ABOUT CMHP

What is CMHP?
Each year the CMHP Project builds county-based teams and supports them in shaping local planning and delivery of mental health services through unified advocacy initiatives. Infused with personal experiences and expertise, the staff and volunteers who participate in CMHP activities strive to create resources and offer venues that will enable their communities to gain a greater understanding of mental illnesses from the varied perspectives represented on the team.

Each team includes the following members:

• Local Mental Health Association employee as team leader
• Adults who have experience with receiving mental health services
• Family members of recipients of service
• Parents of children with serious emotional or behavioral disabilities
• Community leaders

This diversity contributes to the teams' success. It is the collaboration of key stakeholders that really makes the program work. The resources developed and used by teams assist their communities to identify needs and gaps in services, promote greater communication between the general public and team members, facilitate greater responsiveness to information and referral requests, and strengthen community networking across systems of care.

Funded by the New York State Office of Mental Health since 1995, CMHP has also received a generous grant from AstraZeneca to fund projects from 2004 to 2006.

BENEFITS OF PARTICIPATING IN THE CMHP PROGRAM

Community Organizing:
MHANYS provides on-site technical assistance for the creation of new CMHP teams and ongoing technical assistance in developing and monitoring local strategic plans. See Guidelines for Developing a CMHP Team's Local Strategic Plan.

Skills Development:
Teams receive training and technical assistance using the most current resources available on topics such as: community organizing, team building, developing community plans around common agendas, influencing local decision making, creating dialogue among diverse constituencies, strengthening cultural diversity and competence, developing linkages with external influences, and finding supplemental financial resources.

Technology Development:
CMHP Teams stay current with their colleagues by using phone conference, Internet, e-mail, fax, and regularly scheduled telephone conference calls to ensure they continue to work toward a common goal.

For more information about the Community Mental Health Promotion Project, contact Helena Davis at cmhp@mhanys.org, or call (518) 434-0439 ext. 219.