As we near the end of 2023, we reflect on the growth of each of our programs, the opportunities that have been created, and the impact we’ve been able to have on the communities we serve.
We look forward to continued growth of these programs under the direction and leadership of our new Executive Director, Tonya Fulwider, who was appointed to the position on December 6.
We are happy to share the following program updates, and feel encouraged and excited about the possibilities for 2024.
POEM
POEM continued to support an increasing number of moms and birthing persons in 2023, while also building additional supports and structures to expand POEM’s services in the Dayton and Montgomery County area. POEM’s peer support staff served over 2,000 moms and birthing persons this year, connecting them to the mental health services and support they needed as they navigated the challenges of pregnancy and postpartum. POEM Rise organized three “Let’s Talk About It” virtual events for Black moms and birthing persons to connect in spaces with peers to learn and engage with topics related specifically to the mental health and well-being of Black parents. POEM Rise also hosted a second annual Rise at the Park, a community event to gather Rise participants and their families for connection and community.
POEM community and statewide staff provided educational presentations to over 30 community and statewide organizations in 2023, with offerings ranging from general program information to the presentation of a research-informed project led by Education Manager Raquel Williams titled “Perinatal Mental Health Screening with Black Moms and Birthing Persons.” The Ohio Perinatal Mental Health (OPMH) Task Force launched in February this year, gathering over 200 registrants – individuals with lived experience, policymakers, advocates, social workers, clinicians, birth workers, and others – for its inaugural meeting. OPMH Task Force collaboration yielded the formation of five strategic areas of focus with specific objectives and action teams as well as a formal Policy Agenda with action-focused priorities that will take root in 2024.
Pro Bono Counseling
The Pro Bono Counseling Program received over 500 requests for counseling in 2023 and was able to successfully link over 100 of those individuals with a volunteer clinician for short-term counseling at no cost to the client. Other requests were connected with community resources, such as low-cost services, other ADAMH-funded network of care agencies, or local care for non-Franklin County residents. Over one-third of our 70 active volunteers have been with the program for two years or more. PBCP Volunteer of the Year winner Louisa Celebrezze alone has contributed over 100 hours of free counseling in her years with the program. Three new community partnerships were established this year with Clintonville Counseling and Wellness, Dragonfly Counseling and Wellness, and Holistic Consultation, and connected clinical interns to the PBCP to help meet community counseling needs. The program also continued to benefit from established partnerships with practices like Cornerstone Family Services and Beacon Counseling Center. Survey outcomes report that over 75% of respondents experienced at least one positive outcome as a result of counseling at 90 and 180 days post linkage.
Support Groups
Throughout the 2023 year, our Support Groups program has continued to offer powerful, peer-driven spaces for connection and healing. The past calendar year saw the expansion of our Families In Touch offerings, with the return or launch of three groups, as well as a second peer-led group for those living with OCD. We welcomed more than a dozen new facilitators, many of whom are peers with lived experience transitioning into a leadership role in these groups. Thanks to new data collection methods, we have more robust information than ever about who our program is reaching, where our gaps exist, and what our impact is. In 2024, we plan to continue expanding and strengthening the roots of this program in our community and helping folks to experience the benefits of being part of a support group community.
Get Connected
2023 has kept the Get Connected and Family Advocate programs quite busy as we have continued to connect Central Ohio individuals and families to the mental health care and support they need. The Get Connected program has provided care navigation to almost 1500 individuals and families in 2023; that is a 22% increase from last year. Our Family Advocate service, which supports families who are caring for a loved one with a mental health disorder has also flourished, providing support to 58 families, almost double our yearly goal of 30 new participants. We could not do this critically important work without the dedication and compassion of our staff and volunteers, as well as everyone in the Central Ohio community who supports the work of MHAOhio.
Peer Recovery Support
MHAOhio’s PRS programs also flourished in 2023. Collaboration with our phenomenal partners helped the Peer Recovery Support Program build and launch new projects to support PRS and employers this year. In partnership with the ADAMH Board, Maryhaven, and Southeast Healthcare, we hosted the second annual PRS Community Event and Job Fair. Eleven employers and more than 80 certified PRS and peers interested in the field participated in the event. In October, we held a second event, “Building the Peer Supporter Career” where more than 50 prospective Peer Recovery Supporters and partners joined us to learn about peer support work and access job-readiness resources. We also revamped the Peer Employer Learning Collaborative, which now meets monthly instead of quarterly, with special guests and other content relevant and helpful to the participants who employ PRS. Finally, we continued our partnership with Southeast Healthcare to provide training graduates with a field placement opportunity to observe peer support provided by teams at Southeast. This program led to obtaining funding for a more robust PRS Internship Program and the hiring of a PRS Internship Manager.
Mental Health First Aid
The Mental Health First Aid program had another successful year offering free and accessible trainings to Franklin County residents and employees. The program exceeded our goal and trained over 400 individuals in Youth and Adult MHFA. We were also able to certify a new trainer to help support more classes and expand community partnerships.
Occumetrics
Occumetrics, MHAOhio’s workplace wellbeing assessment, continued to grow in 2023. A fourth staff member joined the workplace health team and we added two new program funders, to support more assessments annually than ever before. Our team joined both the ADAMH Workforce Development Council and the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services Workforce Advisory Council. The workplace wellness data we’ve accumulated over 6+ years is helping to inform the direction and priorities of local and statewide workforce development initiatives and has been shared with behavioral health leaders across the state through multiple presentation opportunities.
Franklin County Suicide Prevention Coalition
The Franklin County Suicide Prevention Coalition, hosted by MHAOhio and funded by the ADAMH Board of Franklin County, began implementing the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF) to develop its 2024-2026 Strategic Plan. As part of this process, the FCSPC developed its first joint report, the 2023 Franklin County Suicide Report, which provides local data and prevention recommendations. The FCSPC also assessed community readiness to prevent suicide using the Tri-Ethnic Community Readiness Model and released its 2023 Brief Community Readiness Assessment Report. Findings from both reports informed the development of the Strategic Plan, which will be publicly released in January.
This year, seven local leaders participated in the FCSPC’s Question, Persuade, and Refer (QPR) Instructor Class, became certified QPR Instructors, and joined the FCSPC’s QPR Instructor Cohort. The cohort coordinated the evidence-based QPR training for 404 community members. The FCSPC is currently creating its 2024 training calendar; request a training here!
In August, the FCSPC was named lead agency in the Franklin County Community Health Improvement Plan for the strategy of increasing evidence-based prevention education. As part of this work, the FCSPC is collaborating with local organizations to increase access to QPR training and reduce access to lethal means through community lockbox distribution. Stay updated on the FCSPC by joining its newsletter!
This lifechanging work is only possible thanks to you – the community that supports us. Thank you to the volunteers, donors, and mental health advocates who drive our work forward, including the ADAMH Boards of Franklin and Fairfield Counties, OHMAS, United Way of Central Ohio, the Osteopathic Heritage Foundation, the 317 Board, and the City of Columbus.
