IL Discretionary Funding Fiscal Year 2023

This grant will fund accessible counseling and mental health in Palm Beach County via Telemental Health and in-person counseling with a goal of promoting improved emotional well-being to individuals and families. Services will be rendered based on the safety and comfort level of the client.

Abstract: Sac and Fox 988 initiative The Sac and Fox Nation will support the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in Lincoln, Payne and Pottawatomie counties in central Oklahoma. The three-county area contains 26,000 Native persons from over ten Tribal Nations who are at high risk of suicide, depression and substance use. We will increase the number of Indigenous callers to the Lifeline, facilitate partnerships with local health organizations, and implement culturally appropriate suicide prevention strategies. Our project works with the Sac and Fox Tribe and its partners in the three-county area of central Oklahoma just east of Oklahoma city. The 988 project will provide a suicide and mental health specific Lifeline to Native callers. The new system offers callers a choice to select a counselor who is a Native person and has the life experience of what it means to be Native. National, state and local data highlight two populations where Native suicide disparities are particularly severe: the first is Native Males 15-30, the second are Natives who are LGBTQ in their sexual orientation. Suicide disparities are particularly severe among both groups. Native males between the ages of 15 and 30 have more than double the rate of suicide of Whites of the same age group. Data about the LGBTQ population has been obtained by the US Census in their Pulse Survey. It indicates that LGBTQ individuals are: • 8.4 times more likely to report having attempted suicide, • 5.9 times more likely to report high levels of depression; and, • 3.4 times more likely to use illegal drugs, The Sac and Fox Nation is joined in this effort by two Indigenous organizations working in the Central Oklahoma area: namely, the Association of American Indian Physicians (AAIP) and the National Indian Education Association (NIEA). NIEA funds numerous programs throughout the nation and will provide its message of the importance of Native mental and spiritual wellness to schools, vocational centers and colleges in our Tribal Jurisdiction. AAIP funds scholarships for Native youth who wish to pursue biomedical careers and it convenes a yearly Cross Cultural Workshop that examines cultural influences in different societies. Both NIEA and AAIP will reach different sectors of Indigenous society. Individuals needing additional counseling or hospitalization will be referred to local mental health and substance abuse treatment centers. Native persons who request Native counselors will be offered culture classes to instill knowledge and pride of being Native. We will offer at least two major cultural events about Native history each year. These events will be the Gathering Of Native Americans and the Blanket Exercise. At this time most help calls from potential suicides are received by 911 dispatch centers, most of which are housed in County Sheriff’s offices. All current 911 personnel will be trained in the need for and the advantages of the 988 Lifeline over other help centers. Our work will also identify persons who are in crisis and will need a Crisis Intervention Team to perform an intervention. All information given to 988 calls are strictly confidential. We estimate we will receive over 150 new callers each year (450 over the 3 year project) and that over 10% (45 persons over the 3 year project) will be referred to further services as a result of this grant.

Sacramento Native American Health Center is an Urban Indian Health Organization that provides mental health and physical wellness services to residents of Sacramento County, including American Indians/Alaska Natives. The Sacramento Region COVID-19 Emergency Response (ReCOVER) program will provide services related to substance use, serious mental illness, and mild-to-moderate mental health disorder to people impacted by COVID-19, including local health care providers. As a Patient Centered Health Home recognized by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care, SNAHC is experienced in providing these services and well-suited to provide whole-person, patient-centered care to individuals experiencing substance use disorder (SUD) and/or mental health (MH) challenges as a result of COVID-19. Evidence-based practices will include the health home model as well as a range of additional approaches to be selected based on client needs. ReCOVER will employ team comprised of a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), two Associate Clinical Social Workers (ACSW), and two Certified Addiction and Drug Abuse Counselors (CADAC) to provide services to people affected by COVID-19. These services will include support groups as well as individual one-to-one services to people with substance use disorder, those experiencing mild to moderate mental health challenges, as well as to those with serious mental illness. ReCOVER will outreach to local hospitals to promote and engage healthcare workers to participate in a mental health support group specifically for those individuals on the front lines of the COVID-19 epidemic. ReCOVER will provide services to 150 people over the grant period and GPRA 60 who are engaged in direct SUD and/or MH services, in the following formats: 1) Individual SUD and/or MH visits (30 or 60 minutes) to 60 people; 2) Individual services for people with SMI to 5 people; and 3) SUD and/or MH Support Groups to 100 people. Groups will focus on the following subjects: Relapse Prevention Skills, Harm Reduction Approaches, Grief & Loss, Health Providers Mental Health Support Group. Resources will be directed towards support for individuals with SUD, SMI or a combination (70%), with a subset of services to individuals experience mental disorders less severe that SMI (20%) and services health care professionals (10%). Services will be evaluated based on the numbers of individuals we are able to serve and GPRA data.

Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan’s SAMHSA Emergency Covid 19 grant project is called the Client Protective Response Program (CPRP). Populations to be served by the emergency funds are Native Americans with Serious Mental Illness (SMI), clients with Substance Use Disorders (SUD’s), and those with Co-occurring Disorders (SMI and SUD). Strategies and interventions that will be used with funding is to provide tele-psych services to clients who meet the service population characteristics and to hire two additional staff for our Residential Treatment Center. Over the course of the project, at least 40 participants will be served in the program.

The Salvation Army’s Shelter is Delaware’s only facility dedicated to the housing of victims of human trafficking. Federal funding would support the transformation from a limited availability emergency shelter to a fully dedicated short-term residence to serve the growing cohort of trafficking victims. Funds will be used to hire additional trauma-informed staff, security personnel, professional evidence-based, trauma-informed therapy and for operational support.

San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) will integrate mental health and substance use services into established community engagement programming for Long Term Survivors of HIV/AIDS. This project will focus on Black/African American communities, Transgender communities, and People who use Drugs (PWUD). Stonewall Project, SFAF’s existing state-certified alcohol and drug treatment program, will partner with existing community engagement program staff to design and implement culturally responsive mental health and substance use services. This partnership will expand available services for Long Term Survivors of HIV/AIDS and as a result, SFAF will provide a continuum of care that includes mental health services, substance use treatment, and case management services. This project seeks to reduce isolation, and support individuals with mental health and substance use needs, meaningfully engage Long Term Survivors in community building efforts, and stabilize safety networks for these priority communities. SFAF will reduce social isolation among Long Term Survivors of HIV/AIDS and their networks by increasing utilization of psychosocial groups and events. SFAF will decrease harms associated with substance misuse among Long Term Survivors of HIV/AIDS and their networks by increasing access to a Continuum of Substance Use Services. 150 Long Term Survivors will be engaged in the 12-month project through group and individual level interventions, including psychosocial support groups, substance use educational groups, social support and community engagement events, substance use counseling, and HIV and Aging case management. SFAF has identified Long Term Survivors of HIV/AIDS–with specific focus on Black/African American communities, Transgender communities, and People who use Drugs–as under-resourced populations with an unmet need for mental health and substance use treatment services.

The Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG) is a leading provider of mental and behavioral healthcare in the Bay area. Despite public funding supporting ZSFG's core services and operations, silos exist in mental and behavioral healthcare, requiring the next generation of health interventions. In response, the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation has jump started a collaborative to foster the growth of multiple programs that will serve and connect the gaps in service and care.

The project proposes to address the challenges identified in preliminary conversations with six interdisciplinary, inter-departmental programs. The challenges identified including building workforce capacity and training and identifying how to leverage the electronic health record (EPIC) system for better linkage of care across the San Francisco healthcare system.

San Gabriel Valley Crisis Assistance Response and Engagement Program (SGV CARE) is a regional mobile crisis response program that provides an alternative mobile response to 9-1-1 calls for mental or behavioral health emergencies. The goal of the program is to provide effective, timely care while reducing deployment of police. The program's crisis response teams consist of clinicians, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), substance use disorder (SUD) counselors, and peer support specialists. Each team provides a 30-minute max response time to non-violent service calls with a focus on addressing behavioral health and/or homelessness related issues. The program intends to serve 250 unduplicated individuals experiencing a mental or behavioral health crisis and people experiencing homelessness (PEH) with unmet mental health and social services needs. Services include welfare checks, triage, screening and assessments, crisis intervention and de-escalation, peer support services, and referrals to medical and behavioral health services, among others.