| Search

HNJH Participates in Grant to Support Behavioral Health Services

behavioral health word cloud

Helen Newberry Joy Hospital’s Gibson Family Health Clinic is participating in the UPlife Collaborative Care Program through Upper Peninsula Health Care Solutions (UPHCS). The program is made possible through a $600,000 competitive grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to integrate behavioral health services into rural primary care settings. 

The three-year program will help support and strengthen current behavioral health efforts by creating a more coordinated approach to healthcare delivery. Utilizing the chronic care team and Behavioral Health Specialist, care plans will be created focusing on the whole person. Whole-person care isn’t limited to physical health but focuses on areas that contribute to wellness, such as mental health, and has been shown to improve outcomes, reduce costs, and improve the experience for both the patient and the providers.

Luce County was designated a high needs health professional shortage area in behavioral health by HRSA due to geographic area. As a result of this shortage, residents have little to no access to mental health/addiction services. In 2018, Helen Newberry Joy Hospital received two grants totaling close to $165,000 to create an integrated behavioral health program. With those grants, Laura Generou, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and NHS alum, was hired. At the beginning of 2019, she began accepting patients into the newly developed behavioral health program that is part of the Gibson Family Health Clinic. With the UPlife Collaborative Care Program, HNJH plans to continue to develop and provide whole-person care to the communities we serve.

A full list of Small Health Care Provider Quality Improvement Program grant awardees can be viewed here: https://www.hrsa.gov/rural-health/community/small-health-care-provider-quality-improvement-awards.