Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program for Paraprofessionals - Idaho’s lack of mental health professionals severely impacts the state with every county designated as a shortage area. As community liaisons, community health workers (CHWs) are well-positioned to alleviate this gap. Idaho State University’s CHW Training Academy proposes the Idaho Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training (I-BHWET) program to improve and expand the training of CHWs as paraprofessionals within Idaho’s behavioral health workforce. Funding is requested for I-BHWET Levels 1 (pre-service) and Level 2 (in-service) to provide trainee support. Our CHW registered apprenticeship program was established by the U.S. Department of Labor in 2022. Through innovative curriculum enhancements, expanded experiential training opportunities and support, and strategic community partnerships, this project will equip trainees at both levels with the essential skills to deliver high-quality, evidence-based behavioral health services and coordination as part of a care team. The program emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration, the integration of behavioral health into primary care and community-based organizations, and the development of digital health literacy and tele-behavioral health technological skills to improve service accessibility across Idaho. Through experiential training, our initiative will increase the number of well-trained CHWs working in behavioral health settings, particularly with children, adolescents, and transitional-age youth in high-need and high-demand areas. The I-BHWET program requests funding priority based on Priority 1: the role of the family and the lived experience of the consumer and family paraprofessional partnership, and funding preference based on our fulfillment of Qualification 1: High Rate, Qualification 2: Significant Increase, and Qualification 3: New Program criterion 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7.
