Helping Others Move through Empowerment 2 (HOME-2) - Abstract The Health Services Center, Inc. (HSC) is a non-profit 501(c)3 AIDS Services Organization that has provided substance use disorder (SUD), mental health (MH), housing, and HIV services in a underserved area of northeast Alabama at the epicenter of the opioid epidemic for over 25 years. In the proposed HOME 2 Program, HSC will expand and enhance SUD, MH, peer recovery services, risk reduction services, telehealth, and housing case management (CM) for persons living with homelessness. Annually, the program will provide 75 initial SUD, MH, and housing status screenings through community marketing and will serve a minimum of 50 persons annually through an evidence-based intensive outpatient (IOP) SUD/MH treatment and individual MH, and CM services (250 over the course of the project). The HOME 2 Program will increase access to care in an impoverished and under-resourced 14-county rural/non-urban area of northeast Alabama. The HOME 2 Program will address these issues in several ways. First, HSC will build on partnerships with the community and local providers/stakeholders to increase marketing and availability of services. Second, HSC will provide SUD/MH and housing screenings. Third, HSC will provide enrollees with evidence-based models of treatment, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Peer Services, and telehealth. These EBPs have strong research support in decreasing substance use and mental health symptoms and increasing housing and employment among dually diagnosed persons experiencing homelessness. Fourth, HSC will provide long-term aftercare for enrollees, including MH, CM, and SUD services. Fifth, the HOME 2 Program will increase access to overdose prevention services (fentanyl testing strips, naloxone kits) and education. Finally, the HOME 2 Program will host an annual regional conference focused on SUD/SMI and homelessness issues. Measurable outcomes include decreased substance use and mental health symptoms, increased housing stability, employment, social connectedness, and access to and retention in treatment. The highly experienced project staff has been providing similar services to the target population for over 20 years. The HOME 2 Project will expand and enhance these successes. HSC is accredited by the State of Alabama for provision of behavioral health treatment. A thorough performance assessment, including both local and SAMHSA-requested performance measures, is proposed.
