Miriam Johnson-Hoyte Elected New Chair of the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance Board of Directors

CHICAGO, IL, February 15, 2005 – Chicago resident Miriam Johnson-Hoyte has been elected to serve a two-year term as the Chairperson for the Board of Directors of the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance  (DBSA), headquartered in Chicago, IL.

DBSA is the leading patient-directed, national organization focusing on the most prevalent mental illnesses – depression and bipolar disorder. Incorporated in 1985, DBSA oversees and guides a rapidly expanding grassroots network of more than 1,000 support groups; provides useful and timely information on these illnesses to more than four million people each year; and acts as an advocate for equitable treatment of people with depression and bipolar disorder. 

Johnson-Hoyte has served as a DBSA Board member since 2004. As Chair, she is looking forward to helping to shape the future of DBSA and continue to find new ways to improve the lives of those living with mood disorders. “As an attorney working with clients who struggle with mental health issues, I know how rare it is to find the kind of understanding that is commonplace at DBSA,” Johnson-Hoyte explains.

In addition to her duties as DBSA Chair, she is a health and disability attorney in private practice who has assisted many people with mental illness throughout her career and has worked extensively with community health centers and other community based agencies in the Greater Boston area.  She is a former Legal Services Attorney, who has worked extensively with low-income clients, (both diagnosed and undiagnosed) to address a range of legal issues.  

She also co-facilitates a monthly mental health disability support-group at the McClean Hospital in Belmont MA.  The group is run under the Boston DBSA Chapter (MDDA) and the Jonathan O. Cole Mental Health Resource Center.  Among other functions, the group provides and additional opportunity for peer-to-peer support and information sharing on a range of topics from disability benefits applications, to housing and the stigma which surrounds those with a mental health diagnosis. 

Lydia Lewis, President of DBSA says, “We at DBSA are thrilled to have Miriam as our new Chair. Her compassion for and dedication to the mental health community proves that she knows what needs to be done to take the Alliance’s efforts to the next level.”

The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) is the nation’s leading patient-directed organization focusing on depression and bipolar disorder. The organization, which has more than 1,000 support groups nationwide, fosters an understanding about the impact and management of these life-threatening illnesses by providing up-to-date, scientifically-based tools and information.  Assisted by a 65-member scientific advisory board, comprised of the leading researchers and clinicians in the field of mood disorders, DBSA supports research to promote more timely diagnosis, develop more effective and tolerable treatments and discover a cure. More than 4 million receive information and assistance each year.  For more information, please visit www.DBSAlliance.org or call 1-800-826-3632.