MCD Global Health was one of three awardees that received a three-year grant to expand behavioral health care services in rural Maine through education, training, and mentorship programs.
This initiative, known as the Rural Behavioral Health Workforce Center (RBHWC), will:
- Help bring new workers into the behavioral health workforce;
- Support early career staff to develop new skills and become eligible for additional certifications; and
- Offer clinical health providers opportunities to enhance their skill in treatment and intervention for behavioral health disorders, focusing on substance use disorder.
The goal is to increase and sustain Maine's Behavioral Health workforce through partnerships across the healthcare spectrum, via mentorship and evidence-based training programs, and by addressing barriers to Maine's rural workforce.
To accomplish this, MCD is partnering with an array of leading organizations, training, and subject-matter experts who have received U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Federal Office of Rural Health Policy funds to address opiate use disorder and substance use disorder. These partners will engage with a broader group of stakeholders, and people who have experience with substance use disorder, to increase connections to existing career opportunities in behavioral health and the role everyone has in helping foster recovery-ready communities.
Proud to Partner With: Aroostook Mental Health Services Tri-County Mental Health Services; Alliance for Addiction and Mental Health Services Maine; Co-Occurring Collaborative Serving Maine; Healthy Acadia; Maine Area Health Education Centers; Maine Department of Health and Human Services; Maine Department of Labor; Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness; Maine Youth Action Network (MYAN); people with lived experience in SUD; and Dr. Robert Drake, private consultant.
The Rural Behavioral Health Workforce Center is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $1,365,000 with 0 percentage financed with non-governmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov.
