El Paso Guidance Center, Inc.

Epcgc Mental Health Starts With Me: Increasing Access to Effective Trauma and Grief Focused Treatment and Service Systems for Children, Adolescents and Their Families Living in El Paso County. - the Overarching Goal of the Mental Health Starts With Me/la Salud Mental Empieza Conmigo (MHSM) Program Is to Increase Access to Effective Trauma and Grief Focused Treatment and Service Systems for Children, Adolescents and Their Families Living in El Paso County, Located in the Southwest Corner of Texas Along the U.s./mexico Border. Uninsured/underinsured School-aged Children/youth (3-17 Yrs) Who Demonstrate Significant Levels of Trauma, Grief, and Disparities in Mental Health Services Will Be Served With a Special Emphasis on Serving Children and Youth and Attending the Rural Clint and San Elizario School Districts Situated on the U.s./mexico Border. El Paso County Is the 9TH Largest County in Texas With a Population of 867,947 (2021); 82.9% Identified as Hispanics. More Than a Quarter of the Population Is Under Age 18 of Which 28% Lives in Poverty, 36% of Adolescent Report Depressive Symptoms, and 75% of Children Are Reported to Have Experienced Multiple Traumas (u.s. Census Bureau, Acs, 2021; Workforce Solutions Borderplex, 2020; Texas Adolescent Mental Health Fact Sheets, 2015). Approximately 60,000 Youth (6-17 Yrs) Were Identified With Mental Health Needs; Approximately 3,000 of Those Had a Substance Use Disorder. El Paso Juvenile Probation Department (JPD) Reported 55% of Juvenile Referrals in 2019 Had a Behavioral Health Need. Paso Del Norte Health Foundation Reports 7.3 Cases of Substantiated Child Abuse Per 1,000 Children in 2020. Approximately 25,000 El Paso County Youth (0-17 Yrs) in 2019 (meadows Mental Health Policy Institute, 2021) Experienced Three or More Aces Placing Them at Higher Risk for Health Problems Later in Life, Including Mental Illness. Aces Are a Multisystemic Public Health Issue Affecting Children, Future Generations, and the Community at Large. El Paso Is the Location of the Nation’s Deadliest Mass Shooting in 2019 Followed by the 2023 Shooting at the Cielo Vista Mall in the Same Shopping Complex, One of the Largest Outbreaks of COVID-19, and Is at the Forefront of Immigration Issues Including Family Separation, Detention, and Deportation. the Program Will Serve 1,000 Unduplicated Children Ages 3-17 and Their Families With Direct Services Including Trauma and Grief Awareness Education, Screening, Assessment, Treatment, and Targeted Case Management Services Over Five Years. in the First Year the Program Will Serve 60 Children/families With Direct Care Services and in Years Two to Five 120 Families Will Be Served. an Additional 60 Families in Year One and 120 in Years Two Through Five Will Be Serves With Trauma Awareness and Education Presentations/workshops. the Project Will Lead a Regional, Trauma-informed Consortium of Care, the West Texas Trauma Informed Care Consortium (wtticc), in Providing Trainings, Workforce Development, and Policy Alignment Opportunities to Build the Community’s Ability to Identify and Connect Youth and Families to Trauma-informed and Grief-focused Care. a Total of 460 Community Providers and Child Serving Entities, 60 in Year One and 100 in Years Two Through Five, Will Obtain Trauma and Grief Awareness Education And/or Professional Development in Trauma and Grief Specific Modalities. the Program Goals Include: Goal 1: Improve the Community’s Trauma and Grief Awareness and the Ability to Respond and Support Youth Ages 3 to 17 and Their Families’ Experiencing Trauma and Grief Living in El Paso County. Goal 2: Improve Early Identification of Youth Ages 3 to 17 That Have Experienced Trauma and Grief Across El Paso County Through Outreach, Coordinated Screening, and Assessment. Goal 3: Increase Access to Evidence-based Behavioral Health Intervention, Treatment, and Targeted Case Management Services for El Paso County Children, Youth, and Families Experiencing Trauma and Grief. Goal 4: Support the Development of an El Paso County Trauma-informed and Grief-focused Systems of Care for Children, Youth, and Families.