A behavioral health company based in Northampton, with programs in Greenfield, is the recipient of a three-year, $450,000 federal grant that will help victims of crime in rural communities get enhanced mental health services.
Clinical & Support Options, which has headquarters on Atwood Drive in Northampton, received one of three grants from the Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime to support what is known as the Rural Access Project.
CSO Chief Executive Officer Karin Jeffers said such grants are not easy to access, but are important for the well-being of area residents.
“This gives us a unique opportunity to expand services, increase capacity and improve partnerships,” Jeffers said.
Similar awards, also made to organizations in San Francisco and Denver, comes out of the Office for Victims of Crime’s “Vision 21 Integrated Services for Victims Program.” That program seeks to provide the needed help to crime victims so they can recover, heal and thrive.
While the services can be accessed by anyone affected by violent crimes, such as families of homicide victims or who have been emotionally affected by a break-in, Jeffers estimates that 90 percent will be related to domestic incidents.
Operating out of CSO’s Center for Community Resilience after Trauma in Greenfield, the goal of the Rural Access Project is to increase survivors’ access to comprehensive mental health services and to give more people crisis, advocacy and support group services. CSO will work with the New England Learning Center for Women in Transition, the nonprofit domestic violence and rape crisis center, which is also in Greenfield.
The money in the first year will allow CSO to complete a needs assessment for the region, identifying and addressing barriers that prevent victims of crime from accessing mental health services. The agency will also add staff, including a coordinator, a clinician and an outreach navigator.
Jeffers said more people are going to benefit from the assistance. “We are projecting we will see a 25 percent increase of rural residents referred for service,” Jeffers said.
Clinical & Support Options has a staff of more than 600 employees who provide behavioral health service, including adult and child psychiatry, to communities throughout the Pioneer Valley and North Quabbin.