| Name | Gayle |
|---|---|
| Last Name | Lodato |
| Home Address | 9862 Baker Boy Dr Ooltewah, TN Tennessee 37363 United States |
| Organization Name | Helen Ross McNabb Center ( McNabb Center) |
| Describe Your Role In The Organization | I am the Senior Director of the McNabb Center in Greater Chattanooga |
| Organization Address | 6049 shallowford road chattanooga, Tennessee 37421 United States |
| Website | https://www.mcnabbcenter.org |
| Best Phone Number To Reach You | 423-664-2849 |
| Alternate Phone Number | 423-266-6751 |
| Email Address | gayle.lodato@mcnabb.org |
| Alternate Email Address | gayle.lodato@mcnabb.org |
| Please Describe Your Project In Detail | The Helen Ross McNabb Center, Inc. (HRMC) is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation that was established as a community mental health center in 1948 as a child guidance clinic to help veterans and their families. During the course of its history, the organization has become a multi-service agency that provides high quality and cost-efficient mental health, addiction, rehabilitation, support, and recovery services to communities in the East Tennessee region. The Mcnabb Center has been successful for 74 years in providing mental health services throughout East Tennessee. Services are currently provided to approximately 36,000 people per year and there are existing programs located in 15 distinct locations in 29 East Tennessee counties, including area schools, courts, prisons, and community-based sites. In 2013 McNabb merged with the Fortwood Center in Chattanooga to guarantee services for the growing needs of residents of Hamilton and surrounding counties. In these communities, HRMC offers a robust continuum of care for adults and children struggling with mental health and substance use disorders. The current service array includes: medication management, individual/family therapy, intensive community-based case management, multi-disciplinary community-based care, coordination/Tennessee Health Link, supported employment for individuals with a mental health and/or substance use diagnosis, Intensive Outpatient Program for substance use, parenting classes, school-based services, Peer Support and Stability Services, Homeless Services and Supportive Housing for those with Severe and Persistent Mental Illness. The McNabb Center of Greater Chattanooga Homeless Services provides immediate crisis services to individuals and families who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness. The interdisciplinary mobile team consists of a master’s level team leader, two bachelor’s level case managers, and a Registered nurse who works directly with individuals and families to provide crisis intervention, case management, housing assistance and referral linkage on-site in the community. Additionally, the team assists with linkage to substance use treatment, vocational skills, and housing stability services in an effort to empower the participant in understanding and overcoming the circumstances leading to homelessness. The ARP funding will enable the McNabb Center to continue to engage the most vulnerable individuals in the community and remove barriers to housing and treatment. The McNabb Center’s Homeless Response Team is community based provider of mobile services to alleviate the burden of securing transportation to appointments while mitigating the community spread of coronavirus through limited public exposure. The McNabb Center’s Homeless Response Team receives referrals and engages with individuals and families from multiple points of entry including: the Chattanooga Regional Homeless Coalition (CoC), City of Chattanooga Homeless Services, Community Kitchen, Chattanooga Room at the Inn, Schools, law enforcement and other community service providers. Services include; engagement, assessment and completion of the ViSPDAT. The Homeless Response Team creates a customized care plan to monitor the assistance given and progress of each individual/family through case management in order to obtain and remain housed. Additionally, the team provides linkage, referrals, and care for identified health, mental health, and substance abuse needs. The homeless response team engages with the Chattanooga Housing Authority to complete applications for vouchers, access financial assistance through CTTS, and other funding to assist in obtaining and securing housing in the community. The team accesses SSI/SSDI Outreach, Access and Recovery (SOAR) trained staff to instate and/or re-instate individual’s benefits as well as encourage participation in the evidence-based practice Supported Employment and Education (SEE). SEE was developed by the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Institute to help promote the recovery of people who have serious mental illness. The team will provide supported employment, educational services, ongoing job coaching, and support following placement, and ongoing educational coaching following enrollment in school adhering to the 25-item fidelity scale. The Homeless Response Team encourages participation with The McNabb Center’s Peer Support services which provide relevant illness management coping strategies such as the Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP.) WRAP’s purpose is to increase the participants’ understanding of personal resources available so that they will be able to direct their own wellness by helping them feel better and stay well while also equipping them with support in times of crisis. Additionally, Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) which helps participants set meaningful goals and gain information and skills to develop competence in response to their challenges. Also, the Chronic Disease Self-Management Program (CDSMP) which ensures that participants learn techniques to deal with problems such as frustration, fatigue, pain and isolation as well as practicing appropriate exercise for maintaining and improving strength, flexibility, endurance, and increasing their knowledge of appropriate use of medications. Although the team’s engagement with participants may occur while they are unhoused, the team works quickly to identify barriers to housing and diligently provides access to resources and options to secure a safe and sustainable housing. Once the participant is housed, the team remains involved with the participant in order to provide support by ensuring the transition is successful. Prior to discharge from the program, the team will refer the participant as needed to identify appropriate services in the community to further ensure longevity of their housing placement. |
| Please explain how your project meets the requirements of the American Rescue Plan | According to the 2021 Point-In-Time Count, over 1,200 individuals were homeless on a given night in our area, with over 350 of them being in Hamilton County. This number represents an 81% increase in the unsheltered homeless population from the previous year (homelesschattanooga.org.) 41% of individuals experience a mental health condition, 10 % a co-occurring and/ or substance abuse condition and 54% report not having any income. The McNabb Center Homeless Response team program responds to the American Recovery Plan funding requirements by supporting and ultimately reducing public health expenditures related to medical and behavioral health care as well as public health and safety. This is done through providing mental health and substance abuse services for individuals/families whose housing situation is further exacerbated by the COVID pandemic. Additionally the Homeless Response Team meets ARP funding requirements in building stronger communities through investment in housing and neighborhoods improving access to stable, affordable housing amongst unhoused individuals. |
| Where would your project take place? | The program responds to the city of Chattanooga and those individuals and families in Hamilton County. The staff are community based, with a primary location at the McNabb adult center on Cumberland Street. Being community based means that staff will go to homeless camps, homeless service providers, hotels/motels or shelters, as well as, supporting individuals and families once housed at private residences. |
| How much will your project cost in total? | 486000 |
| Do you have any matching funding sources from other local governments, private entities, non-profits, or philanthropic entities for your project? | Yes |
| Please describe the source and list amounts of any other funding. | The McNabb Center continues to ensure funding diversification. The center makes every effort to sustain services needed in the community, and many current programs remain active today beyond their grant funded time frame because of the center’s efforts to leverage and secure funding sources and streams. The McNabb Center accepts TN Care and multiple private insurance plans and will make every effort to access these sources of payment. Current provider contracts exist for a variety of MCO’s in the TN Care partners program. Insurance will be accessed if the participant’s MCO approves the services and agrees to reimburse the McNabb Center for services rendered. The center has successfully provided services that have been reimbursable by all three MCO’s serving Tennessee. In addition, the McNabb Center is a partner with the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and a recipient of indigent funds entitled SafetyNet, which allows eligible uninsured or under insured children and adults to receive case management, medication management and therapy services. Immediately upon notification of award, The McNabb Center will begin efforts to secure continuation of funding through state and federal grants, third-party insurance and private fundraising initiatives. The Center has a long history of diversifying funding to continue grant-funded programs and currently manages over 61 different funding sources. Potential funding partners will include private foundations, TN Care, TDMHSAS Behavioral Health Safety Net, Medicare Advantage plans and various commercial insurance providers |
| What portion of the project are you asking the city to fund? | At this time the full cost of the program is being sought for funding with the understanding that the McNabb Center will continue to seek additional funding to sustain the program |
| If funded, when would your project start? | July 1, 2022 |
| How long would your project take to complete? | The Homeless Response team is already a functioning outreach, rapid rehousing and homeless prevention program. The funding from the ARP would allow these services to continue. Unfortunately, the housing crisis and increased needs of those in need of housing assistance continue to increase which makes a completion date difficult to determine. As previously stated, the McNabb Center will continue to seek additional funding sources to ensure the continuation of these services and make modifications, as necessary. The project is ongoing with the full implementation of services by 7/1/22 |
| What milestones would you use to measure your project’s progress? | Quality control and efforts to ensure services are individualized to promote optimal functioning and recovery have already been incorporated internally to monitor compliance. This process ensures the outcomes of access, capacity, and effectiveness can be easily identified. Monthly and quarterly monitoring will occur as part of the center’s ongoing Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement (QAQI) The outcomes include; ACCESS: program census (maintain 30-40 active clients/families) with 100% timely enrollment in services for all qualified individuals, EFFECTIVENESS: at least 80% of services participants will have increased access to housing resulting in a minimum of remaining housed for at least, 90, 120 & 180 days, at least 60% of service recipients increase their ability to either earn wages or apply/re-instate eligible benefits. Efficiency: 80% of participants will have a care plan within 30 days of enrollment, team members will participate in all community homeless/housing collaborative calls. Satisfaction: 100% of service recipients will be offered a satisfaction survey with ratings of 80% or higher. The center’s QAQI committee meet monthly to review outcomes with additional oversite by the Center’s Board of Directors on a quarterly basis. All data and outcomes are available to funding sources. |
| How would you ensure accountability and transparency throughout the project lifecycle? | Through a continual process of building relationships and trust, and having a shared vision, we are able to establish a collaborative framework that sustains a broad based buy-in and support network from a variety of public and private entities. The McNabb Center has a successful history of joining evidence-based collaborations with various state level organizations to adapt our programs and skills to the emerging needs of those we serve. Such collaboration has allowed The McNabb Center to implement effective and innovative strategies to serve our clients. The center would openly share services with a list of interagency collaborative partnerships in Service point or other identified data based as well as appropriate community members and groups in coordination with this funding. Ongoing financial and program outcomes are available to ensure compliance and problem solve. |
| If successful, how would your project benefit the community? | The McNabb Center Homeless Response Team benefits the community by decreasing the number of homeless individuals and families on the streets and living in tents. The program builds access to resources and increases independence by decreasing those dependent on social services, shelters and other time limited resources. The program connects individuals and families to supports increasing resiliency. Lastly, the program decreases Emergency Room and law enforcement involvement. All of these benefits reduce the cost to the tax payer and the community while improving the lives of those at the highest risk in our community. |
| How will you attract community buy-in for your project? | As previously shared, the need to engage others and build relationships and trust is required for success of this program. In addition to focusing on other community partners that share a goal to respond to the needs of our homeless community, the center will engage with neighborhoods and invested community members. Strategies to share information and educate the community on program efforts, barriers and successes will aid in overall support of this initiative. Additional engagement with Landlords and property owners will occur, to increase the housing options |
| Is there anything else you would like us to know about your project? |