CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

$800K grant for CarePlus NJ, Bergen New Bridge to benefit suicide program

NJBIZ - 7/31/2020

Care Plus NJin collaboration with Bergen New Bridge Medical Center were awarded an $800,000 federal grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) on Monday.
The grant will fund the Bergen County Suicide Prevention and Response Program, which will advance efforts to prevent suicide and suicide attempts amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Working together, CarePlus and BNBMC will orchestrate comprehensive, intensive follow-up and support services for individuals ages 25 and older that are at risk of suicide in Bergen County. A focus will be placed on high-risk populations including essential personnel.
Together, the two medical centers will develop plans for rapid follow-up and the triaging of adults that have attempted suicide or experienced a suicidal crisis and have presented to emergency departments and/or inpatient psychiatric facilities.
The Bergen County Suicide Prevention and Response Program will provide suicide prevention training to community and clinical service providers and systems that serve at-risk adults.
Through the grant-funded program, CarePlus and BNBMC will outline care transition protocols to ensure patient safetyincluding enhanced services for domestic violence victims, many of which have been trapped at home with their abusers due to lockdown mandates to control the virus. The program will also target comprehensive care services to essential personnel who are dealing with grueling workloads, unprecedented stress, personal protective equipment shortages, and steep death counts amid the pandemic.
“It is expected that the number of individuals seeking mental health services will rise exponentially due to COVID-19,” said Lorelle Holway, vice president of hospital and clinical services for CarePlus. “Social restrictions aimed to stop the spread of the coronavirus have resulted in severed support systems, increased levels of stress, anxiety, conflict, violence, and a sense of isolation, leaving many in a state of crisis. Through this grant, we’ll be able to identify individuals that are at high risk of harming themselves and rapidly triage them to the appropriate levels of care and support services to ensure their safety.”

CREDIT: Linda Lindner