FY 2024 behavioral health service expansion - project title: FY 2024 behavioral health service expansion (BHSE) applicant organization name: lincoln county community health center DBA northwest…

FY 2024 behavioral health service expansion - project title: FY 2024 behavioral health service expansion (BHSE) applicant organization name: lincoln county community health center DBA northwest community health center health center program grant number: H80CS00805 address: 320 east 2ND street, libby MT 59923 contact phone number (VOICE): 406-283-6900 website address: WWW.northwestchc.ORG program funds requested in the application: this application requests a total of $1,100,000 in BHSE supplemental funding, with $600,000 for year 1 and $500,000 for year 2. Lincoln county community health center DBA northwest community health center (NWCHC), a non-profit federally qualified health center, has been providing accessible, high-quality, patient-focused primary health care to residents of lincoln county, MT since 2001. In 2023, NWCHC served 7,769 patients via 33,100 total encounters from three service delivery sites, including 575 patients with mental health (MH) services, 0 patients with substance use disorder (SUD) services, and 110 patients with medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) (UDS). NWCHC is the only safety net provider in the 3,675 square miles service area. Need: montana has persistently remained among the worst three states in the country for suicide completion rates (CDC, suicide rates by state, 2021). In 2021, the most recent data available, the rate of suicide mortality among montanans was 32.0 per 100,000 population as compared to the US at 13.5. The 2021 montana youth risk behavior survey revealed that over 41% of high school students felt so SAD or hopeless almost every day for two or more consecutive weeks that they stopped doing some usual activities. Further, 21.7% of students seriously considered suicide and 18% had a plan for doing so; 10.2% had actually made a suicide attempt. The situation is even more dire in lincoln county, where 51.5% of high school students reported they felt SAD or hopeless almost every day for two weeks or more in a row, and 33.1% of students reported that they seriously considered suicide. The 2023 lincoln county community health needs assessment (CHNA) revealed that an increasing percentage of respondents were negatively impacted by their own or someone else's mental health issues (67.6% in 2023 as compared with 63.0% in 2020). In addition, 62.4% of respondents in the CHNA reported alcohol and drug use as their most serious health concern. NWCHC is the only safety net provider in the service area; BHSE support is desperately needed to establish basic SUD services and expand MH and MOUD, to ensure access to essential BH care for low income and uninsured patients. Services: NWCHC will use BHSE to increase access to mental health, SUD, and MOUD services for the target population. NWCHC currently provides MH and MOUD services, with MH services provided by 0.2 FTE psychiatrists, 1.0 FTE licensed clinical psychologist, 2.0 FTE lcsw and 1.0 FTE BH care manager. In addition, MOUD services are provided by family physicians and physician extenders. NWCHC is proposing to add new SUD services and expand MH and MOUD, by hiring 7.0 FTE staff, including 1.0 FTE psychiatric nurse practitioner (PNP), 1.0 FTE medical assistant, 1.0 FTE lcsw, 1.0 FTE care manager, 1.0 FTE licensed addiction counselor (LAC) and 1.0 FTE project coordinator, with 1.0 FTE peer support specialist (PSS) added in year 2. The PNP, LAC, and PSS represent new services to the NWCHC team and to the service area. In addition, BHSE funding will be used for training and supplies to equip the BH team. NWCHC anticipates that the BHSE project will increase the number of patients receiving behavioral health services by the end of the CY2025, including a total of 646 MH services patients, 71 SUD services patients, and 130 patients receiving MOUD. Overall, NWCHC estimates an increase of 10 unduplicated new health center patients. This will support the BHSE purpose of increasing the number of patients who access MH and SUD services, including patients receiving treatment