MENTAL HEALTH AMERICA OF OHIO INC

IN 2024, THE WORKPLACE HEALTH PROGRAM TEAM CONDUCTED 16 OCCUMETRICS ASSESSMENTS WITH A COMBINATION OF NEW AND PREVIOUSLY ENGAGED AGENCIES AND THROUGH FUNDING FROM TWO DIFFERENT SOURCES. OCCUMETRICS STAFF CONTINUE TO SIT ON MULTIPLE COMMITTEES ADDRESSING BEHAVIORAL HEALTH WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. TWO FUNDING CONTRACTS WERE SECURED TO LAUNCH TWO DIFFERENT PILOT PROGRAMS IN 2025 DESIGNED TO CREATE COMMUNITIES OF BEST PRACTICE FOR VARIOUS LEVELS OF LEADERSHIP IN BOTH LOCAL AND STATEWIDE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AGENCIES. OUR PEER RECOVERY SUPPORT (PRS) SERVICES FOR PROFESSIONALS WHO USE THEIR LIVED EXPERIENCE TO HELP OTHERS ON THEIR PATH TO RECOVERY CONTINUED TO GROW. OUR TEAM HELD EIGHT TRAININGS IN FRANKLIN COUNTY AND THREE STATEWIDE VIRTUAL TRAININGS IN 2024 WITH A TOTAL OF 147 PROFESSIONALS COMPLETING THE CLASS AND HOSTED TWO PRS EVENTS WITH A TOTAL OF 158 ATTENDEES. IN 2024, WE LAUNCHED THE PRS INTERNSHIP PROGRAMWHICH PROVIDES ON-THE-JOB EXPERIENCE TO CERTIFIED PRS WITH THE GOAL OF DEVELOPING THEIR SKILLS IN THE WORKPLACE. IN THE FINAL QUARTER OF THE YEAR, THE PROGRAM LAUNCHED ITS PILOT COHORT OF FOUR INTERNS WHO WERE PLACED AT THREE LOCAL BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AGENCIES. IN ADDITION TO THEIR WORK AT THE CONTRACTED HOST SITES, THE INTERNS ALSO COMPLETED AN ORIENTATION AND BI-WEEKLY MEETINGS WITH MHAOHIO, WHICH PROVIDES SUPPLEMENTAL TRAINING AND SUPPORT. IN 2024, THE POEM PROGRAM (PERINATAL OUTREACH & ENCOURAGEMENT FOR MOMS) PROVIDED A RANGE OF SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES. THE PERINATAL MENTAL HEALTH PEER SERVICES, POEM PEER CARECONNECT, RECEIVED 2,586 REFERRALS FOR PREGNANT AND POSTPARTUM INDIVIDUALS ACROSS THE STATE. POEM SERVED 229 PARTICIPANTS THROUGH VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON SUPPORT GROUPS AND FACILITATED 157 MENTOR- MENTEE PEER SUPPORT CONNECTIONS. PARTICIPANTS IN POEM RISE COMPRISED OVER 40% OF PROGRAM REFERRALS. OVER THE COURSE OF THE YEAR, 96 PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED RISE EVENTS FOCUSED ON RAISING AWARENESS AND INITIATING CONVERSATIONS ABOUT BLACK MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH. WE HOSTED FIVE CONTINUING EDUCATION (CE) TRAININGS, ENGAGING 336 PROFESSIONALS AND PROVIDERS. PROGRAM STAFF ALSO PRESENTED AT ADDITIONAL TRAININGS AND SHARED RESOURCES AT MORE THAN 35 PARTNER EVENTS, MAKING DIRECT CONNECTIONS WITH PEERS AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS. POEMS VOLUNTEER MANAGER RECRUITED AND TRAINED 22 NEW PROGRAM VOLUNTEERS IN 2024, BRINGING THE TOTAL NUMBER OF ACTIVE VOLUNTEERS TO 116. IN ADVOCACY AND SYSTEMS-LEVEL WORK, MHAOHIOS POEM PROGRAM CONTINUED TO HOST AND SERVE AS ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE OHIO PERINATAL MENTAL HEALTH TASK FORCE.THE TASK FORCE HAS CONTINUED TO GROW, NOW INCLUDING NEARLY 500 INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS FROM ACROSS THE STATE. ITS FIVE STRATEGIC AREA ACTION TEAMS REMAINED ACTIVE IN THE AREAS OF RESEARCH & DATA, TREATMENT & SUPPORT, PUBLIC AWARENESS, SCREENING & IDENTIFICATION, AND POLICY & REGULATION. THE GET CONNECTED FRANKLIN COUNTY PROGRAM OFFERED CARE NAVIGATION AND REFERRAL TO OVER 1400 CALLERS IN 2024. ONE PARTICIPANT REPORTED, I HAD NO IDEA WHERE TO GO FOR HELP, OR THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO ME. ALL I KNEW WAS THAT I DIDNT WANT TO BE CONSUMED BY THE DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY THAT I WAS SUFFERING THROUGH. I HAVE SINCE BEEN CONNECTED WITH A COUNSELOR AND AM WORKING THROUGH MY SYMPTOMS. I AM ABLE TO FOCUS ON GETTING BETTER PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY, INSTEAD OF SHUTTING MYSELF OFF FROM THE WORLD. I FEEL LIKE I AM GETTING MY LIFE BACK. THE FAMILY ADVOCATE SERVICE, WHICH OFFERS EXTENDED CARE NAVIGATION AND SUPPORT TO FAMILY MEMBERS SUPPORTING A LOVED ONE WITH A MENTAL ILLNESS, WORKED WITH 43 NEW FAMILIES IN 2024. IN 2024, THE GET CONNECTED PROGRAM IN FAIRFIELD COUNTY SERVED A TOTAL OF 250 PEOPLE, PROVIDING REFERRALS, INFORMATION, AND ADVOCACY SERVICES TO MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY. THE PROGRAM HAS CONTINUED TO GROW YEAR TO YEAR AND FUNDING WAS MAINTAINED. THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, THIS PROGRAM FOCUSED ON GROWING RELATIONSHIPS WITH POTENTIAL REFERRAL SOURCES AND PUBLICIZING THE SERVICE DIRECTLY TO THE COMMUNITY. THE GET CONNECTED PROGRAM MANAGER ALSO REPRESENTS THE FAIRFIELD COUNTY ADAMH BOARD ON THE COUNTYS GUARDIANSHIP BOARD. OUR SUPPORT GROUPS PROGRAM CURRENTLY HOSTS 15 ACTIVE GROUPS ACROSS FRANKLIN COUNTY COVERING TOPICS OFANXIETY, DEPRESSION, BIPOLAR DISORDER, OCD, SYMPTOMS OF PSYCHOSIS, AND FAMILIES OF INDIVIDUALS WITH MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS. AMONG THESE GROUPS IN 2024, THIS PROGRAM PROVIDED 2,760 CONTACT HOURS REACHING 575 UNIQUE PARTICIPANTS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. THIS PROGRAM IS MADE POSSIBLE WITH A ROSTER OF THIRTY VOLUNTEER FACILITATORS, EIGHTEEN OF WHOM (60%) ARE INDIVIDUALS WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE. FACILITATORS ARE TRAINED TO SUPPORT PARTICIPANTS IN SHARING THEIR EXPERIENCES AND BUILDING SUPPORTIVE CONNECTIONS IN THE GROUP. OUR PARTICIPANTS SHARE FEEDBACK THAT SUPPORTS THE PROPOSED OUTCOMES OF THESE GROUPS, WITH STATEMENTS INCLUDING, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE GROUP. I CAN SPEAK OPENLY ABOUT WHATEVER STRESSES OR SYMPTOMS THAT I HAVE. THE PROGRAM CONTINUES TO FOCUS ON FOSTERING AUTHENTIC PEER-LED SPACES THAT AREACCESSIBLE TO DIVERSE COMMUNITIES. MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID IS AN EVIDENCE-BASED TRAINING THAT TEACHES ADULTS HOW TO RECOGNIZE AND RESPOND TO SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE CHALLENGES. IN 2024, THE MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID TRAINING PROGRAM IN FRANKLIN COUNTY FACILITATED A TOTAL OF 15 TRAININGS WHICH RESULTED IN 167 NEW MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AIDERS. OF THOSE, THERE WERE 8 YOUTH MHFA TRAININGS, WHICH TRAINED 80 PEOPLE, AND 7 ADULT MHFA TRAININGS, WHICH TRAINED 87 PEOPLE. IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR, THE DECISION WAS MADE TO SUNSET THE MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID PROGRAM DUE TO DECLINING INTEREST IN FRANKLIN COUNTY AND THE AVAILABILITY OF TRAININGS THROUGH OTHER AGENCIES. THIS WAS EXECUTED IN SEPTEMBER OF 2024 AND NO TRAININGS WERE HELD THE FINAL QUARTER OF THE YEAR. IN 2024,FRANKLIN COUNTY SUICIDE PREVENTION COALITION (FCSPC) MEMBERS DONATED 349.15 HOURS AND 8,041 OF IN-KIND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES TO MHAOHIO. TOGETHER, FCSPC MEMBERS DEVELOPED AND PUBLISHED THE 2024 FRANKLIN COUNTY SUICIDE REPORT. ADDITIONALLY, THE FCSPC PROVIDED 2,422 PEOPLE WITH CRITICAL SUICIDE PREVENTION INFORMATION THROUGH OUTREACH EVENTS. THIS INCLUDED PARTNERING MULTIPLE ORGANIZATIONS TO COORDINATE 59 EVIDENCE-BASED SUICIDE PREVENTION TRAININGS AND EVENTS. IN 2024, THE PRO BONO COUNSELING PROGRAM (PBCP) CONTINUED TO SERVE UN- AND UNDERINSURED RESIDENTS OF FRANKLIN COUNTY BY CONNECTING 47 OF THE 108 INDIVIDUALS SCREENED INTO THE PROGRAM TO VOLUNTEER CLINICIANS FOR FREE SHORT-TERM COUNSELING. THE PROGRAM RECEIVED 597 TOTAL REQUESTS FOR COUNSELING AND EACH OF THE 209 INDIVIDUALS SCREENED WERE PROVIDED RESOURCES AND INFORMATION, EVEN IF THEY WERE NOT SCREENED INTO THE PROGRAM. VOLUNTEER CLINICIANS DONATED 345.15 HOURS OF COUNSELING IN THE CALENDAR YEAR. OUR TEAM RECRUITED 24 NEW VOLUNTEER CLINICIANS, EACH OF WHOM COMMITTED TO SEEING A MINIMUM OF ONE CLIENT FOR AT LEAST 12 FREE COUNSELING SESSIONS EACH YEAR.