The state’s largest provider for child and family services is expanding its outreach to fill gaps in care for youth mental health and new parents.
The Villages of Indiana recently announced it is bringing its home-based program for new or expecting parents to nine more counties. It will also make the nonprofit the largest provider of the program in the state operating in 20 counties.
Healthy Families Indiana is free voluntary home visits that pairs families with a support worker that can help navigate needs during and after pregnancy, employment, housing and mental health.
The new locations fill vacancies left from former providers and keeps the program operational in all 92 counties. Rachel Colclazier, a senior director, said it will be easier to reach families in rural areas.
“This allows us as home visitors to come directly to the families, and so we don’t have to ask families to spend gas money to come and visit us. We are meeting them where they are,” Colclazier said.
The organization’s expansion of the Healthy Families Indiana program comes through a four-year, more than $34 million investment from the Indiana Department of Childhood Services. An additional 475 families are expected to be helped and even more assessments over the next year with the money.
Also this month Indiana Youth Institute awarded The Villages of Indiana $500,000 over three-years through a Lilly Endowment initiative. The money will go to offer youth mental health services statewide.
In Indiana, the number of youth that report feeling sad or hopeless was 47% according to the Indiana Department of Health’s 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, the most recent results available. Reported suicide attempts amongst students surveyed rose to an average of 15.7%.
President and CEO Shannon Schumacher said it can be difficult for youth to access mental and behavioral healthcare.
“Once you do access the services, oftentimes it is not with a specialized mental health professional that understands trauma of youth, depression in youth, anxiety in youth,” Schumacher said.
By offering services through telehealth, more youth in underserved areas will be able to connect online.
“We know that young people are used to virtual environments,” Schumacher said. “We’re seeing, and research is backing that virtual services work very very well in the behavioral health realm, particularly for this population of youth and teens in particular.”
Schumacher said the money from the state and grants helps quickly meet needs that would otherwise take a long time to create.
To learn more about these services go to The Villages of Indiana website.
Contact WFYI health reporter Samantha Horton at shorton@wfyi.org or on Signal at SamHorton.05
