Monday, December 30, 2024
12/30/2024
SCDMH Roads of Independence Program Abstract The goal of the South Carolina Department of Mental Health Roads of Independence (ROI) Program is to conduct outreach and improve access to treatment and support services in Sumter, Kershaw, and Lee Counties for youth and young adults ages 16-25 who have a serious emotional disturbance or a serious mental illness. We will use what we learn in these three local laboratories to improve service delivery and to change local policies/procedures in the focus communities, resulting in YYA with SED/SMI receiving responsive, age/developmentally appropriate, culturally specific care that contributes to emotional/behavioral health and ability to function so that they can live full and productive adult lives. Then we will roll out similar policy changes throughout the state. Because of the needs of YYA in this geographic area, our program will particularly focus on serving youth transitioning out of the child welfare system, YYA involved in the criminal justice system, low-income YYA, Veterans and African American YYA. Most of the population we will serve is rural and impoverished. We will provide services through drop-in centers (one in each county) that provide screening, assessment, care coordination, behavioral health services using evidence-based practices, linkage to wrap-around services (including assistance with housing, employment development, accessing educational opportunities, and transportation), medication management, peer mentoring, life skills training, leadership opportunities for advocacy and decision-making, and many more services and supports. We will conduct education and outreach in the communities and will provide Zero Suicide Academy training to staff and collaborating partners. We will serve at least 350 YYAs annually, for a total of at least 1,750 served over five years. We will seek to achieve the following infrastructure objectives: 1) To effect five policy changes by the end of year 5. 2) To bring 15 organizations into formal written inter/intra-organizational agreements to improve mental health-related practices/activities by the end of year 5. 3) To complete a written plan for rolling ROI out in other geographic regions of the state by month 6 of year 5, and to take steps to begin implementing this expansion plan by the end of year 5. Client-level measurable objectives focus on screening, contacting YYAs and families through outreach, referral of at least 500 YYA to mental health and/or related services each year, reduction in symptoms of SED/SMI and an improvement in functioning, improvement in relationships with those they identify as family members, reduction in substance use of YYA participants with co-occurring substance use disorder and serious mental disorders, ensuring that YYA participants are employed and/or enrolled in a vocational/ educational program, ensuring that YYA participants are living in a stable housing situation, and ensuring ensure that YYA participants who have already penetrated the criminal/juvenile justice system are not re-arrested during participation in ROI and that those who have not become involved remain uninvolved during participation.
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).