The Steady Path Forward

The Hancock County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board in Ohio proposes the Steady Path Forward Project to enhance and expand a stabilization center that is supervised 24 hours, 7 days a week for individuals with mental health disorders (MHDs) or co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders (MHSUDs) who have come into contact with the criminal justice system or other community setting such as the ER, homeless shelter or existing housing, and are in need of stabilization services.  The ADAMHS Board, a public entity, determines the direction of mental health and substance use disorder services, and will contract for stabilization services and other recovery support services with the Family Resource Center of Northwest Ohio, a behavioral health provider organization. Key justice partners in the Project include the Findlay Police Department, Hancock County Sheriff’s Office, and Hancock County Adult Probation.

Hancock County is a rural area with a population density of about 140 residents per square mile. Most are white (94%), followed by Hispanic/Latinos (6.2%) and African-Americans (2.2%); about 11% live below the federal poverty line. About 1 in 6 incarcerated individuals in the county are on psychotropic medication and about 1 in 2 inmates (50%) have recidivated 4 or more times while only 30% of inmates were 1st time offenders.

To accomplish the goal of expanding stabilization and recovery support services for individuals in need, the Steady Path Forward Project will aim to: 1) enhance and expand  a residential stabilization center that provides 24/7 support; 2) expand capacity to identify, treat, and support the recovery of individuals at the intersection of justice and mental health; and 3) expand existing justice and mental health collaboration programs across people and places at any point in the criminal justice system. The project will serve at least 150 unique individuals at the Steady Path Stabilization Center over the 36 months of the grant period.

The Project will address the following two program-specific priority areas: use of validated assessment tools to identify and prioritize individuals with a moderate or high risk of recidivism and a need for treatment services; and funds used for treatment of incarcerated populations will provide transition and reentry services for such individuals.

The Steady Path Forward Project requests $550,000. The Project builds upon activities conducted under a FY2020 JMHCP grant (award number: 2020-MO-BX-0035) that supported the establishment of the Steady Path Stabilization Center in 2022.