Project Support Ocean State Plus (SOS+): Providing Youth Mental Health First Aid Training to adults who have frequent contact with RI children and youth, ages 6 to 18 - Summary: Over¿5¿years, Family Service of Rhode Island¿will:¿provide culturally and developmentally¿appropriate¿mental health awareness training, including crisis de-escalation techniques, to 3,800 adults who are in frequent contact with RI youth, ages 6-18; develop and disseminate a local Resource Toolkit for these adults; and convene and facilitate quarterly partner network meetings with¿trained individuals and¿organizations.¿
Project Name:¿Project Support Ocean State Plus (SOS+).¿
Populations Served:¿3,800 adults who are in frequent contact with RI youth, ages 6-18, representing child/family-serving organizations; school personnel; law enforcement; victim service providers; peer recovery coaches; families impacted by substance use disorder; and military members and their families.¿
Strategies/Interventions:¿Project SOS+ will deliver Youth Mental Health First Aid Training (YMHFAT), an evidence-based practice for adults who are in regular contact with youth and children, ages 6 – 18.¿YMHFAT trains adults to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental illness in youth ages 6-18, safely de-escalate crisis situations and initiate timely referrals to mental health and substance use disorder resources.
Goals:¿1) Increase community competencies in signs and symptoms of mental disorder and serious emotional disturbance in children and youth, ages 6-18; 2) Establish a statewide network of trained partners to increase access to mental health services for children and youth. 3) Offer YMHFAT statewide to law enforcement, EMS, fire department, schools and other child-serving agencies to increase knowledge and skills around crisis de-escalation.¿4) Develop and broadly disseminate resources including a statewide mental health resource guide (Resource Toolkit) to support First Aiders in connecting children to appropriate mental health resources.
Overview¿of Objectives:¿1) Deliver 12-24 YMHFATs yearly for the life of the grant, including 7-10 trainings in Spanish, as needed. 2) Train approximately 3,800 adults with frequent contact with RI youth ages 6-18. 3) Convene and coordinate quarterly partner network meetings;¿4)¿Design and implement a referral tracking system;¿5) Train 200 adults per year in law enforcement, EMS, fire departments, schools and other child-serving agencies in de-escalation training for a total of 1,000 trained. 6) By the end of year 1, publish a Resource Toolkit electronically and distribute hard copies to all trained adults.
Total Adults Trained Annually:¿Year 1: 600; Year 2: 800; Year 3: 800; Year 4: 800; Year 5: 800¿
Total People Served¿At¿End of 5 Years:¿3,800.¿
