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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Sabina Saleh, Vice President of Behavioral Health at Project Renewal
4:08:47
ยท
171 sec
Sabina Saleh, Vice President of Behavioral Health at Project Renewal, testified about the organization's efforts to address homelessness and mental health challenges in New York City. She highlighted Project Renewal's integrated approach to providing behavioral health services and requested funding for a mobile behavioral health van to expand access to care.
- Project Renewal offers accessible behavioral health care by embedding professionals in their facilities and through partnerships with city departments.
- The organization is requesting a $200,000 investment from the city council to initiate the city's first mobile behavioral health van.
- Saleh emphasized the importance of continued investment in proven programs to address the city's ongoing mental health crisis.
Sabina Saleh
4:08:47
Good afternoon.
4:08:49
Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.
4:08:51
My name is Sabina Saleh and I'm the vice president of behavioral health for Project Renewal.
4:08:56
For over fifty five years Project Renewal has provided shelter, housing, health care, and employment services to New Yorkers experiencing homelessness.
4:09:04
We are grateful to the city council for supporting our programs.
4:09:08
As you know, the intersection of the experience of homelessness and mental health challenges impacts far too many New Yorkers and has posed significant challenges for our city.
4:09:18
Behavioral health issues are one of the leading causes of homelessness among single adults and lack of housing makes access to behavioral health care services unattainable.
4:09:27
Diagnoses go unaddressed and stable housing drifts further out of reach.
4:09:31
The cycle continues.
4:09:33
Project renewal works to disrupt this cycle by offering accessible behavioral health care to New Yorkers facing homelessness.
4:09:40
We have built a network of services that seeks to bridge the gap between providers and hard to serve patients.
4:09:46
We do this by embedding behavioral health professionals throughout our facilities.
4:09:50
Nurse practitioners, psychiatrists, and occupational therapists are on-site at our shelters, transitional housing, and supportive housing to reduce barriers to care.
4:09:59
We also connect unhoused New Yorkers with behavioral health care through our support and connection center, a partnership with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
4:10:08
The program is an alternative to arrest and detention.
4:10:11
Police and EMS can bring a New Yorker experiencing a mental health crisis to the Support and Connection Center for stabilization and access to other behavioral health resources.
4:10:22
This network has only extended so far and can only serve people already in our system or experiencing an acute crisis.
4:10:29
It leaves out thousands of people.
4:10:31
But with the right attention and investment, we can expand our network to meet people in need right where they are.
4:10:37
For many of them, that means in public spaces.
4:10:40
We have successfully provided New Yorkers primary care with our mobile medical vans.
4:10:45
We are eager to apply this same strategy to expand access to behavioral health care.
4:10:50
That is almost done.
4:10:52
That is why we are requesting a 200,000 investment from the city council to initiate the city's first ever mobile behavioral health van.
4:11:00
We believe this is a critical evolution in mental health intervention.
4:11:03
It'll allow people in need of services to receive care right where they are.
4:11:08
Seeing a behavioral health van parked in a strategic location, stepping right off the sidewalk, receiving a session with a mental health professional, and being prescribed treatment, even including medication, right on the spot.
4:11:20
This can reach so many people who slip through the cracks of the support system, and continued investment in these proven programs and supportive models that PRI offers is critical addressing the city's ongoing mental health crisis and we're really grateful for the council's continued partnership.
4:11:36
I'm available to answer any questions you might have.