Strong Demand for Counseling Services Drives Continued Free Member Service
By Bill Conger

“…raw numbers tell us that more attorneys are seeking assistance from our program and for issues other than substance abuse.”

In my last letter concerning work/life balance, I gave you some alarming statistics about the health and well-being of members of our profession. I want to share what your bar association is doing to address these issues. As I mentioned previously, in 2006 the Oklahoma Bar Association lost a member a month to suicide. In response to our concerns about the mental health and well-being of our members, the association’s Board of Governors worked out an expansion of services of the Lawyers Helping Lawyers Program to assist lawyers in trouble with things other than drug and alcohol issues. We contracted with LifeFocus Counseling, to team up with the LHL Program to cover crisis intervention counseling for attorneys experiencing emotional or stress- related issues. The LHL has done a wonderful job helping attorneys with substance abuse issues, but we felt there were other issues affecting our attorneys that needed that same attention.

The OBA is providing this service to its members at no cost. Lawyers using the service will remain completely anonymous. OBA members may call LifeFocus Counseling Services directly at (405) 840-5252 or toll-free (866) 726-5252 to work with a counselor in their area. The service is available 24 hours a day.

We have been very surprised and excited about the utilization of this program and how well it took off. Initially, this was a program that we questioned what kind of utilization there would be. The OBA allotted $6,500 for members to use for counseling as needed — estimating this allotment would last approximately one year. When those funds were near exhaustion at five months into the program, we were astonished.

The OBA has done a wonderful job encouraging help through LHL, but as one member stated, “It only scratched the surface,” and there are so many issues beyond its scope. It is very common for substance abuse to be a form of self medicating when there is more of a mental health issue underlying. LHL has done a great job at welcoming this program and utilizing it as a referral source for those needs. The bridging of these two resources has helped us ensure the very best care for our members.

Although participation in the program is totally confidential, the raw numbers tell us that more of our attorneys are seeking assistance from our program and for issues other than substance abuse. From 2006 to 2007 the number of total clients tripled, the number of crisis interventions tripled and the number of appointments more than doubled from the year before.

LifeFocus has two full-time personnel devoted to Lawyers Helping Lawyers — Dr. Wenona Barnes and Rex McLauchlin. They also have additional counselors on contract for additional needs.

Wenona is CEO at LifeFocus Counseling.  She has a Ph.D. in psychology, a master’s degree in human relations and a bachelor of arts in criminal justice. She is a licensed alcohol and drug counselor, a certified employee assistance professional, registered traumatologist and an ordained member of the clergy. She is also a certified DUI assessor and a substance abuse professional.  Dr. Barnes is a frequent speaker on various topics in her field and serves as a consultant to numerous organizations throughout the country.

Rex McLauchlin is a counselor at LifeFocus Counseling Services and is the representative to the LHL Program. He is a licensed professional counselor and speaks Spanish as a second language. He has a master’s degree in clinical psychology and a master’s degree in educational administration. His bachelor’s degree is in psychology. Mr. McLauchlin specializes in relationship problems, depression and emotional issues.

CALLING ALL MEMBERS

We still need your help! When attorneys call to use the services, they can utilize the LifeFocus Counseling Services to work confidentially with a counselor for substance abuse and/or mental health issues, or they can utilize the peer mentoring program to work with a lawyer who is in recovery and can help assist them to maintain sobriety -— or another option is they can use both!

But we need more mentors, and we need more LHL Committee members. You don’t have to come to the meetings or be burdened with a lot of extra work to be a part of this. You just have to commit to be available should another attorney in your area need a mentor (call and check on them, get them to AA meetings, help hold them accountable or give them encouragement). We particularly need mentors in the rural areas, but all areas are lacking. If you would be of assistance should the need arise, please contact LifeFocus Counseling and get on the mentor list. We can’t do it without you!!

We can all be proud of our award-winning program. It is a model for other state bar associations. In 2007 our bar received the Innovation Award from the Mental Health Association of Central Oklahoma.

Sincerely,

To contact President Conger, e-mail him at bconger@okcu.edu