Mental Health Trust Settlement Contract

People who have serious and persistent mental illness as well as intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) tend to fall through the cracks in the delivery of care system. The mental health system, in particular, perceives that they do not have the knowledge of how to provide assessment and treatment services for this group of people. They therefore are under diagnosed or misdiagnosed. Because of the lack of adequate training for mental health clinical personnel, these individuals are often difficult to manage, in clinical crises, and referred to hospital emergency rooms. Unfortunately, they are frequently hospitalized because of inadequate training and treatment. They therefore become a major financial burden in the mental health system.

To address these concerns the Council and it’s collaborators NADD, Developmental Disabilities Program and MT Association of Community Disability Services will develop and conduct a series of trainings for mental health clinicians and law enforcement with the overall goal of improving service delivery for individuals with serious and persistent mental illness and intellectual/developmental disability by developing local capacity, improving staff competency and building sustainability for the prevention, treatment and management of serious and persistent mental illness in people with intellectual/developmental disability.

Trainings were held in the spring and fall of 2012 in the following locations:

Dual Diagnosis

4/23/12 – Missoula
4/24/12 – Great Falls
4/25/12 – Helena
4/26/12 – Bozeman
9/10/12 – Billings
9/11/12 – Miles City
9/13/12 – Glasgow

Law Enforcement

5/14/12 – Bozeman
5/15/12 – Billings
5/17/12 – Glasgow
5/18/12 – Havre
9/10/12 – Butte
9/12/12 – Pablo
9/14/12 – Great Falls
9/11/12 – Helena