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Mission: The purpose of the Building Connections Project is to support and strengthen collaborative relationships and coalitions with the aim to improve and coordinate trauma-based services for sexual assault survivors diagnosed with serious and persistent mental illness, in both Rape Crisis Centers and community-based mental health agencies.
Goals:
- Assist the Office of Mental Health Trauma Initiative Regional Committees and committee leaders in assessing their resources and needs, developing mission statements and goals, and increasing the participation of key constituents in all counties across New York State.
- Identify and document successful models of Mental Health and Rape Crisis Center collaborations, using their histories, resources, goals and accomplishments as examples to other regions.
- Provide referral services for requests of current resources, speaker’s lists, manuals, upcoming trainings, conferences, and other information related to sexual trauma and mental illness.
- Coordinate and/or facilitate trainings on such topics as developing collaborative models, implementing trauma-based curriculums, eg. Risking Connection by Saakvitne, Gamble, Pearlman and Lev and other related sexual assault/mental health topics.
Building Connections is a project of the Office of Mental Health Trauma Initiative which began in 1995. The Trauma Initiative works in four arenas: statewide policy and programs, state psychiatric centers, community programs, and training and technical assistance. OMH established a Trauma Unit in May 2000, effectively mainstreaming the Trauma Initiative. It is a collaborative effort between New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Inc. and Mental Health Association in Ulster County, Inc.
Mental Health Association in Ulster County, Inc. (MHAUC) was established in 1959 with the goal of developing a coordinated movement to promote mental health and the improved care of persons with mental illness. It is the mission of MHAUC to create communities that are dedicated to mental health through the full participation of all persons. They are affiliated with the Mental Health Association in New York State and the National Mental Health Association. www.mhainulster.com
NYS Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Inc. (NYSCASA) is a statewide coalition linking institutions, organizations and individuals who share a commitment to preventing sexual violence, and to providing adequate services to all survivors of sexual assault. It provides technical assistance to the state’s eighty Rape Crisis Centers and to other programs that service sexual assault survivors, and participates in ongoing public education and advocacy efforts. www.nyscasa.org ;
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