Offering Hope…
Behavioral Health Services for the Kansas City Northland community. Prevention, assessment and treatment services for individuals and families throughout Clay, Platte and Ray counties
2009
• May Celebrations Mark Mental Health Week, Month—Tri-County’s greatly expanded Older Adult Care Services outdid itself during Mental Health Week and Mental Health Month, 2009. A series of special programs, events and other activities provided everything from tips for avoiding depression to a special senior pet adoption. All events were open to the public and drew large audiences and media coverage.
• 2009 Older Adult/Mental Health Training Opportunities—Tri-County’s range of free and low-cost training services for area organizations working with older adults is just one of scores of events for caregivers and older adult residents created or supported by Tri-County’s Older Adult Care Services.
• Teens’ Announcement Wins State Competition— A public service announcement created by members of Youth With Vision (YWV) won a statewide competition sponsored by the Missouri’s Youth Adult Alliance (MYAA) in early 2009. The alliance invited participants from across the state to create a broadcast quality peer-to-peer public service announcement (PSA) focused on the social marketing message that underage drinking is destructive behavioral choice.
• Sad Case with Silver Lining—A 2009 Platte County underage drinking case brought attention to the serious issue of young people and alcohol at a significant time. While it was coincidental, two women were charged with serving alcohol to minors only days before the Tri-County-sponsored Northland Coalition launched its awareness campaign about the consequences of underage drinking. Timed each year to coincide with prom season, “Those Who Host Lose the Most” received national attention when Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd filed first-degree child endangerment charges against the women who allegedly hosted a party for underage teens.
• Tri-County Earns Technical Award—Tri-County Mental Health Services in 2009 earned fourth prize in the XTREME Technology Makeover Contest presented at the 2009 Strategic Business Forum sponsored by Midwest Technology Connection. Based in Kansas City, MTC sponsored the events to encourage local companies to invest in better technology to help grow their business. A twist on the “Extreme Makeover” contests, the XTREME Technology Makeover competition was won by the Girl Scouts of Northeast Kansas and Northwest Missouri, which received $130,000 for technology upgrades. Tri-County, with fourth-place honors, will receive $10,000.
• Tri-County Honored by DEA—Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Michael Scalise in 2009 presented Amy Tuso, a certificate of appreciation from the DEA for Tuso’s leadership efforts in combating substance abuse in the Liberty area community. Tuso is the chair of the Liberty Alliance for Youth (LAFYI) and prevention coordinator for the Liberty School District. Comprised of community volunteers, LAFYI is funded with the support of Tri-County Mental Health Services.
• Staff Honored—2009 began with two key Tri-County leaders earning outside recognition. The Healthy Families Counseling and Support honored Tri-County CEO Tom Cranshaw as an Outstanding Family Advocate while Outpatient Services Manager Richard Odium was recently honored with the 2008 Mental Health Professional Award from NAMI of Kansas City.
• Services Expand—Tri-County manages to expand services to consumers even while reducing costs. Typical was the 2009 addition of a new nurse liaison who helps lower mental health and other care through proactive patient prevention and education.
• Regional Message for Mental Health—Tri-County and its leaders were among those interviewed for a hard hitting, three-part series on mental health needs by the Kansas City Star. The series, published in February 2009, took a hard look of lack of space and funds that fuel mental health crisis here and elsewhere.
2008
• Northland Team Receives National Honor—Again!—Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) and its National Coalition Institute in December, 2008 again named the Ray County Coalition a “Coalition of Excellence”. The Got Outcomes! Coalition of Excellence Award is given annually to coalitions that have successfully reduced substance abuse in their community through evidence-based strategies and practices.
• Clients Give High Marks—Tri-County Mental Health Services annual survey of clients consistently provides positive feedback, but the 2007 and 2008 reports were especially notable for the nearly 100 percent approval on several key areas. The information is used for more than “back patting,” however. The results are examined throughout the year for ways to improve programs.
• Coalition Team Earns National Honor—The Ray County Coalition in Lawson was selected as a recipient of 2008 Got Outcomes! Coalition of Excellence Award. The honor in the Coalition in Focus category is one of the annual recognitions by the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America.
• Behind the Scenes—Tri-County’s Family Support Group in 2008 was revitalized and refocused to provide practical help for families who have a loved one suffering from mental illness.
• Lt. Gov. Honors Clay County Efforts—Following earlier state-wide recognition of services for older adults, Missouri Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder in June, 2008 awarded three local organizations, including Tri-County, for their community-wide effort to prevent injuries to seniors from falling. The earlier recognition followed a survey that showed Northland older adults served by Tri-County are receiving some of the best services in the state.
• Northland Counties Among Best in State—A survey released in January 2008 showed three Northland counties in the top 30 in quality of life for older adults. Three counties served by Tri-County and its expanding older adult services included Platte County, which had the second best results in the entire state. Clay County was sixth and Ray County 27th, out of the 114 counties in the Missouri.
2007
• Group Invited To White House Press Conference—Liberty High School junior Mallory Hamilton, Smithville High School sophomore Paige Yates and Youth Prevention Specialist McElhaney of Tri-County Mental Health Services were invited by the White House to attend a Presidential Press Conference Dec. 10, 2007. Mallory was also selected as one of only 12 people to meet in a roundtable discussion with President Bush. The conference was held to announce the positive findings regarding significant drops in underage substance abuse. Only 130 people were invited to participate. The attendees were invited as a result of the successes they have realized through the work of the Northland Coalition, Youth with Vision and Tri-County Mental Services. Both are prevention programs that receive technical support through Tri-County Mental Health Services.
• Special Seminar for Consumers, Families—Perceptions of mental health consumers and family members were the focus at an unusual event for the area’s mental health consumers, family members, caregivers, social workers and service providers. Tri-County Mental Health Services and The Nation’s Voice on Mental Illness (NAMI) hosted the event in August 2007 with featured speaker Joel Slack, author of the Respect Seminar.
• $150,000 Grant for Older Adults—The success of Tri-County’s services for older adults was underscored in May, 2007 when Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City has announced a $150,000 award to Tri-County Mental Health Services to support improved access to mental health services for older adults in Kansas City North. The award was combined with grants from the Harvest Ball and the Clay, Platte, Ray Mental Health Board to permit Tri-County to expand these mental health services for older adults throughout the Northland.
• First in Missouri with New Program— A significant addition to Tri-County services involved its approval in 2007 as Missouri’s first community mental health center to provide Integrated Dual Disorders Treatment for persons with both mental illness and substance abuse problems. Because of the tendency for mental illness to bring a cascade of personal problems, even attempts at self-medication, dual disorders are tragically common. The approval means that hundreds of area residents can now seek qualified treatment.
2006
• 2006 National Honor for the Northland Coalition is one of several awards to the Tri-County-supported organization. This honor by the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) involves the group’s prestigious Got Outcomes Award for a Single Strategy, effectively naming the coalition as the top national coalition of the year.
• CEO Named to Regional Post—Tri-County’s CEO Tom Cranshaw typifies TCMHS leadership in the region. In 2006, he was elected Health Commissioner Co-Chair of the Health Planning and Assessment Committee for the Kansas City Health Commission.
• Grant Targets Mental Health for Older Adults— Tri-County Mental Health Services in 2006 was awarded an $85,000 grant from the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City to provide services for Kansas City, North residents 60 and older. The effort effectively commenced a major expansion of services for a population group that had been under served in Clay, Platte and Ray counties.
• President Meets Local Youth—Two Northland high school students received the Presidential Volunteer Service Award for their work with Youth With Vision. The honors were presented September 2007 and drew national attention. Tri-County Mental Health Services helped found Youth With Vision in 1994 to expand its grassroots community efforts to fight substance abuse and promote healthy lifestyles.
• Youth’s Successes Viewed Nationwide— Efforts by a group of metropolitan area high school students working with Tri-County Mental Health Services to reduce inappropriate messages for young people drew national attention in May 2006. Youth With Vision members were interviewed on NBC’s the Today Show about their work across the metropolitan area to create Walls of Shame and Fame during a May 11 program. Their efforts, unveiled April 21 in a press conference at Union Station, followed six months of research visiting stores throughout the Kansas City area that carry merchandise targeted to youth.
• Miss America Joins Effort—Tri-County Mental Health Services and Miss America 2006 Jennifer Berry combined March 28, 2006 to present "Drunk and Drunker, An Underage Drinking Reality Check." Tri-County, volunteers from the Northland Coalition and the Interagency Coordinating Committee for the Prevention of Underage Drinking sponsored the free-admission evening of entertainment and information on the evolution of underage drinking and steps toward prevention.
2005
• New Skill Center Expands Services—Tri-County Mental Health Services took a major step in May 2005 when it dedicated the new Lebedun Center, which houses an adult day program adjacent to a housing program also for adults with mental illness.
Tri-County Mental Health Services, 3100 NE 83rd St., Suite 1001, Kansas City, MO 64119-9998
Telephone: (816) 468-0400 Fax: (816) 468-6635 • 24-Hour Emergency Service Crisis Line 1-888-279-8188
Contact Us