Helping people receive the mental health care they need
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WARREN -- The Sound the Siren on Suicide public service announcement challenge recently wrapped its second year.
In a 30-second PSA, Trumbull County students in grades 9 through 12 create a message following a prompt. A call to action is included, encouraging people to call 988, the suicide crisis lifeline, or to text "for hope" to 741741.
These PSAs are judged by committees and played on local television channels and social media platforms.
Sound the Siren is through the Trumbull County Suicide Prevention Coalition (TCSPC), which is one of a few initiatives from the Trumbull County Mental Health and Recovery Board.
"Our goal is to be able to get youth engagement for suicide prevention and awareness," Katie Cretella, director of clinical services for TCMHRB, said.
In 2022, the Trumbull County Coroner's office confirmed there were eight suicides between 18 and 34 years old, Cretella said. In 2021, there were no suicides among this age group.
That's when TCMHRB sprang into action.
"Our coalition came together and asked, 'How do we engage our youth?'"
The result was the PSA campaign, Cretella said.
She leads TCSPC, which is one of several coalitions led by TCMHRB.
Laura Thorpe leads the Alliance for Substance Abuse Prevention, and Carol Holmes-Chambers leads the Trumbull-Mahoning DEI Collaborative.
SERVICES AND PARTNERSHIPS
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, but it's a topic at the forefront of every decision every day for TCMHRB.
TCMHRB doesn't provide direct services but is a bridge to help people get the care they need.
The board, consisting of 13 employees, works with providers, contracting with community agencies that provide direct care.
It serves as a resource, Cretella said. People call with concerns while in a crisis or they need resources for mental health or substance abuse.
Partnerships with adult mental health agencies include:
Coleman Mental Health Services
Compass Family and Community Services
Valley Counseling Service
Travco Behavior Health
The children and adolescent mental health agency partnerships include:
Alta Behavioral Health Care
Cadence Care Network
Valley Counseling
Rounding out substance abuse partnerships, TCMHRB partners with:
First Step Recovery
Glenbeigh
Meridian
New Day Recovery
Parkman Recovery
Thrive Counseling
In addition to mental health and substance abuse programming, the board also funds crisis services by contracting with Help Network (211), a 24/7 crisis call center.
All Crisis Lifeline calls, as well as 988 suicide calls, are rerouted to 211, Cretella said.
In Trumbull Regional Medical Center's emergency department, a licensed professional is available around the clock to help screen and refer patients to inpatient, detox or crisis unit care. Following an evaluation, the professional can discharge the person, too, with a list of community resources, Cretella said.
There's another instance TCMHRB has bridged communication between people who need help and receiving care.
During the week from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Coleman Health Services is available in downtown Warren to guide people with mental health concerns.
An example Cretella shared was landlords can call if there's a tenant who doesn't take care of their mental health and doesn't have the insight they need treatment.
Coleman will perform an assessment at the home and take the individual to a proper location for further assistance, Cretella said.
Multiple mental health crisis assistance is available through a handful of channels.
The Mobile Response Stablization Service keeps children out of the emergency department, Cretella said.
The Mobile Response Stabilization Service (MRSS) is a team that alleviates a crisis so children don't have to go to the emergency room, Cretella said.
The child's family has to identify that the situation is a mental health crisis, which Cretella explained is broad.
First responders also have an option at no cost to receive mental health support following a crisis.
If they aren't comfortable using their insurance or employee assistance program (EAP), they can turn to TCMHRB, Cretella said.
The service is confidential, because "unfortunately there still is a stigma among first responders" that sometimes they need to be tough.
Cretella said that doesn't need to be the case, because sometimes first responders are at devastating scenes.
The board offers this to help them get the care they need.
"We don't ever want the stigma to deter someone from receiving treatment," Cretella said.
Partnering with Mahoning County Mental Health and Recovery Board, TCMHRB offers the Mahoning Valley Critical Incident and Stress Management Team.
A licensed therapist or social worker and a peer, whether its a firefighter, law enforcement, dispatch, etc., meet with a department in either county and offer crisis debriefing after a traumatic event, Cretella said.
This is another service at no cost to first responders, and is also confidential.
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