Thursday, March 13, 2025
3/13/2025
MHAASA proposes the PR-TREE Project, focusing on Hispanic youth between 12 and 18 years of age with a substance use (SU) or co-occurring mental/SU disorder and their families/caregivers from the catchment area of San Juan and Bayamon Judicial Districts. Using the evidence based Practice (EBP) of Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) along with SBIRT, Wraparound and Trauma-Informed approaches, 450 youth/families will receive expanded outpatient treatment and support services over a 5-year grant period. the project staff will enhance services of MHAASA's licensed Rio Piedras Mental Health Center for Children and Adolescents, strengthening collaboration with the Juvenile Justice (JJ), Child Welfare (CW) and education systems, to use SBIRT and clinical assessments to identify eligible youth and engage them in treatment with least one parent/caregiver. The 11-municipality urban catchment area has a general population of over 750,000, with about 14% unemployment, 45%-60% of families living in poverty; high criminal activity and levels of violence, mostly drug-related. The selected treatment center received/served 156 youth with SU or SU/MH conditions from this catchment area in the past year, through Juvenile TASC and Drug Court diversion. Wraparound approaches currently used will be enhanced, as well as screening with SBIRT in the project and within collaborating agencies. The Spanish Traumatic Events Screening Inventory-Parent Report will be administered to identify youth who have experienced trauma and provide them trauma-informed treatment. Under the MDFT EBP, interventions will be provided in 12-16 session cycles for 8-12 youth participants, each with at least one caregiver, over an intensive three to four-month period per cycle to achieve increased coping, problem-solving, and social communication skills in the Adolescent Domain; improved functioning and parenting practices in the Parent Domain; improved family functioning and parent/child attachments in the Family Domain; and families' capacity to access systems and services to meet their needs in the Community Domain. Project goals and objectives include eliminating illicit drug use in youth; increasing access to treatment for families in drug use; reducing alcohol and tobacco use in all participants; achieving that youth continue or return to school; linking youth/families to primary health care; increasing utilization of public/private agencies' services to fill housing/basic living, education, employment training/placement, peer support, family and socio-economic benefits, legal and other services; reducing risk of infection and transmission of STD/HIV through testing and referral to treatment; and promoting recovery through linkage to support services to prevent relapse. All required activities will be carried out by Project and Center staff. A Lead Evaluator will carry out process/outcomes and EBP fidelity evaluations with results used to improve project performance and comply with SAMHSA requirements. A total of $541,350 is requested per year, to cover infrastructure, EBP T/TA, project services implementation, 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).