Thursday, April 25, 2024
4/25/2024
The MHAASA of Puerto Rico's PR-CMHC Project focuses on Hispanic children and adolescents between ages 3 and 17 and 11 months with SED or a co-occurring SED, affected emotionally by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Using EBP's of CBT for Children and Adolescents Trauma Informed CBT, ABC Crisis Intervention, Educational Support and Wraparound, 400 patients per year, including those referred from education, juvenile justice and child welfare agencies, will receive in-person and virtual outpatient treatment in the licensed Rio Piedras CMHC. All of the 78 municipalities of PR are included as the geographic focus area. As part of infrastructure enhancement, telehealth capacity and EHR development will be carried out in the clinic. Collaboration will be strengthened with the PR Departments of Health, Education, Family and JJ systems for outreach, screening and assessments to identify minors with symptoms of SED and COD, affected by COVID and to engage them in EB treatment. A total of 17,394 of the 110,113 confirmed COVID cases in PR, as of April 30, 2020, are minors under 18, representing 15.8%. Human and other losses, changes in routines and lifestyles (family, school, social) distancing from friends and relatives and other effects have provoked negative effects in the emotional state of children that they do not know how to manage. Adolescents have difficulty expressing feelings but manifest more severe behavioral changes such as aggression, neglecting of the appearance and hygiene, and some increase alcohol or other drug use or lose themselves in videogames. The MHAASA PAS Hotline provides assessment of MH services needs for all of the PR population, offering telephone and outreach crisis counseling and referrals to callers and parents of emotionally affected children, on a 24/7 basis. A total of 34,347 calls related to minors with symptoms of SED were received from March to December of 2020, Crisis Counselors referring 2,545 children and adolescents for psychiatric hospitalization. Coordination with the hotline will permit referrals of minors with SED for outpatient MH care, reducing hospitalizations. Outreach, screening and psychoeducational services in schools will help identify children needing treatment and assist students with SED in their academic progress and re-entry to school after a year of virtual classes Spanish versions of the screening tools of Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC) for 3-12 year olds, and Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC) for 8-17 year old will be administered in the clinic, schools juvenile institutions and child welfare settings to diagnose patients, all of whom will be screened for trauma. Youth in drug use will be referred to the PR-TREE Project in the same clinic for counseling while they continue to receive MH treatment through the PR-CMHC Project. All FOA required activities will be carried out and most of the allowable activities. A Lead Evaluator will measure process aspects, EBP fidelity and outcomes, with resulting data, including GPRA, to be submitted in SAMHSA reports and used to improve services over the 2-year grant period. A total of $2,000,000 is requested for each year of the grant period, to cover infrastructure improvements, one time A/R to the clinic, EBP T/TA for staff, project required and allowed activities implementation and data collection and evaluation.
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).
