Customers include the mental health and other community service providers in Haywood County and their clients.  Community service providers include Head Start; Haywood County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) Public Health (WIC, Clinic, and School Nurses) and other agency divisions; Meridian Behavioral Health Services/Blue Ridge Health, Mountain Projects, Inc.; MountainWise; and other community service providers. The goals are to increase awareness, skills, and comfort level of mental health and other providers to assess and develop clinical and behavioral improvement plans for their clients and to respond appropriately during mental health crises. 

All identified organizational customers have well-established programs for which the majority of their services target the underserved and at-risk and/or vulnerable populations in Haywood County.  

The "Story Behind the Curve" helps us understand the causes and forces at work that explain the data behind Improving Access and Treatment for Mental Health Needs and the resources that Haywood County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA)/Healthy Haywood/Vaya Health plans to commit to address this health issue.  The organizations listed partner on this effort.  Vaya Health serves as the training provider.  They collaborate with HHSA/Healthy Haywood to provide and promote mental health trainings.  Resources such as staff time, meeting space, and training materials are part of this effort.  

Training up a skilled workforce, using evidence-based programs such as Question, Persuade, Refer and programs addressing Trauma-Informed Care/Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) will improve skills and competency levels when working with clients facing mental health issues and help strengthen referral networks for quick and seamless access to care.  

What's Helping What We Do? These are the positive forces at work with Mental Health Care that influence how much we do or how well we do it.

• Buy-in from community partners
• Skilled, professional facilitators
• Access to evidence-based programs

What's Hurting What We Do? These are the negative forces at work in our Mental Health Care that influence how much we do or how well we do it.

• High turnover/loss of workforce providing mental health care 
• Limited recruitment of participants
• Limited staff capacity for additional training

The following actions have been identified by our Substance Use Prevention Alliance and community members as ideas for what can work for our community to make a difference to our community's mental health.

Evidence-Based Strategies These are actions and approaches that have been shown to make a difference with mental health issues. 

• Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR)  
• Community-level Trauma Informed Care/Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) Initiative 
• Mental Health First Aid

What Community Members Most Affected by Mental Health Say These are the actions and approaches recommended by members of our community who are most affected by mental health issues

• Decrease stigma about accessing mental health care
• Secure/retain a well-trained mental health care workforce
• Increase mental health care support for families

Process for Selecting Priority Strategies

The Healthy Haywood Coalition and Substance Use Prevention Alliance were presented with relevant Community Health Assessment data. Both groups were provided information about the relevance, impact, and feasibility around substance misuse, specifically looking at opioid, tobacco/vaping, and alcohol data. Social determinants of health data such as poverty, community resiliency estimates, and other community-based data were also provided. The community members in attendance then unanimously voted to move forward with the substance use priority as a result of evaluating the primary and secondary community health data. This is a continuation from previous years’ health priorities. 

Strategy Prioritization Worksheet; Identifying Priority Strategies Worksheet.

Potential Partners for this Work:

• Meridian Behavioral Health Services/Blue Ridge Health provides services to both adults and children.
• Reach of Haywood County provides services for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, including an emergency shelter and legal assistance.
• 30th Judicial District Domestic Violence-Sexual Assault Alliance, Inc. - This organization serves victims of domestic violence and sexual assault
• Kids Advocacy Resource Effort focuses on preventing child abuse and neglect. They also provide advocacy services for survivors.
• Haywood Pathways Center - a partnership that transformed a former jail into a soup kitchen, halfway house and homeless shelter, including a family dorm.
• Haywood Regional Medical Center has a behavioral health unit.