Rural recovery court enhancement project - in conjunction with fayette county government in southwest tennessee, licensed treatment provider hope restored counseling will expand mental health…

Rural recovery court enhancement project - in conjunction with fayette county government in southwest tennessee, licensed treatment provider hope restored counseling will expand mental health services, recovery support services, and harm reduction strategies to help hundreds of participants in six (6) recovery court programs over the three-year grant period. The adult recovery courts serve nine (9) unique counties and one (1) city. The total population covered by the proposed project is just under 440,000, or 6.4% of the state's total population. Various demographic factors highlight that the proposed service areas are more socio-economically depressed and under-resourced parts of the state. Select program participant outcomes across the six recovery courts for SFY 20 also show on average: male (58%), female (42%), white (65%), black/african american (35%, more than double the state average), most frequent age group (25-34), and a program completion rate of under half (48%). Most of the six courts also appear to have a significant criminal justice population not yet accessing a recovery court program who could benefit from recovery court participation and the use of expanded recovery court services. Past and current limitations of the six recovery courts have suppressed overall program enrollment, resulting in lost opportunities and unmet need. At the same time, there is potential to expand treatment services, recovery supports, and harm reduction efforts to current court program participants, including increasing the types of specialty mental health treatment therapies that can be offered. The regions served by the proposed project are considered rural, and lack a broad continuum of evidence-based substance abuse treatment and mental health services. The access, service use/delivery, and responsivity obstacles facing clients and program staff extend to: 1) inadequate screening and assessment of potential clients in outlying counties, especially in jail facilities; 2) inability to deliver outpatient treatment within a client's county of residence; 3) transportation challenges faced by clients who are required to submit to frequent drug testing, office visits, attendance at treatment sessions, and court appearances; and 4) case planning and case management services which must be more robust and localized. Utilizing hope restored counseling's current telehealth capabilities and its proposal to expand treatment services, recovery support, and harm reduction to participants who are isolated in rural areas, will greatly assist participants who face various barriers on a daily basis and strengthen their physical and mental health. The overarching purpose of the hope restored counseling service expansion project is to attract more participants to the six recovery court programs, offer a new type service delivery model concurrent with the present system, and expand specialized mental health treatment modalities. To that end, the proposed project has three goals: 1) expand recovery court programming options for participants; 2) increase the availability, quality, and coordination of mental health services offered to recovery court participants; and 3) reduce barriers for recovery court participants. To help achieve those goals, the project has several key objectives: 1) implement recovery court university as a unique recovery support service/harm reduction-based program designed to pique court participants' interests in learning valuable life skills outside of the traditional therapeutic environment and augment current court service delivery methods; 2) increase mental health assessments, evaluations, and evidence-based therapies not currently used in the recovery court programs; 3) increase the number of program clients reporting improved mental health, namely increased self-sufficiency, self-worth, stress/anxiety management, and quality personal relationships; and 4) reduce barriers and expand access to recovery court participants through the use of telehealth services.