Amikids, Inc.

Youth Mental Health First Aid Training for Adults Serving At-risk Youth - the Amikids Youth Mental Health First Aid Training Project Will Provide Training in the Evidence-based Youth Mental Health First Aid Program for 1500 Adults Who Frequently Interact With At-risk Youth, Improving Their Ability to Recognize and Refer Youth to Mental Health Services. This Will Benefit Staff at Amikids Programs Serving Juvenile Justice Involved Youth, as Well as the Staff of Local School Districts, Law Enforcement Agencies, and Youth Service Provider Partners. Amikids Proposes to Implement This Project in 17 of Its Programs Spanning Across Seven States – Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and New Mexico – as Well as in Partnership With Community-based Organizations in These Areas. This Project Will Impact an Estimated 7,500 Youth Over the 5-YEAR Period (in Addition to 1,500 Adults, for a Total of 9000 Individuals Served). the Typical Profile of Youth Served by Amikids Programs Are Juvenile Justice Involved Teenagers Who Come From Low-income Families, Are Youth of Color, and Have Behavioral Issues in School and in the Home. Two Thirds to Three-quarters of Justice Involved Youth Have a Diagnosable Mental Health Disorder and Experience Mental Health Challenges at More Than Four Times the Rate of the General Population. This Project Will Provide Preventative Youth Mental Health Education Through the Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) Program, an Evidence-based Model That Gives Non-clinical Individuals the Tools and Knowledge to Recognize Youth Who Have Unmet Behavioral Health Needs and Refer Them to Appropriate Services. This Is an 8-HOUR Course in Which Participants Learn How to Identify Signs, Symptoms and Risk Factors of Mental Illness and Addictions and Provide Initial Help and Support to Someone Who May Be Developing a Mental Health or Substance Use Problem or Experiencing a Crisis. the Goal of This Project Is to Improve the Ability of Individuals Who Frequently Interact With Youth to Recognize and Appropriately Refer Youth to Mental Health Services by Implementing the Evidenced-based Practice of Ymhfa in 17 Communities. the Measurable Objectives to Be Met by the End of the 5-YEAR Project Period Are: - Provide Regional Ymhfa Trainings for the Direct Care and Teaching Staff of 17 Affiliate Amikids Programs. - Offer a Minimum of 30 Free Ymhfa Trainings to Community Partners of Amikids Including School Districts, Partnering Service Providers, And/or Law Enforcement Agencies. - Train an Average of 300 Amikids Staff and Community Members Per Year for a Total of 1500 Individuals Trained. - Document That at Least 80% of Individuals Trained Report Referring Youth to Mental Health or Substance Abuse Services, as Reported by the Amikids Programs and Community Partners in 17 Communities Who Received the Ymhfa Trainings.