Talking Wellness Minutes

July 7, 2004

5:30-7:00

Present: Barbara Boulet, co-chair Sequoia Olivia Mercier

Sharon McDaniel, co-chair Sylvia Jones

Ed Corbett, chair of sub-group Drew Jones

Dr. Ken Wells Keisha Paxton

Andrea Jones, minutes

• The meeting was called to order by the co-chairs, Barbara Boulet and Sharon McDaniel. They explained that they missed the last meeting due to their school and work schedules.

• New Member: Sylvia Jones. Welcome!

• Sub-Group: Everyone was updated on the Talking Wellness Sub-Group, which was formed by Dr. Ken Wells and Ed Corbett, along with Dr. Victoria Vesna from UCLA. She will be working on the photos and the website. The sub-group will meet on the first Wednesday of the month from 4:00-5:15 in the afternoon. They will attend the meetings of the main Talking Wellness Group The focus of the sub-group is on their depression and how their environment affects it. One of their action plans is to take pictures of places and things (not people) in their neighborhood that depress them. These photos will be put on the website at a later time (once we receive IRB approval.)

• The Script: Their were some questions about the script that had to be clarified, i.e. “What script?” Loretta Jones, the co-chair of the Support Council wanted all the working groups (Talking. Building, and Supporting) to submit a “script” of what they were going to say at the conference on July 15^th. This was to be done by July 5^th so that she could review it and make any necessary corrections or suggestions. Each group also had to submit 3-5 questions for the audience at the conference to answer. The questions had to be formatted in such a way that they could be answered in one of these ways: 1) yes or no or 2) a. I don’t like it at all b. I like it a little c. I like it a lot. So it was decided to go around the table and each person submit a question to the group for discussion.
• Questions: 1) Ed--Is Talking Wellness helpful to you?

2) Keisha--Do you think having community members take pictures …………………...of their community will get people to talk about wellness and

depression?

3) Drew--Which media outlet do you think is most effective in

bringing awareness to health issues?

a. Radio b. Internet c. TV ads d. Billboards

4) Barbara--Does the community feel that others in the community

would be willing to talk about depression if we use the arts and

media as a tool to get them to open up?

5) Sharon--Do you think that you can get someone to talk about

depression using a poetry format?

6)-Sylvia--Do you think that you could get people to talk about

depression by talking about other illnesses?

7) Sequoia--Do you believe that medical problems such as obesity,

Aids, and hypertension contribute to depression?

8) Dr. Wells--What can make it safe to talk about depression?

a. Education b. Laws to stop discrimination

c. Accessible care d. Supportive friends and family

• More Questions: Do you believe it is important to have someone to talk to when you’re depressed? If you have experienced depression would you be willing to act as a spokesperson? Do you think it would be a good idea to ask someone to act as a spokesperson? There was a lot of discussion about these questions. Finally it was decided that the co-chairs would go over them and decide for the group.
• Ed Corbett was asked whether or not pictures would be available in time for the conference. The answer was no, at this time that would be premature.
• Poetry Event: There was a lot of discussion about what could and could not be done at the poetry event. Would we need further IRB approval to solicit new members? What about videotaping? Are we going to do something that exists within current IRB or get new approval? Finally, it was decided that Barbara would coordinate with Ken Wells on IRB issues.
• Ed Corbett has referral information. That information and a flyer for the next Talking Wellness meeting will be placed on a table at the poetry event.
• *Important—Barbara Boulet and Sharon McDaniel are thinking about stepping down as co-chairs of the Talking Wellness meetings due to lack of time to devote to their duties. They are not resigning from the group, just the co-chair ship. Would anyone be interested in taking over as Chair or Co-chair?
• Next Meeting: August 4^th, 2004, 5:30-7:00 at the HAAF office. Next Talking Wellness sub-group meeting: August 4^th. 2004, 4:00-5:15 at the HAAF office.