Common warning signs for suicide include:

• Making suicidal statements.
• Being preoccupied with death in conversation, writing, or drawing.
• Giving away belongings.
• Withdrawing from friends and family.
• Having aggressive or hostile behavior.

It is extremely important that you take all threats of suicide seriously and seek immediate treatment for your child or teenager. If you are a child or teen and have these feelings, talk with your parents, an adult friend, or your doctor right away to get some help.

Other warning signs can include:

• Neglecting personal appearance.
• Running away from home.
• Risk-taking behavior, such as reckless driving or being sexually promiscuous.
• A change in personality (such as from upbeat to quiet).

Suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts

Certain circumstances increase the chances of suicidal thoughts in children and teens. Other situations may trigger a suicide attempt.

Circumstances that increase the chances of suicidal thoughts include having:

• Depression or another mental health problem, such as bipolar disorder (manic-depressive illness) or schizophrenia.
• A parent with depression or substance abuse problems.
• Tried suicide before.
• A friend, peer, family member, or hero (such as a sports figure or musician) who recently attempted or died by suicide.
• A disruptive or abusive family life.
• A history of sexual abuse.
• A history of being bullied.

Circumstances that may trigger a suicide attempt in children and teens include:

• Possession or purchase of a weapon, pills, or other means of inflicting self-harm.
• Drug or alcohol use problems.
• Witnessing the suicide of a family member.
• Problems at school, such as falling grades, disruptive behavior, or frequent absences.
• Loss of a parent or close family member through death or divorce.
• Legal or discipline problems.
• Stress caused by physical changes related to puberty, chronic illness, and/or sexually transmitted infections.
• Withdrawing from others and keeping thoughts to themselves.
• Uncertainty surrounding sexual orientation.

Depression

Signs of depression, which can lead to suicidal behavior, include:

• Feeling sad, empty, or tearful nearly every day.
• Loss of interest in activities that were enjoyed in the past.
• Changes in eating and sleeping habits.
• Difficulty thinking and concentrating.
• Complaints of continued boredom.
• Complaints of headaches, stomachaches, or fatigue with no actual physical problems.
• Expressions of guilt and/or not allowing anyone to give him or her praise or rewards.

Take any mention of suicide seriously. If someone you know is threatening suicide, get help right away.

Help is available. For additional information, visit MagellanHealth.com/MYMH

Source: Healthwise

“What would my son or daughter do in that situation?” The news of school shootings and other violence is hard to escape these days. Along with it comes the cruel reality that the same thing could happen to anyone’s child. It’s a scary thought.

This reality hit me hard after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012. At the time, my son was a five-year-old kindergartener. I watched the coverage in disbelief and kept thinking this could have been his classroom. Would he have known what to do? Would his teacher? Would anyone? That was the point when I decided that it was my job to teach my four children how to be safe in the event of a violent intruder.

But how could I, a mom from small-town Wyoming, even know where to start?

I quickly turned my attention to Google. I poured my energy into finding what I thought was the best way to protect my kids. I wasn’t solely focused on the type of violent event they could encounter. Kids can get hurt by someone with a gun or knife, by a stranger driving a windowless van – or in any other scary scenario we can only imagine. What was important was learning how to respond. That’s when I found A.L.I.C.E.

A.L.I.C.E. is a training curriculum that was developed shortly after the Columbine massacre in 1999 by a police officer and his wife, who was a school principal at the time. Their goal was to develop strategies children could use in the event of an active shooter. But what they found was that those strategies could be useful for victims of any age, during any type of violent event.

According to the ALICE Training Institute, A.L.I.C.E. is an easy-to-remember acronym that teaches different strategies people can use in the event of a violent intruder:

• A – Alert
  • Be alert to your surroundings.
  • Trust your gut. If something doesn’t seem right, don’t ignore it.
  • If you hear a strange sound or see something that seems off, investigate it.
• L – Lockdown
  • If you cannot escape a violent intruder, lock down and barricade your area.
  • Barricading is crucial. Don’t just sit against a wall or under a desk waiting for a violent intruder to enter the room.
  • Make it harder for the violent intruder to get to you.
  • Don’t wait to be attacked. Be proactive.
• I – Inform
  • Tell people what is going on.
  • Call law enforcement, post on social media, make an announcement on a PA system.
  • Communicate with everyone.
  • Spread the word any way you can.
• C – Counter
  • If left with no choice, defend yourself.
  • Defending yourself could mean throwing things at a violent intruder, creating a distraction, moving around or even engaging in physical contact.
  • Do whatever it takes to survive.
  • Fight for your life – because it might be your last chance.
• E – Evacuate
  • Get out!
  • The best response is always to remove yourself from the threat.
  • If you can’t evacuate, try the lockdown and counter strategies.

These strategies can be employed in any order, and at any time. Data show that taking a proactive response to these incidents – when people realize they have options and can help themselves – can increase survival rates substantially.

As for me? I just wanted to make my children a little safer. It’s not necessarily anyone else’s job to teach them what to do in these situations. In fact, there are many places that still tell victims to crawl under desks or tables and wait to be rescued. Yet, the data show that violent intruder events are commonly over before law enforcement arrives at the scene. So I wanted to empower my kids, let them know they can take action to increase their chances of survival.

I strongly believe in giving people options in these situations. So I became a certified A.L.I.C.E. trainer in 2015. I have trained hundreds of people throughout Wyoming who work in government agencies and businesses, as well as kids. And every time there is a violent intruder event on the news, I reinforce the A.L.I.C.E. strategies with my own kids at home and practice drills with them.

I recently hosted an A.L.I.C.E. training event for Magellan Healthcare of Wyoming’s MY LIFE (Magellan Youth Leaders Inspiring Future Empowerment) program, attracting more than 60 students, parents and others from across the state. At the beginning of the discussion, I asked the group, by raise of hands, how many thought they would survive a violent intruder event. Roughly five people raised their hands. At the end of the class, I asked the group the same question, and every single person raised their hand.

A.L.I.C.E. training has evolved into offering its curriculum to nearly 12,000 law enforcement agencies, K-12 schools, healthcare facilities, higher learning institutions, businesses, governments, houses of worship and numerous other entities across the country. A.L.I.C.E. is about saving lives. My goal is to share these strategies with as many people as I can. Just like I wanted to prepare my kids, I believe that all of us can do a lot to save ourselves and each other. To learn more, visit https://www.alicetraining.com.

Is it necessary to explicitly focus and call attention to the obvious fact that I am a woman in technology? You might not think so these days. Women have accomplished so much since the first bra was burned, that it would be understandable if you believed that we have established and gained enough ground to just be people in technology.

The reality is, unfortunately, there remains a staggering degree of inequality. Last month, the New York Times published an article titled “The Top Jobs Where Women are outnumbered by Men Named John.” The article reveals that there are fewer women among Chief Executives of Fortune 500 companies (5%) than there are men named James (5%); fewer female Venture capital investors in the largest tech deals of the last five years (9%) than there are men named David, James and Peter 11%.

You may giggle at first when reading the article, but its conclusion is stunning: it is more likely that the names of the men in charge will change sooner — fewer Johns and Roberts and more Liam’s and Noahs — than the number of women.

This is a reality that we cannot ignore, and one that exists all over our industry. While some of us women may not “feel it” as much as others, we are all still subject to “it.”

The World of Economic Forum’s 2016 Industry Gender Gap report recognizes that in “nearly all industries and geographies there has been a marked shift away from deliberate exclusion of women from the workplace, there continue to be cultural beliefs that lead to unconscious biases. This includes perceptions that successful, competent women are less “nice”; that strong performance by women is due to hard work rather than skills; and assumptions that women are less committed to their careers.”

We women have all felt this. The one woman that can be “tough enough” always gets through, but not all of us. We internally debate with ourselves whether to be more like our male counterpart in order to simply be heard in a meeting. Sometimes it is a question of style, but more often than not, we don’t have a seat at the table. And when we “power through it all” we still struggle to find a lot of role models to look up to.

I personally attribute my success to relentless stubbornness, shameless self-confidence (which often gets mislabeled since I am a woman) and sometimes blunt confrontation. Still, many times throughout my career I was asked to sit on the sidelines. I was encouraged to “focus on my wedding planning activities, rather than worrying about a promotion” which by the way I well deserved and earned.

At Magellan, we have decided that the only way to overcome these inequalities is to take them on proactively. That is why, in 2018, we have formed an internal ‘Women in Technology’ (WIT) change leadership group.

Being at a company that is not only willing to discuss and support a Women In Technology group, but is actually ready to “put their money where their mouth is” is refreshing.

The WIT group we established has taken off and I am so happy to see the responses, the community and the peer (gender agnostic) support we are offering to women across Magellan IT and beyond.

Our group is not exclusive to women, in fact we need everyone involved to truly make a difference, because our goals are critically important:

• We are focused on fostering female employee development and growth across the IT organization.
• We want to see more of us out there – we want our talent pipeline and the recruiting tactics to bring women to the table.
• We aim to encourage young women in the middle and high schools our communities to consider, try and stick with STEAM (Science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics).
• We want to support each other through peer-mentoring.
• We want to bring role models forward to provide insights into the possibilities.

Ultimately, we want a future where being a woman in technology is not a heroic accomplishment, and super powers are not needed to claim our earned and well-deserved seat at the table.

March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month. Today, people with developmental disabilities are more visible across our communities than ever before, and the world is more accessible than it’s been in the past. It’s good to see things are becoming more inclusive, and it’s important for us to continue in this direction. Including people with disabilities into our communities enriches society as a whole – people of all abilities have gifts to offer, and when we find ways to let people share their gifts with others, we all benefit.

One way people can share their talents and become more included in their communities is through employment. Having paid employment gives people a sense of pride, and indicates that the work being done is valued by the employer. It also is a vital component of how people remain independent – when you’re making money, you have purchasing power over the clothes you buy, the food you eat and the home you choose to live in. You don’t have to rely on others to buy all of your necessities for you. It allows you to live a self-determined life where you call your own shots. Unfortunately for many people with disabilities, it can be a challenge to find paid employment. According to a survey of 17,682 adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities conducted by National Core Indicators, only 19 percent of those surveyed had a paid community job, but an additional 47 percent wanted one. These numbers are disheartening, and it’s up to us to start bridging the gap.

One of the roadblocks some people with disabilities run into is figuring out ways to earn money using their gifts and talents. Many will embrace their entrepreneurial spirit and create micro-enterprises: small scale business where they sell things they create, such as jewelry, art, crafts, greeting cards, homemade jams or provide services to those in their community. The possibilities are only limited to their imaginations! Others look to be a part of the traditional workforce, and thanks to programs like Project SEARCH – a national organization that partners with local business and teaches young adults with disabilities the skills they need to get the work they desire – more and more people with disabilities are finding jobs across all kinds of industries. According to the Wisconsin Project SEARCH Expansion, Project SEARCH, which is focused mainly on supporting young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, has a national employment success rate of 73 percent.

Melissa Rademacher

Melissa Rademacher, a young woman from central Wisconsin, is one of the many Project SEARCH success stories. Melissa is also enrolled in TMG by Magellan Health’s Wisconsin self-directed long term supports and services (LTSS) program called IRIS. After the restaurant Melissa was working for unexpectedly closed, Melissa turned to Project SEARCH in 2015, where she received her job training at the Kalahari Resort, a large waterpark, conference center and resort in Wisconsin Dells, which has been dubbed the “waterpark capital of the world.” There, she trained in housekeeping and in the bakery, as well as at the spa, which proved to be a fantastic fit. She was offered a job at the spa, and she’s been a spa attendant there ever since. Melissa’s work includes greeting guests and taking them to the relaxation room, stocking shelves, changing out the spa robes and putting guest information into the computer. Since starting at the spa, not only is Melissa in her dream job, but she’s a valued employee and has made wonderful friends at work.

Melissa’s story is a great example of what can happen when we set people up to succeed on the job. In fact, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker was so impressed with Melissa’s story that he shared it during his State of the State address this past January.

Another key component to helping people with developmental disabilities find meaningful work is embracing the Employment First movement, which believes that everybody can work and that there is a job for everyone. Most states have some type of effort focused on the Employment First philosophy, and an increasing number of states have an official state policy, through legislation or executive order, indicating that employment in the community is the first and preferred option for people with disabilities. Wisconsin is part of this growing trend of state activity. Here, Employment First legislation, which Magellan Health supports, is expected to be signed into law soon. By getting laws like this in place, we’re building a culture that recognizes the value that people with disabilities bring to the workplace, in turn opening up more doors for employment for all.

These changes aren’t going to happen overnight, but if we continue making strides for inclusive work environments, it’s only a matter of time when they become the norm, and not the exception. And when that happens, everybody wins. Because everyone has something to offer, and anyone who wants to work should have the opportunity to do so.

To find out more about employing people with disabilities and what your state is doing to support Employment First, please go to these websites:

Department of Labor: Employment First Policy Resources

APSE: Employment First, Employment for All

As we look back on 2017, it was a year of many milestones on the United States (U.S.) drug approvals front. With 46 novel drugs receiving Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, it reached a 21-year high and more than doubled novel drug approvals in 2016. This count does not even include a number of biologics, vaccines, cell-based therapies, and the first ever, direct gene therapy for a hereditary disease.

Among the historic clinical highlights of 2017 was the landmark approval of two CAR-T therapies, tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah™) and axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta™), for select types of leukemia and lymphomas, respectively. CAR-T or chimeric antigen receptor-T (CAR-T cell), is a multiplex process where a patient’s T cells are harvested, genetically modified, and infused back into the same patient to fight cancer cells. 

The role of specialty pharmacies in the invoicing construct for these costly CAR-T therapies is a fascinating component of these new treatment modalities. As illustrated in the CAR-T Invoicing Flowchart, the product is shipped directly from the manufacturing facilities to the certified hospital or treatment facilities. Once the certified hospitals take ownership of the product, they bill the payers who, in turn, pay the certified hospitals. The specialty pharmacies serve as the billing wholesaler between the manufacturers and the certified hospitals to invoice the hospitals and, ultimately, deliver payment to manufacturers. In this unique model, the specialty pharmacy does not handle the drug; rather, it serves as the invoicing clearinghouse between manufacturers and certified hospitals. Hence, there is no interaction between the specialty pharmacy and payers.

Specialty pharmacies are at the epicenter of care for patients with complex conditions. As a high-touch resource, they operate in a clinical environment that leverages specialty pharmacies’ services to dispense, distribute, provide monitoring, case management, adherence programs, reimbursement, and a number of other services particularly for patients with complex and rare diseases. In the CAR-T invoicing construct, the specialty pharmacy takes on the exclusive role of shepherding the invoice.

As we look ahead, future complex therapies will present a new paradigm for all stakeholders including prescribers, pharmacies, payers, patients, hospitals, and regulators. Specialty pharmacies, as an invoicing liaison, may be yet another facet in the evolution towards the next frontier – Specialty Pharmacy 2.0.

Magellan’s offices in Virginia have been abuzz for the past few months, busily preparing to implement a brand-new contract as Magellan Complete Care of Virginia (MCC of VA), serving individuals who qualify for Medicaid due to a disability or who are age 65 or older.

On Aug. 1, MCC of VA made its debut in the commonwealth as a full-service managed long-term services and supports (MLTSS) health plan selected by the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) to serve members enrolled in the Commonwealth Coordinated Care Plus (CCC Plus) program. The plan initially launched in the Tidewater region, then in the Central Region on Sept. 1, and has been approved to roll out in the Charlottesville/Western region on Oct. 1. MCC of VA will go live in phases for additional regions across the commonwealth through early 2018, pending DMAS approval.

 What are managed long-term services and supports?

MLTSS is the delivery of long-term services and supports through capitated Medicaid managed care programs. Many states use MLTSS as a strategy to expand home- and community-based services, promoting community inclusion, ensuring quality and increasing efficiency. In Virginia, care management is the foundation of CCC Plus, which focuses on improving quality, access and efficiency through high-touch, person-centered support.

Magellan’s role in CCC Plus

Enrolling in CCC Plus means that members will now have their medical, behavioral, substance use disorder and long-term services and supports provided all under one program. When individuals select MCC of VA as their health plan, they can expect to benefit from Magellan’s vast experience coordinating care for individuals who have multiple complex conditions, including chronic physical and behavioral health challenges.

Our person-centered culture is woven into everything we do, as is our dedication to offering choices for our members, who serve at the center of their care coordination team.

 Our approach: It’s all in the ‘neighborhood’

We believe individuals should have a choice in where they live and receive services. Therefore, a key component of MCC of VA’s program is what we call our Integrated Health Neighborhood^SM. [Link to IHN infographic] The IHN is a custom model that helps us work with individuals within their own neighborhoods and communities to improve care, quality of life and health outcomes.

Our care teams live and work within the same communities where our members reside. These team members have first-hand knowledge of community strengths, resources, services, and service gaps.

Our integrated, high-touch, team-based IHN approach drives close collaboration with community partners. This allows us to customize care for our members and provide a seamless, one-stop system of services and supports. We can then address each member’s unique needs and circumstances and continually adjust our interventions as the member’s needs change.

Looking toward the future

We invest our resources into making an impact, one person at a time, by taking a highly individualized, high-touch, community-based approach to care coordination – because we know that each person can live a vibrant, healthy life as independently as possible. And we look forward to helping the individuals we serve in Virginia to meet this goal.

Learn more about MCC of VA

I shared this message with all 10,000 associates at Magellan yesterday. As I said in my message, times like these require all of us not to be silent, but instead to stand tall and make it very clear that we are committed to an environment where all people can progress personally and professionally, and work in a positive, uplifting workplace. Given the current state of events in our country, and particularly the divisive events of this week, I felt it important to reaffirm the values we hold dear within Magellan.

“Leading humanity to healthy, vibrant lives” is what guides our decision making and inspires us to accomplish meaningful, positive change in the lives of those we serve. This can only be done if we respect and value each other, and every person we serve, without condition or qualification.

For the many years I have been associated with Magellan, I have been impressed by the integrity and commitment of Magellan team members to create a culture of caring. I have seen great respect for people of all races, religions, gender and sexual orientation, to name only a few of the things that make us different. There is no doubt that the diversity of our people allows us to better understand and execute our vision of making a powerful impact on the world around us.

I want to reaffirm in a direct and simple way that we will never diverge from valuing differences, and creating a culture in which we can learn from each other and grow as individuals, teams, and a company.

Times like these require all of us not to be silent, but instead to stand tall and make it very clear that we are committed to an environment where all people can progress personally and professionally, and work in a positive, uplifting workplace. Our differences are to be celebrated; they are absolutely key in helping us in “leading humanity to healthy, vibrant lives.”

Thank you for the great work you do. I am proud to be associated with you.

The past decade has seen some remarkable changes in technology, which has ushered in an era where we are always “on,” always connected and where most everything that was analog now is digital. Many of us walk around with powerful computers in our pockets –also known as smartphones–that are more powerful than the computers that help put a man on the moon only a few decades ago. Today, we can order car rides from our phones, pay for our groceries, watch movies or do just about anything from a smartphone or network-connected device from anywhere across the globe. Yet for many of us, we go through a time warp when we move from our personal lives to our work environments.

Magellan: a Digital Healthcare Company

At Magellan, we have an inspired leadership team that is building a workforce of the future. We recruit the best talent wherever we can find it across the globe and provide them with great work-life integration by providing flexible working arrangements. Over 40 percent of our workforce does not work in one of our offices, and many of our employees are mobile and on the road helping our member and providers. This kind of a workforce requires the collaboration platform of the future.

During the summer of 2016, we assembled and rolled out Magellan’s next generation collaboration platform. This platform was built with a mobile-first, cloud-first, always digital mindset designed to provide secure, seamless and context-aware experiences within the enterprise. This new platform is all about providing choices: it works across Macs and PCs, across browsers, across Apple and Android mobile devices and can work across a 4G connection and high-speed wifi alike.

The platform uses five technologies that we use in our personal lives on a daily basis:

• Workplace and Workchat for desktop and mobile devices. These are the enterprise- grade versions of Facebook and Facebook Messenger, complete with networking, group collaboration and social sharing capabilities.
• A cloud-based document and content management solution from Box.
• Enterprise-quality HD video conferencing and desktop sharing through Zoom.
• Productivity applications from Microsoft through Office 365.
• An integrated access portal tied together by a robust security and identity management solution from Okta.

Okta acts as a gateway to every other application, website or solution provided by Magellan. It simplifies password management and provides secure multi-factor authentication – in short it makes our applications accessible to everyone, anywhere, at any time over any network or device. It allows an employee to take a video call from her home office and collaborate with her colleagues in a Workplace group and continue that conversation on a mobile device as she takes the train into see a customer for an afternoon meeting – secure, seamless and context-aware collaboration.

 Technology leading culture; culture leading technology

One of the interesting developments in our culture is the use of desktop and mobile video conferencing which allows us to personalize each call, read body language and emotions and share the true benefits of face-to-face communications, instead of being on nameless, faceless, monotonous conference calls.  This is changing the cultural fabric of Magellan by making the enterprise more personal and more social.  It is challenging our management orthodoxies and help reinvent management.

With this new platform, we are building communities that span geographies, business units, departments and even companies. In the past year, we have seen over 700 groups evolve organically on this platform.  Some of these groups focus on specific projects, initiatives or events, and others focus on communities of users and social groups. We even have a community of musicians at Magellan. In short, the platform helps people stay connected in a personal way without having to be located in the same spot.

Ultimately, our technology is a means by which we can help improve the experience – and quality of care – for our customers and members. Our objective for this new platform is to make the technology invisible to the user and allow them to seamlessly play their part to help individuals live healthy, vibrant lives.