PROCEED, Inc. (“PROCEED”) is a multicultural, 501(c)(3), non-profit agency that provides high-quality, culturally and linguistically competent and trauma-informed substance use disorder (“SUD”) and co-occurring SUD and mental disorders (“COD”) treatment, HIV and viral hepatitis prevention and testing, recovery support, and related services to residents of Union County, New Jersey since 1970. In response to documented increases in substance use in Union County by the NJ Substance Abuse and Monitoring System, data from the NJ Department of Health designating Union County as having the third highest number of HIV/AIDS cases, and the on-going disparity in risk, access, and use of SUD/COD and HIV treatment among Latino and African-American /Black men, PROCEED proposes the Motivated Men Project/El Proyecto de Motivación para Hombres (“MMP”).
MMP is a comprehensive, bilingual/bicultural, multi-component substance use disorder/ co-occurring mental disorder (SUD/COD) treatment and HIV prevention program that seeks to expand the availability and accessibility of SUD/COD treatment services for Latino and African-American/Black men in the City of Elizabeth and greater Union County. Emphasis will be placed on engaging gay men and men-who-have-sex-with-men, and their partners who are living with HIV, or are at high-risk for HIV, and struggling with a substance use disorder (SUD) or co-occurring mental illness and SUD (COD). MMP will integrate SUD/COD diagnosis and treatment with onsite testing and linkage to care for HIV and viral hepatitis. PROCEED will weave the following evidence-based practices into improved engagement, retention, and completion of treatment for Latino and African-American/Black men: Motivational Interviewing (MI), Modelo de Intervención Psychomedica (MIP), Seeking Safety, Strengths-Based Case Management (SBCM) for Substance Users or Brief SBCM for Substance Users, Integrated Dual Diagnosis Treatment, Cultural Congruence, Wellness Self-Management. Outpatient Psychiatric Care and Case Management services will also be offered.
The proposed MMP will serve 80 clients in Year 1, and 110 clients in Years 2 though 5, for a 5-year project total of 520 clients. It is anticipated that MMP will improve engagement and treatment outcomes with the population of focus based on the following NJ-SAMS data: Three-fourths (73.2%) of the Union County residents that sought SUD/COD treatment in 2017 , sought treatment in Elizabeth or one of two contiguous municipalities; 81% of individuals that sought SUD/COD treatment in Union originated in Union or Essex Counties; but only 43% had stopped using illicit drugs/alcohol at discharge. While Latinos and African-Americans constitute 78% of the Elizabeth population, only 24% of individuals seeking SUD/COD treatment in Union County were Latino, a strong indicator that Latinos are not being adequately served.