Thursday, November 21, 2024
11/21/2024
Family Service Agency (FSA) in Santa Barbara County (SBC), CA proposes the Mental Health Awareness Training Project (MHAT) to train individuals in the county who are important in the lives of children and youth to recognize the signs of mental disorders and respond appropriately and safely to connect these children and youth with needed services. FSA and the Mental Wellness Center (MWC) will provide Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) training to parents of children and youth in grades 5-12 (the population of focus). YMHFA training will also be provided to mental health professionals, teachers, and other school personnel. Teachers, other school personnel, veterans, and armed services members and their families will participate in trainings in collaboration with schools on the Vandenberg Air Force Base. Across the county, mental health professionals will be invited to the same training as parents, teachers, and other school personnel to foster connections among providers and students’ families and others involved in their lives, allowing for discussion of common challenges and sharing of resources. Furthermore, the project will augment the SBC Sheriff’s Office’s CIT program for law enforcement personnel by incorporating a youth-focused component into the CIT, which provides instruction in crisis intervention and recognizing the signs of mental disorders. The overarching goal of FSA’s Mental Health Awareness Training (MHAT) is to train key individuals who are important in the lives of children and youth (e.g., parents, mental health providers, teachers, school nurses, and other school personnel) how to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental disorders and how to respond appropriately and safely to connect these children and youth with needed services as early as possible. To meet this goal, we will seek to achieve the following objectives: 1) To train 126 teachers and other school personnel per year in recognizing and responding to the signs of mental illness in children and youth (total of 378). 2) To train 126 parents per year in recognizing and responding to the signs of mental illness in children and youth (total of 378). 3) To augment SBC’s existing Crisis Intervention Training program for 400 law enforcement personnel per year by providing them with instruction in recognizing and responding to mental illness in children and youth (total 1,200). 4) To train 126 mental health and related workforce professionals in mental health-related practices/activities that are consistent with the goals of the MHAT grant per year (total 378). 5) To train 42 other community members per year in recognizing and responding to the signs of mental illness in children and youth (total 126). 6) To conduct four interactive educational forums on mental health each year (total of 12) for parents, youth, school personnel, mental health professionals, and staff members of community-based organizations. With an average of 95 participants per educational forum, 380 people will receive interactive education per year (total 1,140). 7) To refer at least 300 children/youth to mental health and related services annually. 8) To increase the number of children/youth referred to mental health and related services by 10% over baseline.
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).
