Thursday, October 17, 2024
10/17/2024
Bridgeway Behavioral Health Services (BBHS) is applying for grant funding to expand Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) in Essex County, NJ. The project, titled BBHS Transition Age Youth Assertive Community Treatment (TAY ACT), will provide behavioral health ACT services for underserved and at-risk TAY, age 16-26, experiencing serious mental illness (SMI), severe emotional disturbance (SED), and who may experience co-occurring substance use disorders. TAY ACT intends to serve 62 unduplicated TAY in the first year and at least 103 unduplicated individuals over the five-year grant project with a census of 85 persons receiving services. Essex County is diverse in terms of race, ethnicity, and family income. The largest locale in the county, Newark, has over 35% poverty rate compared to 15.8% of all Essex County. 30% of Newark area households experience at least one severe housing problem (overcrowding, cost, lack of kitchen, lack of plumbing). Bridgeway has selected to serve the Newark urban area, defined as Newark, Irvington, and East Orange, where there are significant disparities along many dimensions between young African Americans and their counterparts from other racial groups. The Essex County Point in Time Count identified 1695 (90.6%) of the total county homeless in Newark alone. 524 were age 24 and under, representing the second largest cohort after chronically homeless. The most prevalent disabling conditions for homeless youth were mental illness and substance abuse. Essex County, NJ is a medically underserved area with limited access to medical and mental health (MH) care. There is one primary care physician for every 1,180 people, one dentist for every 1,050 people, one mental health care provider for every 450 people, and one primary care provider (nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and clinical nurse specialists) for every 1,270 people. With ACT grant funding, BBHS will build on our 50+ years serving these communities by: • Increasing access to ACT Services for TAY to include multidisciplinary team outreach/in-home and in-community BH treatment service provision available 24/7. The ACT psychiatrist will provide psychiatric evaluation and prescription and the RNs will manage the medication delivery system to ensure medication availability when, where, and how the TAY, and family, prefer. The team provides the TAY, and family, support and education for housing security, employment and education, co-occurring substance use disorders, case management, activities of daily living teaching, peer support, crisis intervention, illness management and recovery, wellness recovery action planning, medical health management in coordination with primary health providers, and supportive counseling and therapy. • Improving housing stability for TAY who are homeless or housing insecure. • Expanding educational and vocational opportunities for service recipients through use of readiness assessment and supported employment/supported education EBP interventions. • Improving quality of care for TAY by incorporating evidence-based practices and tools to monitor and treat depressive disorders and co-occurring substance use disorders reducing severity of depression and substance use and improving behavioral health outcomes by reducing rates of Emergency Dept (ED) and hospitalization, substance use, homelessness, and criminal justice system involvement. • Maintaining a well-trained ACT team. The team will be trained to provide high-fidelity ACT services, as measured by the TMACT, beginning with the 5-day ACT training provided by the BBHS ACT Training and Technical Assistance Center. The team will be trained to provide evidence-based practices and trauma informed care. • Improving quality of life and perception of care as determined by TAY, and family, using survey tools and outcome measures.
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).
