you:

Name

Phone

Email

 

NAMI Peer-to-Peer Education Program
Peer-to-Peer is a unique, 9-week experiential learning program for people with any serious mental illness who are interested in establishing and maintaining their wellness and recovery. It is free of charge to participants. The course was written by Kathryn Cohan, a person with a psychiatric disability who is also a former provider and manager in the mental health field and a longtime mutual support group member and facilitator.

  • Peer-to-Peer consists of nine two-hour units and is taught by a team of three trained "mentors" who are personally experienced at living well with mental illness.
  • Mentors are trained in weekend-long training sessions, supplied with teaching manuals, and are paid a stipend for each course they teach.
  • Participants come away from the course with a binder of hand-out materials, as well as many other tangible resources: an advance directive; a "relapse prevention plan" to help identify tell-tale feelings, thoughts, behavior or events that may warn of impending relapse and to organize for intervention; mindfulness exercises to help focus and calm thinking; and survival skills for working with providers and the general public.

En Español: Persona a Persona—Volantes, Lista de Contenidos, Caracteristicas del Programa

View the Peer-to-Peer Outreach Video

Peer-to-Peer Training—A report from one of the participants at NAMI Santa Clara's Peer-to-Peer mentor training.

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Class Sign Up

Current classes: Monday afternoon and Monday early evening

To sign up for the next Peer-to-Peer class contact NAMI Santa Clara at (408) 453-0400 or use the sign-up form below and we will contact you:

Name

Phone

Email

 

NAMI Provider Education Program
NAMI Santa Clara County is one of the first two Californa affiliates to offer this innovative course provided by NAMI National. The course targets all mental health staff, from clinicians to clerks, in a radically inclusive manner. It teaches them to interact with families, and teaches families about the dynamics, pitfalls, and emotional difficulties inherent in dealing with a family member who has a biological brain disorder.

The NAMI Provider Education Program is a 10-week program, 3 hours per week, and is taught by a 5 person team: 2 family members, 2 consumers, and one mental health professional who is a family member or a consumer. The response by participants, both nationally and locally, has been overwhelmingly positive. For more information, contact the NAMI SCC office at (408) 453-0400.

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To obtain additional information, please contact the NAMI Office at (408) 453-0400.

Peer PALS Program

This program, unique to NAMI Santa Clara County, matches Peer PALS, or mentors, with peer consumers who can use the support of someone who has "been there." Because Peer Pals share the experience of mental illness in common with their peer, they are in a unique position to relate with and understand their peer's experience.

Peer PALS receive ongoing training and support from a marriage and family therapist who serves as advisor and a small stipend. Peer PALS and their peers will enjoy activities together while the Peer PALS support their peers in their journey to recovery, engagement in the community, and a more meaningful life.

Program Brochure

To obtain additional information, please contact the NAMI Office at (408) 453-0400.

Parents and Teachers as Allies

Parents and Teachers as Allies is a two hour, in-service program that helps school professionals and families better understand the early warning signs of mental illness in children and adolescents. It helps with understanding how best to intervene so that youth with mental health treatment needs are linked with services.

Each in-service program:

  • Is delivered by a trained team, including a facilitator, a parent, an individual with mental illness, and an educational professional.
  • Follows a structured format covering issues frequently faced by school professionals, parents, and caregivers.
  • Has been well-tested and has produced positive results in diverse schools across the country.

The program concludes with a facilitated, interactive discussion that encourages audience participation.

Program Brochure

To obtain additional information, please contact the NAMI Office at (408) 453-0400.

Crisis Intervention Team

The Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) is an innovative and highly successful approach to enhance interaction between mentally ill individuals, law enforcement and mental health agencies. The program was developed by the Memphis Police Department and has been adopted by many other major law enforcement agencies throughout the country.

The goal is to minimize the use of force, increase the safety of the officer and the individual on the street, and learn about available resources as needed in community policing. Development of this program in Santa Clara County is the result of a collaborative effort between the San Jose Police Department, Santa Clara County Sheriff, Santa Clara County Mental Health Department and NAMI. This intense forty hour CIT Academy requires the coordination of a group of professional instructors from Stanford, San Jose State, Santa Clara County Mental Health, the Veteran's Hospital, various mental health contract agencies throughout the county and talented consumers and family members from NAMI. Over 800 officers and dispatchers have received CIT training. Current plans call for three San Jose Police Department and three Santa Clara County Sheriff academies each year.

CIT Course Brochure

To obtain additional information, please contact the NAMI Office at (408) 453-0400.