Tuesday, April 16, 2024
4/16/2024
Given the current environment in Mississippi, much work is required to educate first responders, law enforcement, veteran and military personnel, and correctional staff and inmates regarding mental health awareness and treatment options. Thus, our goal is to provide mental health awareness training to 1,000 individuals annually, with our focus being on the aforementioned target groups. The primary evidence-based trainings that will be employed statewide are 1) The Alliance Project gatekeeper training, 2) de-escalation training based on Creating Safe Scenes and 3) Mental Health First Aid training. We will offer each group their choice of two evidence-based mental health awareness trainings: The Alliance Project and Mental Health First Aid. Both of these trainings include recognizing the signs and symptoms of mental health illness as well as identifying resources in the community. Additionally, we have received permission from SAMHSA to offer an in-person version of Creating Safe Scenes that can be offered either independently or in conjunction with the other trainings. The selected mental health awareness trainings teach participants how to identify individuals who are in distress, make a connection with them, and provide an appropriate referral to a mental health professional. Thus, we will train them on these skills and provide them with referral information for their local community. Our clinic and staff members have an established reputation for providing mental health training in the state where people reach out to us. Community outreach and engagement strategies will be included in each of the trainings provided, regardless of the type of training requested. Our team has established collaborative partnerships for this proposed program, and we will continue to seek out collaborative partnerships with community stakeholders and relevant organizations across the state. Our team has been awarded several training grants through SAMHSA, CDC, and the Mississippi Department of Mental Health and we currently train more than 5,000 individuals per year on mental health related topics throughout the state. Thus, we have established a strong reputation for training, and are commonly contacted when there is a need for mental health training. Additionally, we have strong partnerships with the MS Department of Mental Health as well as MSU Extension Services who also aid us in increasing awareness about our mental health trainings. This project allows us to extend these efforts to targeted groups are not currently populations for which we focus or have grant funding to support, so the proposed project would result in a notable increase in capacity and scope of our trainings, and also get this vital information into the hands of individuals who need this knowledge as they serve those at high risk of mental health problems every day. Thus, this project will greatly enhance our ability to reach out to the key community resources in the state to ensure that those who need mental health awareness training are able to receive it at a convenient location. Further, we believe this will greatly enhance these skills being utilized, and thus referrals being made to mental health resources.
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).
