Episode 118: Michael Mackniak, Care Coalition

Don’t miss this important episode featuring Michael Mackniak, attorney and founder of Care Coalition (https://carecoalition.org/). Mike shares his journey as an attorney with 30 years of experience, much of it in probate courts. Mike emphasizes how it was through this work that he saw so many people in need of help, particularly in the realm of families supporting a loved one with a mental illness. The idea of Care Coalition came about based on Mike’s experience. Mike encourages parents and family members to be part of their loved one’s mental health team, to be educated and indispensable, so that care providers include them in the decision making process. In this episode, we also talk about HIPAA (https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/index.html). Mike encourages family members to learn more about what HIPAA is and the rights family members actually have when a loved one is unable to make decisions because of their mental illness. Mike also shared that he is developing an app called Care Compass, which will help family members keep all of their loved one’s information electronically organized.