Inspiration Sources

Inspiration Sources

1.  My first inspiration are psychiatric patients I work with.  I have worked in psychiatry for over 30 years as a case manager and creative arts therapist.  I have worked in outpatient treatment with the elderly, in a housing program with adults, and on inpatient units with children and adults.    The typical inpatient psychiatric unit  tries to prepare patient to return to their community, but there have been so many cutbacks for outpatient services for this poppulation.  They need a lot of support and they are not getting it.  Higher functioning patients especially get ignored causing them to fall through the cracks and then are in danger of becoming higher risk. 

2.   Fountain House   is a part of Clubhouse International.  Fountain House was the original Clubhouse that spawned the Clubhouse model.  There are more than 300 clubhouses throughout the world and the U.S. including three sites in the Bronx.  According to Clubhouse International. "The daily activity of a Clubhouse is organized around a structured system known as the work-ordered day. Members and staff work side by side as colleagues to perform the work that is important to their community."  The empowering system of the Clubhouse model is important in a field where many patients are infantalized and treated as if they are not capable of making decisions for themselves. 

 3.  MUSICat software was created for libraries in order to help local communities record and promote their artists.   The company that created the software is Rabble co-founded by Preston Austin and Glenn Loos Austin who write: "We are developers, innovators, and humanists who believe libraries are forces for good."  They also make their sourcecode open to the public.  

4.   Do Space in Omaha, Nebraska is not software, but an actual library that I just serendipitously saw in the American Libraries magazine website.   They have a Virtual Interview Lab to help patrons prepare for jobs or, I would think, any kind of interview (college, housing interviews, etc.)  Do Space offers many programs to their community including classes in coding, a maker space with 3D printing and after school programming for kids. In order to replicate this model a program would need cameras, lighting rings, monitors, and of course computers to run all of this on. 

5,  Typing Club  Typing Club teaches people how to type.  It is created by edclub  who describe themselves as  "a provider of online educational software for students of all ages. Our team of developers, designers, and content creators is dedicated to producing cutting-edge educational platforms for use inside and outside of the classroom."     Typing club has grade-based typing, meaning that you can customize the program to the grade level of the person, however, at this time they only go up to Grade 6.  Their website assures us that 7-12 Grade lessons are coming soon. And, also adhere to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0!  

6 . Vocab 1 Vocab 1 is a program that helps anyone improve their vocabulary. They were founded by eReflect in 2006.   This program is very inexpensive.  Right now their site is offering 10 years worth of access for $67 for up to five users.  This made me check twice because it seemed like a scam, but, its legitimate.  With this software, you can make lists of words you need, share them with others or use curated lists from the company itself.  It translates words for you into several languages.  Of course you can track your progress.  They also have what they call 'scientifically designed" word games.    

7.  Biofeedback Technologies

 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Biofeedback_training_program_for_post-traumatic_stress_symptoms.jpg

Biofeedback is a non-surgical set of techniques utilized in therapy to assist patients monitor their reactions to everyday events.  Although some people may feel it is intrusive, insofar as someone has to place sensors on your body and interpret the findings for you, some patients who are asymptomatic my find this a refreshing change from constantly being reminded to take their medications.  

 According to the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, Inc.:  “Biofeedback is a process that enables an individual to learn how to change physiological activity for the purposes of improving health and performance. Precise instruments measure physiological activity such as brainwaves, heart function, breathing, muscle activity, and skin temperature.”   

The Mayo clinic describes some of these technologies:

· Electroencephalograph (EEG) using scalp sensors to monitor your brain waves.  Sensors are pasted onto your scalp with clear medical gel, and your brain waves are "read". These can help a patron identify different relaxation techniques that will assist them.   

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bf/EEG_cap.jpg/640px-EEG_cap.jpg

· Electrodermograph (EDG) -   "Sensors attached around your fingers or on your palm or wrist.... electrodermograph (EDG) measure the activity of your sweat glands and the amount of perspiration on your skin, alerting you to anxiety."

8.  Fitbit 

https://www.fitbit.com/global/us/products/find-your-fit

 

 is a wearable technology intended to help users monitor the number of steps they take (pedometer), check their stress level, and manage their sleep better.  Many chronic mentally ill patients have difficulty with their physical health. NAMI - National Alliance on Mental Illness - describes negative symptoms experienced by people living with Schizophrenia  "emotional flatness, inability to start or follow through on activities....Inability to experience  pleasure"  all contribute to the physical heath issues of patients because they tend to isolate themselves.  Fitbit would be a great tool for patients because its an adult gadget, looks just like a watch and can be worn when you want to and removed when you don't want it. It offers people choices.   Fitbit is almost like the commercial cousin of Biofeedback.  They also utilize technologies that check the oxygen levels in your blood, can check your heart rate continuously 24/7 so you know not to over work yourself when you exercise.   

9.  Edgar Allan Poe and Julia De Burgos

Of course, the first inspiration for me was the writing of these two poets.  One of the greatest live events I ever experienced was a reading of Poe's Tell-Tale Heart in a small cemetery on the Lower East Side during a poetry conference.  His poem the Raven is one of the most cleverly crafted and beautiful poems ever written despite the macabre character of the narrative.  Julia De Burgos was a freedom fighter for women and Black people through her poems in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean.  She moved several times in her life to keep ahead of the authorities because she was pro independence for PR (like my grandmother and her family who repatriated to the Dominican Republic). My favorite poem of hers that I included is Yo Misma Fui Mi Ruta/I was my own path, a feminist statement of a woman being and doing what she wants to.

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 Allpoetry.com.   https://allpoetry.com/Yo-Misma-Fui-Mi-Ruta

 

Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, Inc.https://www.aapb.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3678

Dale, Katie.  PSYCOM.   What's It Like In a Mental Hospital.   https://www.psycom.net/what-a-psychiatric-ward-is-really-like

edclub.  https://www.edclub.com/

Fitbit.   https://www.fitbit.com/global/us/home

Fountain House.  https://www.fountainhouse.org/

Mayo Clinic.  https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/biofeedback/about/pac-20384664

MUSICat.  https://musicat.co/  

New York State Nurses Association Website.  Closures are causing a Full-Blown Mental Health Emergency in New York.  august 20, 2020

New York State Office of Mental Health.  https://omh.ny.gov/

Poetry Foundation.  https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/julia-de-burgos#tab-related

Poets.org.   https://poets.org/poet/edgar-allan-poe

Sauers, M. (2021). Acing the Interview: Tech library assists locals in finding jobs by providing access to digital tools. American Libraries , 52(11/12), 18–19.

The Treatment AdvocacyCenter.   https://www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org/

Vocab1.   https://www.vocab1.com/