Bert Nash Center to receive almost $2 million grant to expand services

Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center is excited to be a recipient of a $1.967 million Discretionary Grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Community Mental Health Center Grant Program.

“We are beyond grateful for this opportunity and what it affords for not only the Center and our staff, but for our community and the people we are privileged to serve,” said Bert Nash Center CEO Patrick Schmitz.

Funding from the award will provide for expansion of a mobile crisis response team by increasing evidence-based mental health services to individuals experiencing homelessness with severe and persistent mental illness, investing in training and professional development for the Bert Nash Center staff with a focus on inclusion, diversity, equity and belonging, and a partnership with the University of Kansas Medical Center’s psychiatry residency program.

The name of the Bert Nash Center grant project is BEACON (Building and Expanding Access to Crisis and Outpatient Networks). Marsha Page-White, Bert Nash Center Adult Services director, will serve as the project director.

“This grant announcement is exciting news for the Bert Nash Center and Douglas County,” Page-White said. “We will be able to serve more members of our community who may not have been able to receive care otherwise. This grant positions us to better respond out in the community with a mobile response team and more homeless outreach case managers. I am so excited to be a part of such an amazing opportunity to serve Douglas County in innovative ways during a really challenging time. Having the ability to provide evidence-based treatment across a continuum of care ensures the residents of Douglas County are getting the best care possible. This grant is a big win for everyone.”

The SAMHSA Community Mental Health Center Grant Program is a highly competitive grant application process. To assist with its application efforts, the Bert Nash Center utilized the services of Dr. Sarah Bishop, founder of Coneflower Consulting, and Dr. Beth O’Neill, assistant professor of Social Work at Washburn University. O’Neill will serve as lead evaluator of the BEACON project.

“We are grateful for our partnerships with Sarah at Coneflower Consulting and with Dr. O’Neill,” Bert Nash Center CEO Schmitz said. “Their assistance was invaluable, and we couldn’t have done this without them.” 

As part of its application, the Bert Nash Center included several letters of support from fellow members of the Douglas County Behavioral Health Coalition.

“We are extremely appreciative of our community partners who supported our application,”  Bert Nash Center CEO Schmitz said. “This builds on the great work and partnerships that have taken place in our community, including the development and construction of the Treatment and Recovery Center and the Treatment and Recovery Campus of Douglas County.”

Here are some excerpts from the letters of support:

“We are excited to partner with Bert Nash on the BEACON program in order to increase our referral networks and build and even stronger partnership between our organizations.” — Russ Johnson, president and CEO, LMH Health

“This grant will enable Bert Nash to support a second mobile crisis response team, to provide more support for homeless individuals and those at-risk of homelessness, and to ensure that those in need of behavioral health outpatient services are able to access them.” — Sarah Plinsky, County Administrator

“We have used the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to strength our relationship with Bert Nash, an invaluable community resource for our residents. Bert Nash’s commitment to working with individuals to find permanent supportive housing solutions, supportive employment, and supportive education are central to helping us achieve our community health plan goals.” — Dan Partridge, Director, Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health

“The City of Lawrence’s most recent strategic plan outlines our commitment to affordable housing, equity and inclusion, and health and wellbeing for all. Our partnership with Bert Nash has enabled us to get closer to these goals, collaborating with their incredible staff of behavioral health care workers to provide permanent supportive housing for those in need, to combat behavioral health disparities, and to create a community that understands that mental health is as essential to the wellbeing of our community as physical health.” — Craig Owens, City Manager

“By working closely with the Bert Nash staff, we are decreasing the number of individuals with serious mental illness in our facilities, and ensuring that these individuals receive the behavioral health  treatments and services they need to be healthy members of our community.” Jay Armbrister, Douglas County Sheriff

“We are pleased to know of this grant’s focus on cultural competency training for behavioral healthcare staff and its intent to reduce behavioral health disparities amongst subdivisions. This kind of training is essential for our psychiatry residents, and we know that Bert Nash will provide the supervision and support our residents need to learn and grow as professional psychiatrists.” — Dr. Angela Mayorga, Division Director, KU Medical Center

“We have a longstanding relationship with Bert Nash and are pleased to hear of their plans to institute a mobile crisis response team to help support individuals experiencing behavioral health crises in Douglas County. With this knowledge we will be able to strengthen our referral networks and partnership possibilities, and we know we will save lives.” — Steve Devore, President/CEO, Kansas Suicide Prevention HQ