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If you want to build up your workplace or personal library, there
are organizations that offer free professional literature. I have
selected some of these organizations for your perusal, and I have
listed some of the materials which seem especially important. I
chose to focus on organizations that offer hard copies. I did
include a few online H.T.M.L. versions of important material which
was not otherwise available. Most of the items on my lists were
published within the past 10 years. Here we go.
If you work with
children and families, the Annie E. Casey Foundation offers
information on families, children, and communities. They will
send you their free journal, Advocasey: "Documenting
Programs that Work for Kids & Families."
The National Center for Missing
& Exploited Children will send you up to 50 free copies of
pamphlets on the following topics. (These publications would be
appropriate for teachers and parents, as well as counsellors.)
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Abduction
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General Information
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Internet Safety
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Just in Case - Series
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Know the Rules - Series
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Safety Information
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Sexual Exploitation
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The National Child
Protection Clearing House offers a free newsletter, the
Child Abuse Prevention Newsletter. This is published twice
annually by the Australian Institute of Family Services.
The Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation offers a free annual anthology on various health
programs which it funds. Some of the chapter titles are as
follows.
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AIDS
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Alcohol and work
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Health of Native Americans
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Interfaith volunteer caregiving
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Medical Malpractice
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Recovery High School
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Tobacco policy
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Understand the context of social change
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The National Clearing
House on Child Abuse and Neglect Information offers several
free titles. Some examples are as follows.
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A Call To Action: Ending Crimes of Violence Against Children and
Adults with Disabilities
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Decision-Making in Unsubstantiated Child Protective Services: A
Synthesis of Recent Research
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Recognizing Child Abuse and Neglect: Signs and Symptoms
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School-Based Child Maltreatment Programs: Synthesis of Lessons
Learned
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What Everyone Can Do To Prevent Child Abuse
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What Kinds of Prevention Programs Currently Exist?
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If you would like
some mental health information suitable for clients and their
families to read, NIMH (National Institute of
Mental Health) offers several free booklets. Some of the titles
are as follows.
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Anxiety Disorders
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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
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Bipolar Disorder
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Medications
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Men and Depresion
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Schizophrenia
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One of the largest
clearinghouses is SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration). Due to the enormous
amount of material, I found the website cumbersome to navigate.
I made my selections by sending for their catalog. You can order
via their toll-free number or by mail. It seems there will always
be some items out of stock. Here are some examples of the titles
which were available when I ordered.
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Annotated Bibliography for Managed Behavioral Health Care
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Confidentiality and the Appropriate Uses of Data
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Double Jeopardy: Persons with Mental Illnesses in the
Criminal Justice System
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The Journey of Native American People with Serious Mental
Illness
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National Strategy for Suicide Prevention: Goals and Objectives
for Action
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Psychiatric Crisis Response Systems: A Descriptive Study
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If you work in the
area of addictions, NIDA (National
Institute on Drug Abuse) offers a free bi-monthly newsletter,
NIDA NOTES. You can also order other material, and the
NIDA website will direct you to the NCADI (National Clearing House
for Alcohol and Drug Information) website to process your order.
While at NCADI, you can also find more
material. Here are some examples of titles from both websites.
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A Cognitive-Behavioral Approach: Treating Cocaine Addiction
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Brief Strategic Family Therapy for Adolescent Drug Abuse
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Early Action Against Teen Drug Use (A Unit for High School
Educators)
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Religious Beliefs and Substance Use among Youths (The NSDUH
Report)
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Research on Club Drugs
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Research on Marijuana
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The NIAAA (National
Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Addiction) website offers a free
newsletter, Alcohol Alert. You can also order a limit of
three free back issues.
If you are a teacher
or school counsellor, you might be interested in free publications
on college campus substance abuse problems and solutions at the Higher Education Center for Alcohol
and Other Drug Prevention. Some of the titles are as
follows.
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Acquaintance Rape Guide
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Excessive Drinking on America's College Campuses: A Report from
Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
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Substance Free Residence Halls
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Understanding Evaluation: The Way to Better Prevention Programs.
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If you want to
study civil rights issues, the United States Commission on Civil
Rights offers a free journal, Civil Rights Journal.
You can order back issues as available. They also offer other
publications, and here are some examples of their titles.
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A Bridge to One America: The Civil Rights Performance of the
Clinton Administration
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A Quiet Crisis: Federal Funding and Unmet Needs in Indian Country
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Equal Educational Opportunity and Non-discrimination for Girls in
Advanced Mathematics, Science, and Technology Education: Federal
Enforcement of Title IX
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Religion in the Constitution: A Delicate Balance (this was
published in 1983 but it remains a significant work)
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Now, if you have
a printer and a lot of paper, here are some e-books you can print
out. The Media Campaign offers some
interesting information on Substance Abuse in Popular
Music Videos, Substance Abuse in Popular Prime-Time
Television, and Substance Abuse in Popular Movies and
Music. If you would like a handbook on working with sexually
abused children, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
provides a printable document on
Child Sexual Abuse: Intervention and Treatment Issues. If you
want to learn about violent kids, you can print out a free copy of The Scarred
Heart at the ViolentKids.com website. If you would like to do
some reading on self-help, you can print out an e-book at the Psychological
Self-Help website. If you need to improve your study skills,
you can print out an e-book at the Study Guides and Strategies
website.
The Future of Children
website offers an online journal also entitled The Future of
Children. This publication used to be offered for free in
print, and it is too bad they discontinued it because it was a
very nice journal. Although there are many online magazines, this
is the only one I included because the subject matter is crucial.
I think the lesson to be learned is this: order your items now
while they are available in print and for free.
All of the above
listed titles are items which I ordered. I have not yet read
everything, but by browsing through each item I can see that they
will all be useful to me. There are other titles available for
you to choose from according to your needs or interests.
(Written 05/03/04)
Until we meet
again....... .......stay sane.
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