Rural Mental Health and Substance Abuse Resources

These problems are often overlooked in the discussion of rural health care (I think oral health is, too, but that’s a topic for another post).  September is Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.  I’ve found a number of resources on substance abuse and mental health—grants, training, tools, and reports.  These may give you some ideas in developing programs to address these problems in your community.

 

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation will award grants up to $5,000 to programs that “explore innovations that allow individuals, families, communities and society to move past narrow perceptions of mental health and expand our understanding and collective involvement in finding solutions.â€Â  The program, Rethinking Mental Health: Improving Community Wellbeing, will consider proposals that demonstrate system-changing solutions that have moved beyond the planning stage.  The deadline is October 14.  The Johnson Foundation is a great source of health care information and resources beyond their grant opportunities.

 

The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) created Too Smart to Start, a web based program that “helps youth, families, educators, and communities prevent underage alcohol use and its related problems. It provides useful programs and strategies, downloadable materials, interactive games and exercises, and other resources.â€Â  This site is packed with ideas for underage drinking programs.

 

Rural mental health care access is an increasing problem.  Many rural communities and regions are addressing this challenge in innovative fashion through technology.  This article in the Iowa Independent describes several programs that use technology to “bridge the mental health gap.â€Â  Programs include online support groups and webinars on stress relief.  Federal stimulus funds are available for health information technology (HIT) and telemedicine.  You might consider applying for some of this funding for a mental health program.

 

Calls to the nation’s largest rural suicide hotline are up 20% in 2009.  This is due to several factors, including the lack of rural mental health services and stress related to the economy.  I’ve found two resources that you could use to address this problem in your community:

 

  • The National Center for Suicide Prevention Training (NCSPT) offers a series of free, online training workshops.  These comprehensive training tools focus on youth suicide prevention, but the information has broader applications.     
  • The Suicide Prevention Resource Center has a suicide prevention toolkit specifically for rural primary care providers.  The toolkit “offers the support necessary to establish the primary care provider as one member of a team, fully equipped to reduce suicide risk among their patients.â€Â  You can download the entire kit or order copies for $25.

September 18, 2009 · KJacobson · One Comment
Tags: , ,  Â· Posted in: Grant Advice, Reports and Studies, Training and Tools

One Response

  1. kate - September 18, 2010

    Your topic Rural Health & Community Development » Rural Mental Health and Substance Abuse Resources was interesting.I found it on Sunday searching for health services administration.Please Keep posting on health services administration.

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