“Right now first responders do a pretty amazing job,” said Anya Senetra, Greene County Educational Services Center director of mental health services. “First responders see so much, but often they’re like ‘How do I help? What are things I can do in the moment?’”
The goal is to bridge the gap between crisis intervention, and allowing families to get into long-term mental health care. Greene County is among 68 of 88 Ohio counties in a shortage of mental health services, county officials said.
“When they encounter someone in a high level of distress, how do they manage that? How do they deescalate that, especially when children are around? We’re hoping to take that next step and have a deeper understanding of trauma and how that can impact situations,” Senetra said.
The funding comes from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and will go towards training, community outreach, system assessment and hiring staff. It will also go towards bolstering embedded mental health services in Greene County schools, such as “Handle with Care,” which has touched the lives of over 400 children since it was implemented last year.
As part of the program, if a law enforcement officer or first responder encounters a child during a call, that child’s name and the words “Handle with Care” are forwarded to the school or child care agency before the bell rings the next day. Teachers and educators then know to keep an extra set of eyes on that child, and are able to get them extra help or mental health treatment if they need to.
“It’s an invisible process for kids. A kid should never know that a Handle With Care notice has ever been made,” Senetra said. “All of those supports are just an extra space and grace for those kids.”
The Community Health and Resilience Initiative is projected to reach over 4,500 children and their families over the course of its operation.
“Research shows that children who experience adverse childhood experiences are at risk for poor health and social outcomes. This grant will allow us to provide both trauma informed care to court involved youth who have experienced adverse childhood events and support their recovery from these traumatic events,” said Juvenile Court Judge Amy Lewis.
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