FY 2024 Behavioral Health Service Expansion - Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic (Health Center Program grant number H80CS00639) proposes to increase access to quality behavioral health services by expanding mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) services in central Washington. The objective of the Behavioral Health Services Expansion project is to increase both the total number of patients receiving mental health services and the total number of patients receiving SUD services, including treatment with medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), at an organization-wide level. Program funds will support the recruitment, hiring, and training of frontline mental health and SUD service providers, including Mental Health Workers, Substance Use Disorder Professionals, and Certified Peer Counselors. Mental Health Workers are highly educated, experienced professionals who provide mental health treatment, social work counseling, case management, or primary care-based behavioral health services. either independently or as part of a team, to clients with complex needs. Substance Use Disorder Professionals are highly trained individuals licensed to assesses and diagnose substance use disorders and provide outreach, prevention activities, and individualized treatment services within a care team setting. Certified Peer Counselors use their lived experiences to provide peer counseling that actively engages high-risk youth and their families to teach skills and strategies for reducing crisis episodes and unsafe behaviors. Majority of the patients served by YVFWC are from low-income and racial and ethnic minority subpopulations that are particularly vulnerable to behavioral health disparities. The communities they live in have limited awareness, availability, and access to mental health and SUD service resources. As such, it is imperative that YVFWC be given the opportunity to make the personnel changes necessary to increase the number of mental health and SUD service patients. In growing the number of patients served, YVFWC aims to enhance mental health awareness and strengthen linkages to services; reduce morbidity and mortality associated with opioids; decrease substance use in the community through comprehensive evidence-based integration strategies; and provide a coordinated, multisystem approach to identify patients’ broader healthcare needs.
