Behavioral health workforce education and training program for paraprofessionals - this project will strengthen central oregon's behavioral health paraprofessional workforce in high-demand and…

Behavioral health workforce education and training program for paraprofessionals - this project will strengthen central oregon's behavioral health paraprofessional workforce in high-demand and high-need areas. To strengthen the behavioral health workforce, the project will expand and improve behavioral health paraprofessional training programs at central oregon community college (cocc), enhancing training curriculum to offer accelerated pathways to certifications as qualified mental health associates (qmha-1) and certified alcohol and drug counselors (cadc-1). Furthermore, these training programs will be improved by offering community-based, experiential learning opportunities through field placements with behavioral health providers in high-demand and high-need areas. The project will also include a focus on developing trainees' knowledge and understanding of children who have experienced trauma and are at risk for behavioral health disorders, recruiting those interested in working with trauma-impacted youth, and building trainees' knowledge and skills related to interprofessional collaboration. The education components will occur onsite at cocc, while supervised field placements will occur at six behavioral health facilities in areas designated as health professional shortage areas (hpsas) for mental health. Upon completion of their education and field placements, students will be assisted with entering the local behavioral health paraprofessional workforce, helping to address the shortage of behavioral health workers in the region. Project trainees will be primarily adults aged 25-40 from central oregon with limited incomes. The project is a direct response to the behavioral health workforce needs of central oregon. All three counties in central oregon have a dire shortage of behavioral health workers, with crook and jefferson counties being designated as a "high need geographic" health professional shortage area (hpsa) for mental health, and deschutes county being designated as an hpsa for mental health among medicaid-eligible residents. Central oregon's behavioral health workforce shortage is due to a wide array of factors including: 1) increased demand for services as mental health outcomes worsen in the area; 2) an increase in the number of mental health disorders being officially recognized; 3) staff turnover due to poor job preparation, burnout, and lack of competitive pay; 4) a lack of qualified residents to fill open positions, including those who have lived experience similar to their patient populations; and 5) the long-duration education requirements for students looking to become cadcs or qmhas. Currently, students pursuing a qmha-1 certification must complete a 4-year degree, and students pursuing a cadc-1 certification must complete a 2-year degree. However, this project will include new pathways that reduce the time required to obtain these certifications to a 2-year education for qmha, and a 1-year education for cadc. The workforce shortage includes a large number of open, unfilled positions for entry-level certified alcohol and drug counselors (cadc) and qualified mental health associates (qmha), as well as a lack of mental health care providers who are trained to address the mental health needs of at-risk adolescents. Funding priorities: this project qualifies for funding priority 1 (role of the family and the lived experience of the consumer and family paraprofessional partnership) due to the inclusion of extensive project curriculum associated with this priority. Additionally, this project qualifies for a funding preference (qualification 1) because the program has a high rate for placing program completers in practice settings that have a principal focus of serving residents of medically underserved communities.