Healthworks assertive community treatment (act) will focus on adults with substance use and CO-occurring disorders who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability in windham county, vermont

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) awarded Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, Inc. $1.5 million on September 30, 2025, under the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance program (CFDA 93.243) to implement the HEALTHWORKS Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) program in Windham County, Vermont.

The award funds an integrated care model delivering onsite substance use treatment, mental health services, medical care, peer support, and case management to adults with substance use and co-occurring disorders experiencing homelessness or housing instability. The multidisciplinary team includes mental health clinicians, psychiatric and medical providers, peer advocates, and outreach case managers. Services encompass screenings and assessments for substance use and co-occurring disorders; medication management for alcohol and opioid use disorders; individual and group psychotherapy; peer recovery support; medical care for substance-use-related complications; tobacco cessation strategies; infectious disease care and management; low-barrier approaches to medication-assisted treatment; and housing navigation and retention services. The program will provide onsite treatment and care for 50 individuals accessing emergency housing services, with a goal of serving at least 100 unduplicated individuals by year three of funding.

The period of performance runs from September 30, 2025, through September 29, 2028. Work is performed in Brattleboro, Vermont 05301.

Healthworks act will: a) provide onsite treatment and care for 50 people with substance use or CO-occurring disorders, who are accessing emergency housing services; b) employ the act model for an integrated substance use, mental health, and medical treatment approach, c) bring together mental health clinicians, psychiatric and medical providers, peer advocates, and outreach case managers in a multidisciplinary project. The goal of healthworks act is to provide integrated substance use treatment, medical care, and supportive services to at least 100 unduplicated individuals with substance use (SUD) and CO-occurring disorders (COD) who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability by year three of funding. Strategies and interventions for healthworks act's integrated care and services include a multidisciplinary approach to screenings, assessments, and treatment planning for SUD/COD; provision of treatment for SUD/COD including prescribing and managing medications for alcohol and opioid use disorders (maud/moud), individual and group psychotherapy, and peer recovery support services; medical care for complications related to substance use; tobacco cessation strategies; peer support and advocacy, and outreach case management with housing navigation services. Additional strategies include integration of primary care services into the act model, infectious disease care and management, low-barrier approaches to moud/maud, and housing navigation and retention services from outreach case managers. Measurable objectives are: ● implement an interdisciplinary assertive community treatment (act) team with onsite, integrated substance use, mental health, and medical care, peer support, and case management services at the emergency shelter facilities, with the target of serving 50 adults experiencing homelessness or housing instability in year one. ● provide onsite medical treatment and care, including medications for substance use, with a target of serving 50 people experiencing homelessness or housing instability in year one. ● provide accessible, trauma-informed, onsite substance use and mental health treatment to 50 people experiencing homelessness or housing instability in year one. ● provide accessible, trauma-informed peer support services with a target of serving 50 people experiencing homelessness or housing instability in year one.