Language Matters-The ADS Center Announces Its Name Change

Effective immediately, SAMHSA's Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma has been re-named to SAMHSA's Resource Center to Promote Acceptance, Dignity and, Social Inclusion Associated with Mental Health.  The Center will still go by the acronym, the ADS Center.

Why change the name?  For many years, the ADS Center has promoted the use of language that lets people with mental illnesses be known for their skills, talents, and abilities, not for their diagnosis or "label."  We've worked to change the way that media portrays people with mental illnesses, how providers refer to people with mental illnesses, and how individuals talk to and about people with mental illnesses.

Recently, we took a look at our own language use.  We asked, "Does using the word 'stigma' lead to stigma?" and questioned whether words like "anti-stigma" have the potential to build a bias, where one did not exist.  The ADS Center name change is a result of close inspection and reflection with a spectrum of stakeholders on these tough questions.

The ADS Center's new name reflects a new approach: to promote a strengths-based vision, recognizing the importance of a caring, welcoming, and supportive community in helping to promote recovery and wellness for people with mental health problems.  Reducing "stigma" will continue to be part of the ADS Center's work but it is no longer enough.  We must expand what we do to better serve individuals with mental illnesses and their families.

The work of the ADS Center is to foster dialogue and facilitate activities to promote full community participation by people with mental health problems.  As such, we welcome comments from you on our name change.  Drop us an e-mail at: stopstigma@samhsa.hhs.gov.

Please visit the ADS Center Web site at www.stopstigma.samhsa.gov for information and to join our listserv.