FY 2024 Behavioral Health Service Expansion - OneWorld Community Health Centers (OneWorld) is a 501(c) 3, non-profit organization located in Omaha, Nebraska. OneWorld began as a free health clinic in 1970, initially staffed by volunteer physicians. Since HRSA initially awarded grant funds to OneWorld as a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in 2001, the scope and breadth of sites and services have expanded significantly. OneWorld served 51,913 patients in 2023. OneWorld’s target population includes individuals residing at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), the uninsured and the medically underserved. In 2023, 42% of OneWorld’s patients with known income, 98% reported incomes under 200% of the FPL. Additionally, 69% were Hispanic and 34% best served in a language other than English. Many of them lacked the resources to access SUD and behavioral health services. Further barriers to care include poverty, lack of transportation, cost, stigma, language and culture. The health center is experiencing increasing demand for behavioral health, SUD, MOUD services, that are culturally and linguistically appropriate. OneWorld helps break down patient barriers by serving all people, without regard for insurance status or ability to pay, as well as locating sites and services throughout the community in efforts to support care that is more convenient. OneWorld providers work passionately to meet the health needs of the community within the service area. OneWorld operates 17 clinic locations, including a three-facility campus in Omaha, located in an underserved Hispanic community, four clinics in high-poverty cities surrounding Omaha, five inner city School Based Health Centers, one mobile medical school-based clinic, two mobile dental clinics and two teen and young adult (stand-alone) clinics. Mental health ranked as the number one concern in the most recent regional Community Health Needs Assessment; substance use ranked as the third highest concern. OneWorld’s service area covers a designated Medically Underserved Area/Population (MUAP), including Sarpy County where there are 158 mental health providers per 100,000. OneWorld proposes to accelerate access to high-quality integrated behavioral health services, including prevention and treatment of mental health conditions and substance use disorder. OneWorld will hire 1 FTE psychiatric nurse for use of medications for opioid disorder (MOUD), 3 FTE behavioral health therapists, two of which will be licensed drug and alcohol counselors, .3 Psychiatrist and a social services navigator. In addition, OneWorld will leverage community relationships to address gaps in care for underserved populations. The new providers will work within a multidisciplinary team expanding and building on OneWorld’s successful implementation of primary and behavioral health integration. To increase behavioral health and substance use disorder capacity, OneWorld will use traditional behavioral health therapy, the collaborative care model based on the University of Washington (AIMS), as well as Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD). OneWorld is requesting Behavioral Health Services Expansion funding for a proposed two-year period to expand critically needed culturally respectful and linguistically and competent behavioral health and SUD treatment, including MOUD to current clinical and school sites in Omaha, NE. The target population for this project are the students, families and communities served by OneWorld. This expansion will serve an estimated additional 2,115 behavioral health patients including 480 SUD patients (89% increase) and 180 MOUD (50% increase), bringing OneWorld to 7,718 total behavioral health patients,an increase of 27.4% over the two year period. With patient-centric approaches, navigation, care management and coordination, OneWorld will demonstrate success in overcoming common barriers to patients initiating and continuing behavioral health SUD and MOUD services.
