TYP Mental Health Project: Activities of FY 2002 Grantees

• Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians of Oregon, as part of a comprehensive working plan to improve the quality of tribal life, is focusing on juvenile drug and alcohol use and will provide related services to at-risk tribal youth ages 8–18 in an 11-county service area that encompasses the cities of Portland, Salem, and Eugene. The project will include a needs assessment to identify risk factors facing tribal youth and an evaluation of existing services. Planned activities include culturally appropriate parenting training, gender-specific programs, behavioral and psychological assessments, and a variety of therapies (e.g., narrative, sandtray, adventure-based, and family programs).
  
  
• Eastern Aleutian Tribes, Inc., a nonprofit organization providing healthcare services to seven rural communities in the Aleutians East Borough of Alaska, will improve the delivery of comprehensive mental health services and substance abuse treatment for tribal youth ages 12–20. The program seeks to improve access to appropriate interventions for court-involved youth and their families, including counseling for depression, anxiety, conduct disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mental health problems; standardize intake assessments for youth who come into contact with local law enforcement; enhance alcohol and drug abuse counseling for youth; and provide appropriate training for service providers.
  
  
• The Mount Sanford Tribal Consortium, a tribal health organization serving two Athabascan Indian villages in the sparsely populated Copper River region in Alaska’s interior, is revising and expanding mental health services to address risk factors related to delinquent behavior among tribal youth. All 48 tribal youth ages 5 to 17 are eligible to receive the expanded services, which are being developed by a coalition of tribal council members, other community members, and service providers. A youth counselor will be hired to diagnose and provide treatment for conduct disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and other serious problems among referred youth.
  
  
• The Osage Nation Counseling Center, in Pawhuska, OK, is establishing an inpatient treatment center to provide a continuum of delinquency prevention and residential treatment services for at-risk males ages 13–18. The nearby city of Hominy has provided the facility, and the counseling center is collaborating with other state and tribal agencies to provide mental health services and alcohol/drug abuse treatment to court-referred youth. The program will focus on alcohol and drug abuse education, violence prevention, gang education, and counseling for individuals, families, and groups. Once youth have completed long-term counseling and treatment at the center, their care will continue through home visits by program staff.
  
  
• The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, located near Topeka, KS, is developing a mental health service program to prevent and reduce delinquent behavior among tribal youth ages 5 to 18 residing on the reservation, in surrounding rural Jackson County, and in the Topeka urban area. The program, which will serve 50 to 75 at-risk youth each year, will include crisis intervention, mental health screening, and counseling for suicidal behavior, depression, anxiety, conduct disorder, and other mental health problems.

OJJDP's Tribal Youth Initiatives	OJJDP Bulletin • May 2003