Center for Women and Families/Assessing Domestic Violence and Severe Mental Illness Needs

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The overall goal of this project, headed by the Center for Women and Families in Louisville, KY, is to increase collaboration between service providers and access to services for serious mental illness and domestic violence. The first step is to examine existing sources of data to determine service gaps between domestic violence (DV)/sexual assault (SA) and serious mental illness (SMI) populations; many incoming victims of DV/SA who co-present with SMI who are referred to mental health services never return to receive the victim services the Center for Women and Families (CWF) provides. PIRE is assisting CWF in providing data to support their initiative. Data at the local level are supported by a review of relevant national literature to identify the potential overlap in SMI and DV populations, which can then be extrapolated to the local level. Surveying frontline and supervisory staff at the partnership organizations is also critical in determining the barriers in place to properly identify victims, ensuring they receive adequate services (for both mental health and domestic violence), and shifting operational policies and procedures. The results of the internal survey help inform the strategic plan and potentially the development of the screening tool used with incoming clients. The results of PIRE’s needs assessment will help inform the strategic plan, such that external barriers to accessing services and gaps in treatment can be assessed and remedied. PIRE is also assisting with applying the findings of the needs assessment to the strategic plan and the development of the screening tool. Funded by the Office of Violent Crimes, this project began in October 2017 and will end in October 2020.