AN INITIATIVE OF THE NC DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES - DIVISION OF MENTAL HEALTH, DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE SERVICES

DHHS Piloting Case Management for Individuals in Transition

June 18, 2015 — Four Local Management Entities/Managed Care Organizations (LME/MCOs) and their provider partners will pilot Critical Time Intervention, a program that assists adults with mental illness who are going through a transition phase in their recovery process.  Critical Time Intervention is a focused, time-limited approach to case management that connects people with community supports as they transition into housing from homelessness, or from institutional settings, such as prisons and hospitals, into ongoing community-based services.

Critical Time Intervention teams include licensed clinicians and certified peer-support specialists. The evidence-based practice supports people with a serious mental illness, or who have experienced chronic homelessness. It focuses on recovery, psychiatric rehabilitation and full community inclusion, and is recognized by behavioral health professionals across the United States and internationally as a cutting edge case management model.

“DHHS understands the importance of an evidence-based case management support system to assist individuals going through critical transitions,” said  DHHS Secretary Aldona Wos, M.D. “This patient-centered approach gives people increased likelihood for successful transitions back to their communities.”

Federal block grant funds, dedicated to the Crisis Solutions Initiative, have been awarded to the four LME/MCO’s in the amount of $365,000 each for State Fiscal Year 2015 and 2016 to establish the service.

Selected programs and a brief description of funded services are:

Courtney Cantrell, NC Division of MH/DD/SAS Director, speaks at the Gaston CTI Community Celebration. (Photo courtesy of Partners Behavioral Health)

Courtney Cantrell, NC Division of MH/DD/SAS Director,
speaks at the Gaston CTI Community Celebration.
(Photo courtesy of Partners Behavioral Health)

  • Alliance Behavioral Healthcare – Will focus on individuals being released from jail in Cumberland County.
  • CoastalCare – Will focus on individuals who are frequently in crisis in emergency departments in New Hanover and Onslow counties.
  • Cardinal Innovations Healthcare Solutions – Will focus on sustaining and expanding the existing Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust grant-funded team with expansion targeted to rural communities in Alamance, Caswell and Person counties.
  • Partners Behavioral Health Management – Will focus on individuals who have serious mental illness with housing needs, including those in transition from adult care and other congregate settings in Gaston County.  Read about the Gastonia community celebration kick-off event here:   Gaston Gazette article
Gaston CTI Community Celebration June 16, 2015 (Photo courtesy of Partners Behavioral Health)

Gaston CTI Community Celebration
June 16, 2015
(Photo courtesy of Partners Behavioral Health)

The Division of Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities/Substance Abuse Services has contracted with the UNC-Behavioral Healthcare Resources Program for training and technical assistance for Critical Time Intervention.

More information on Critical Time Intervention may be found at http://sssw.hunter.cuny.edu/cti/ and at http://www.unccti.org/