Wednesday, February 5, 2025
2/5/2025
Project Abstract: Led by the Rush Center for Excellence in Aging, the SAMHSA Engage, Educate, Empower for Equity: E4, The Rush Center of Excellence for Behavioral Health Disparities in Older Adults (E4 Center) will measurably advance workforce capacity expansion through innovative practitioner training, with a specific focus on community-based providers’ implementation of evidence-based practices and programs (EBPs) for vulnerable older adults who experience the greatest behavioral and physical health disparities. Specifically, the E4 Center will target healthcare workforce enhancement to reduce behavioral health disparities for older adults in four SAMHSA strategic priority areas: (1) depression and suicide; (2) substance use disorders; (3) serious mental illness; and (4) socioeconomically disadvantaged and underserved ethnic and racial minority groups, and where they uniquely intersect to negatively impact physical health and mortality of older adults. To achieve this aim, the E4 Center will provide education in the necessary unique knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary for providing high quality behavioral health services for older adults. This training will leverage both existing online training developed by the E4 Center team as well as the development of new resources and provision of technical assistance (TA). It will also include the 4Ms (What Matters, Medication, Mentation, Mobility) of an Age-Friendly Health System, which are critical factors in eliminating behavioral health disparities for older adults. Based on that foundation, we will provide extensive training in EBPs addressing mental health and substance abuse prevention, treatment, and recovery support services for older adults by national experts, and the TA to assure effective and efficient implementation. Because care for older adults is complex and fragmented, we will build on our extensive experience in catalyzing integrated partnerships between health systems and community-based organizations (CBOs) to create age-friendly health communities through the development of a Partnership Toolkit along with TA and implementation support. We will also develop a Business Case Toolkit with TA for administrators to provide effective, efficient EBP for older adults in welcoming and inclusive environments. Central to eliminating behavioral health disparities in older adults is patient and family caregiver engagement, for which the E4 Center will create, refine, and disseminate older adult engagement and educational resources to health care systems, clinics and CBOs. E4 Center activities will focus on scaling and spreading culturally tailored EBPs to the broad environment of care, including not only licensed mental health providers but also CBOs, direct care workers, and the aging network, in highly varied modalities and lengths to meet learner preferences. Across the grant period, we anticipate reaching nearly 3,000 learners each year, for a total of 15,000 in five years. The E4 Center will have broad and lasting impact on the care of our most vulnerable older adults with mental health and substance use disorders.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).