VNACJ Receives Nicholson Foundation Grant
$225,000 Funding Will Support Mental Health Services At Main Street Center
The Nicholson Foundation has awarded the Visiting Nurse Association of Central Jersey [VNACJ] a grant to expand mental health services at the community health center on Main Street.
The $225,000 award adds the integrated behavioral health intervention model known as Cherokee Health Systems [CHS] to the center’s list of services, which includes dental, prenatal care, and podiatry services.
The team-based model pioneered in Knoxville, TN, aims to improve a patient’s overall health by providing a behavioral health consultant to work simultaneously with the facility’s existing 40 member staff. Everything from mental health to substance misuse will be addressed as patients seek help for their physical health issues, officials said.
“What is particularly special about the Cherokee 
model is the recognition of the close link between physical and psychological well being, where problems with one can trigger problems with the other,” Executive Director Kristine, McCoy [at right] said. “For example heart disease and depression are often closely linked. This is for mild to moderate cases and its about that interplay between the physical health and psychological health.”
Established in 1994, the Asbury Park VNACJ is one of three locations serving over 11,000 patients annually. The satellite centers are located in Keyport and Red Bank. In 2001, services were expanded to include HIV primary care and early intervention services, according to their website. Prenatal, nutrition counseling and behavioral health services were added in 2005. Today the Asbury Park headquarters serves over 6,000 patients annually.
“We deeply appreciate the support of The Nicholson Foundation in providing additional resources and expertise to help us in our ongoing efforts to expand access to behavioral health care,” McCoy said.
The grant will fund additional staff salaries, training and technical assistance for physicians, nurse practitioners, behavioral health consultants, and other providers. The teamwork approach is aimed at administering integrated care for the most vulnerable patients.
“Although behavioral health has traditionally been separated from the physical healthcare delivery system, a solid research and clinical consensus has existed for decades that integrated clinics that treat the ‘whole person’ produce better outcomes for individuals while lowering total costs to the system,” said The Nicholson Foundation Senior Healthcare Program Officer Barbara Kang said.
The Asbury Park VNACJ is one of six New Jersey health centers who will receive help narrowing the gap between the need for treatment and its availability. The Mental Health Association in New Jersey has estimated average wait times for community-based mental health outpatient services of three to six months in most counties, officials said.
“Our ultimate goal is to make integrated care ‘the new normal’ throughout the state of New Jersey,” The Nicholson Foundation Executive Director Arturo Brito said . “Our intention is to continue supporting the expansion of the Cherokee model to more clinics in the future, thereby transforming the way care is delivered to vulnerable populations in New Jersey.”
The Nicholson Foundation grant provides funding and services for a 15-month period. Patients with mild-to- moderate behavioral health issues will be treated in the primary care setting to prevent conditions from becoming acute.
A total of $1.35 million was awarded to the VNA, the Eric B. Chandler Health Center of New Brunswick, AtlantiCare of Atlantic City, Metropolitan Family Health Network of Jersey City, Kennedy Family Health Services of Somerdale, and Hackensack Meridian Family Health Center of Neptune.
McCoy said a licensed clinical social worker will be added to the team as well as another front desk employee.
“In the first year we are looking at 800 patients but in long term we will serve about 1200 patients through 2500 visits per year,” McCoy said. “We will continue to work with all the other behavioral health providers in the community to make sure people are supported. We are very much about getting people connected to all the great resources in the community.”
The VNACJ is located at 1301 Main Street. The hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday; 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m Wednesday; 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday; and 8 a.m to 1 p.m. Saturday. For more information, click here.
For more information about The Nicholson Foundation, click here.
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