Arthur C. Evans, Ph.D.
Commissioner
City of Philadelphia
Mental Health First Aid Initiative
H. Jean Wright II, Psy.D.
Senior Advisor to Commissioner
Jean.wright@phila.gov
Christina M. Finello, J.D., Ph.D.
Philadelphia Dept. of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services
cfinello@pmhcc.org
Overview
• DBHIDS mission
• How MHFA fits into the Mayor’s goals for a
Healthy Philadelphia?
• What is MHFA?
• Philadelphia’s MHFA Initiative
▫ What’s the plan?
▫ How is it going?
• Next steps + Summary
What is DBHIDS?
DBHIDS supports people in an environment of recovery, with a focus on
prevention, resilience, wellness and self-determination in order to attain the
highest quality of life possible.
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Responsible for administering a broad array of treatment, intervention
and prevention programs for:
 Children, adults, and families impacted by mental health,
substance use and intellectual disabilities
More than 120,000 people are served each year through a $1 billion
annual budget
Network of over 200 providers offering full continuum of services
Single payer for Medicaid, Federal, State and Local Grant dollars
(Medicaid managed by City)
Office of
Mental Health
Office of
Addiction
Services
Community
Behavioral Health
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SYSTEM
Intellectual disAbility
Services
IDS SYSTEM
Mayor Nutter’s Goals
for the City of Philadelphia
 Philadelphia becomes one the safest cities in America.
 The individual well-being of Philadelphians improves.
 Philadelphia is a place of choice.
 Philadelphia becomes the greenest and most sustainable city in
America.
 Philadelphia government works efficiently and effectively, with
integrity and responsiveness.
Our Population/Public Health Approach
to Improving Health
 Philadelphia’s Behavioral Health Services
Transformation
 Vision of Recovery, Resilience, & Self-Determination
 Focus on:
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1) Public Education and Training
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Partnerships with the general public, faith community, indigenous
community leaders, and city agencies
 2) Early Intervention
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Partnerships with first responders trained in Crisis
Intervention, Community Response Teams, etc.
3) Effective, Specialized Treatment
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Community-based network of care providers
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Four Building Blocks of a
Recovery & Resilience-Oriented
System
Recovery
Support
Services
Fiscal &
Administrative
Policy &
Procedure
Alignment
Optimize
Treatment
Services
Community &
Cross Systems
Collaboration
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Our Population-Based, City Wide Approach
to Mental Health First Aid
 Train representatives from as many community
and public safety organizations as possible as
MHFA Instructors
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Emphasis on collaborative course instruction
 Train as many Philadelphians as possible to be
Mental Health First Aiders
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Public and private sector
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What Is Mental Health First Aid?
The help provided to a
person developing a mental
health problem or
experiencing a crisis until
professional treatment is
received or the crisis
resolves.
Spectrum of Mental Health
Interventions
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Overview of training
• Overview of mental health problems
▫ Depressive/Mood disorders
▫ Anxiety disorders
▫ Disorders in which psychosis occurs
▫ Substance use disorders
▫ Eating disorders
• Mental Health First Aid for crisis situations
• Mental Health First Aid for non-crisis situations
What is covered…
• 5 step MHFA Action Plan
• How to show respectful concern and how to offer
assistance
• Role of First Aiders
• When to call for emergency help
• Sources of appropriate professional help and
self-help strategies
MHFA Versions
• General 12-hour MHFA curriculum
• 8 hour Public Safety Pilot curriculum
▫ Public Safety version does not include Eating
Disorders but does include some specific info related
to state and local regulations and the relative roles of
first responders and First Aiders
• Youth MHFA is in development but not yet
available in Philadelphia
Goals
 Reduce stigma
 Increase mental health awareness
 Strengthen community and cross-system
capacity
 Support recovery and resilience
 Increase early intervention and access to
behavioral health services
Potential Audiences
▫ Hospitals and health centers
▫ Law enforcement/first responders/Criminal
Justice
▫ Employers
▫ Faith communities
▫ Schools/universities
▫ Nursing home staff
▫ Individuals who have experienced behavioral
health challenges
▫ Family members
▫ Service providers and support staff
▫ Neighborhood organizations
▫ Concerned citizens
MHFA Strategy
National Council for Community
Behavioral Healthcare Trainers
3 x 5-day Train the
Instructor per year
Instructors
required to
teach at least
3 courses
per year
8- or 12-hour
MHFA Course*
(30 participants
max)
*MHFA Certification lasts for 3 years.
8- or 12-hour
MHFA Course*
(30 participants
max)
Public Safety
& Community
MHFA
Instructors
8- or 12-hour
MHFA Course*
(30 participants
max)
Our Process --- Year 1 of 3 Years
Public-Safety
MHFA
Community
MHFA
Criminal Justice
Advisory Board
Meetings
Jan. 26 Kick-Off & Orientation
Meeting
with City
Leadership
Jan. 27 8-hour Public Safety
MHFA Demo
5-day Public Safety
MHFA Train the
Instructor (Feb)
Two 5-day Community
MHFA Train the
Instructor (March, May)
Promoting Our MHFA Efforts
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Kick-off for Philadelphia’s MHFA Initiative
 Meeting with city leadership including Mayor Michael Nutter
 Orientation for a larger audience, open to the public – 300+ attended
 Demonstration of 8-hour Public Safety Mental Health First Aid course
On-line promotion: http://www.dbhids.org/dbhids-launches-mental-healthfirst-aid and http://www.facebook.com/DBHIDS
Publicity
Our initiative has been covered by the following
news outlets:
–WHYY News, 1/26/12
–Examiner, 1/26/12
–The Inquirer, 1/27/12
–CBS Philly, 1/28/12
–The Philadelphia Tribune, 1/27/12
Interest expressed in MHFA
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72% would like to attend
a MHFA 12-hour
training
14% would like to attend
an 8-hour MHFA public
safety-oriented training
56% expressed interest
in becoming an
instructor
61% want to be put on
email list to be notified
of upcoming trainings
*166 responses to our internet survey since the Kickoff
Respondents were from the following
groups (could select more than one
group):
Human Services
(45%)
Public Safety
(10%)
Medical/Health
Care (40%)
Culture/Ethnicitybased Orgs (12%)
Faith-based
Communities
(27%)
Courts/Legal (8%)
Youth Services
(15%)
LGBT Community
(9%)
Neighborhood
Organizations
(18%)
Business (3%)
Educational
System (20%)
Others: Parks &
Rec., Unions,
Public Works,
Employment &
Housing Services
Public Safety Pilot – MHFA Train the Instructor
Public Safety Pilot –
MHFA Train the Instructor Course
Representatives from the following organizations trained in February 2012:
Adult Probation &
Parole Dept. (2)
Probation/Parole Officers
Family Training &
Advocacy Center (1)
Director of Training
Behavioral Health
Training & Education
Network (2)
Projects Coord.; Behavioral
Health Training Specialist
First Judicial District
Court (3)
Project Dawn Coord.;
Philadelphia Treatment Court
Coord.; Pretrial Services
Mayor’s Office of ReIntegration Services for
Ex-Offenders (2)
Training Administrator;
Manager of Re-Integration
Services for Ex-Offenders
Certified Forensic
Peer Specialists (2)
Court of Common
Pleas, Trial Div. (1)
Mental Health Court Coord.
Philadelphia Fire Dept.
(2)
Lieutenant; Firefighter
Dept. of Behavioral
Health and
Intellectual disAbility
Services (6)
Policy & Criminal Court
Coord.; Post-Arrest Crisis
Specialist; Senior Consultant
for Forensic Services; Senior
Advisor & Criminal Justice
Coord.; Veterans Jail Diversion
Coord.; CIT Coord.
Philadelphia Police Dept.
(3)
Sergeant; Police Officer;
Police Officer
Philadelphia Prison
System (1)
Psychologist
Defender’s Assoc. (2)
Social Service Advocates
Public Health
Management Corp. (1)
Director of Case Management
& Program Standards
District Atty’s Office
(1)
Asst. District Atty
Sheriff’s Office (1)
Deputy Sheriff/Inspector
How is it going so far?
• 1st year = 31 in Public Safety pilot **6 dually certified
Instructors work in teams
• About ½ of Instructors currently active. Obstacles
include:
▫ Organizational buy-in and support for training activity
▫ Scheduling and availability issues for Instructors and trainees
• 15 Public Safety trainings have been delivered
• 220 First Aiders in Public Safety pilot have received
training
Classes
• Class size: Range 6-30 people
• Trainees include:
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New police recruits
Forensic Services case managers and evaluators
Probation and Parole staff and supervisors
Pretrial Services intake interviewers
Staff from Mayor's Office of Reintegration
Services for Ex-offenders (RISE)
▫ Public Defender legal staff and social services
advocates
Next Steps
• DBHIDS is working with the Scattergood
Foundation to explore ways to support and
expand MHFA in Philadelphia
• Continue to provide Public Safety training
• Continue to train city/agency staff
• Outreach to public and private entities with
public safety component
Summary
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MHFA is a main pillar of our overall approach to promoting individual and
community wellness and cross-system collaboration
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Will include a systematic evaluation of impact
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Will continue to promote public education and early intervention through
additional efforts, including widespread on-line and in-person mental health
screening
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For more information about MHFA trainings in Philadelphia,
 contact Karen Escovitz, Project Coordinator, at kescovitz@pmhcc.org
 Go to www.dbhids.org
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For more information about MHFA in general,
 Go to www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org