Friday, November 22, 2024
11/22/2024
PROJECT ABSTRACT Project Vida Health Center (PVHC), a Federally Qualified Health Center serving the homeless and low-income community El Paso, Texas, is proposing the development of a culturally competent, trauma-informed collaborative that integrates behavioral health treatment and services for substance use disorders and co-occurring mental and substance use disorders, permanent housing, and other critical services for El Paso’s homeless population. Population to be Served: A total of 1227 people were homeless during the 2016 Point-in-Time Count. 524 persons in families, including 369 teens/children, and 590 individuals were in shelters. 113 individuals awoke living on El Paso's streets. These homeless individuals and families who are struggling with substance use disorders (SUD) or co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders (COD) are the population of focus. A 2011 study indicated that 18% of individuals in shelters had a mental health disability and 17% had a substance use/alcohol disability. Among those living on the streets, 37% had a mental health disability and 47% had a substance use/alcohol disability. The target population has needs that are complicated by SUDs and CODs and lack access to resources to obtain clinical and recovery support and housing services. Strategies and Interventions: The PHQ-9 and DAST tools will be used to screen participants for the project, while the GPRA will be used to collect outcome and process data. Project participants will receive mental health counseling and substance abuse services, including intensive outpatient treatment, short-term residential treatment, peer recovery services, and case management services, including connecting participants to primary care services and permanent housing. Outreach staff and peer recovery coaches will work to enroll participants in mainstream benefits programs (e.g., SSI/SSDI, TANF, SNAP) and provide wraparound recovery services (e.g., child care, transportation, vocational and educational training). Project Goals and Measurable Objectives: Project Goals include (1) Increase access to substance abuse and mental health screening, treatment and supportive recovery services for the El Paso area homeless population with CODs and SUDs; (2) Improve the quality and impact of each patient interaction by creating a highly trained, culturally competent workforce; and (3) Generate outcome and process evaluation data to effectively analyze the impact of the program. The project is expected to serve 500 homeless participants (100 per year) during the five-year project period.
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).
