Coastal Georgia Indicators Coalition Receives 4-year Grant of $600K — Carriage Trade Public Relations® Inc.

Partners include Gateway Community Service Board, Chatham Co Safety Net, and Loop it up Savannah

 

SAVANNAH, Ga. – Feb. 23, 2022 – Senmer — (SAVANNAH, GA / COASTAL GA) Childhood trauma and mental health issues in children, youth and young adults have risen sharply in the Savannah area, driven in great part by the COVID-19 pandemic, and now the existing support structure has received a four-year, $600,000 grant to address the issue.

The Coastal Georgia Indicators Coalition (CGIC) (https://www.coastalgaindicators.org/), the local planning and accountability organization for agencies addressing health and well-being issues, will administer the grant with its partners, which include Gateway Community Service Board, the Chatham County Safety Net and Loop It Up Savannah. The resulting coalition will be known as Resilient Coastal Georgia, a subset of the statewide organization, Resilient Georgia.

The funds are coming from the Pittulloch Foundation to support mental health system change and policies for children, youth and families.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, emergency department visits for suspected suicide attempts among adolescents jumped 31% in 2020, compared with 2019.

Roberts says addressing childhood trauma is important for today as well as to prevent serious health problems years in the future.

CGIC won the grant, in part, because it already has an effective existing framework for tackling issues and tracking results. It was charged with implementing proven, evidence-based strategies to help prevent current and future problems arising from childhood trauma.

Among the approaches which will be included are expansions of programs that have already demonstrated their worth. Among these are the Mindfulness Zone/Classes, which were pioneered locally by Loop It Up Savannah, that help schools and students understand if a child needs to have some quiet time to de-escalate tension. Also on the radar is the Handle With Care App (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/kh-handle-with-care/id15136…), which the Savannah Police Department (http://savannahpd.org/) and the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System (https://www.sccpss.com/Pages/default.aspx) began using about a year ago. SCCPSS developed the app that allows a responding police officer to notify a child’s school if that child has been involved in a potentially traumatic event.

While the grant is expected to help fast-track positive change, Roberts cautions that the potential for significant roadblocks may still lie ahead. In Chatham County, for example, a six-month waiting list often stands between a child and a therapist. Therefore, more therapists trained in trauma-based therapy are needed to reach the growing demand for services.

The Resilient Coastal Georgia kickoff is planned for Thursday, Feb 24 from 8:30 – 10 a.m. at the Behavioral Health Crisis Center, 2121 E. DeRenne Ave, Savannah, GA 31406.

For more information, contact Lizann Roberts at director.cgic@gmail.com

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Source: Coastal Georgia Indicators Coalition Receives 4-year Grant of $600K — Carriage Trade Public Relations® Inc.