FY 2024 behavioral health service expansion - family health centers of southwest florida, INC

Health center program grant number: H80CS00185 mental health and behavioral healthcare are crucial services for the medically underserved. Southwest florida is designated as a mental health health professional shortage area (HPSA), with only 8.7 mental health providers for every 100,000 people, significantly below both the florida and national averages. The florida department of health has identified the shortage of mental health providers as a care GAP, and regional community health needs assessments have identified mental health as the top priority among providers and community leaders. Family health centers of southwest florida (family health centers) will expand its behavioral health services to include traditional outpatient therapy with licensed mental health professionals. We will collaborate with local providers to offer more intensive outpatient treatment and hospitalization therapies. Family health services will increase capacity in the region, especially for our priority population - medically underserved patients. Family health centers will take a holistic approach to increasing access to behavioral health services. We will apply our extensive experience in providing healthcare and case management services to our priority population-the medically underserved population of southwest florida. Family health centers will collaborate with other behavioral healthcare providers in our project area to minimize service duplication. We will strengthen existing partnerships and cultivate new relationships to ensure patients connect with additional community services. With increased capacity, family health centers will increase the number of patients receiving mental health services and the number of patients receiving substance use disorder services, including patients receiving treatment with moud. Family health centers will establish a behavioral health clinic at our lehigh acres healt H center, which serves an area with a lower density of mental health assets than other regions of our project area. The behavioral health clinic will be CO-located with our medical services (adult, pediatric, women, and geriatric) and social services to reinforce the continuum of care and facilitate warm patient hand-offs.