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AuSable Valley CEO outlines vision for agency to Iosco BOC

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Skip to main contentYou have permission to edit this article.EditHomeNewsSportsObitsLifestyleOpinionClassifiedsMarketplaceTAWAS CITY – While presenting the AuSable Valley Community Mental Health Authority’s (AVCMHA) 2022 Annual Report to the Sept. 22 regular meeting of the Iosco County Board of Commissioners, CEO Diane Pelts shared her narrative on the need for collaboration and creativity with respect to the increasing demand for community mental health services in rural areas.Citing a continually increasing need for mental health treatment and care since the pandemic, Pelts noted that several other agencies are also involved during mental health crises. In addition to her own organization, Pelts said that “law enforcement, 911, hospitals, and other first responders are often brought into the equation.”Due to these needs, Pelts said, her organization’s strategic plan includes a new goal: “Community immersion and collaboration towards enhancement of crisis and emergency services, provision of outpatient therapy and other clinical services, and assistance to community partners via expansion of secondary trauma initiatives.”Pelts said this goal can be accomplished by:1. Harnessing “resources via collaborative and innovative programming and staff placement outside the office, integrating into the community and co-locating;”2. Assisting “in stigma reduction via the provision of services outside of our agency;” and3. Assisting “with community awareness, education, and training relative to secondary trauma.”To that end, Pelts reported that her organization has designed pilot programs, the first of which she expects to start in West Branch on Oct. 1, where “dedicated emergency services employees will be placed into the 911 dispatch area to assist in real-time with mental health calls.” The hope for this four-month pilot program, according to Pelts, is to divert “the person in crisis,” when appropriate, directly to “a level of care that will…provide better outcomes for that person.” She added that such diversions may provide a savings on resources and costs, as the need for EMS, law enforcement, or waiting for medical clearance or placement would be negated.With respect to reducing the stigma associated with seeking mental health services, Pelts announced that AVCMHA will place outpatient therapists into clinics in West Branch, Skidway Lake, and Hale. She noted that accessing care outside of a designated mental health facility can “alleviate stigma associated with receiving treatment,” thereby helping “people feel more accepted and supported.”Secondary trauma is a condition that Pelts seeks to increase awareness of in the community. Mental health issues caused when individuals are “exposed to people who have been traumatized themselves,” she said, have led to the development of intervention protocols known as Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM). Pelts noted that CISM was first used to treat military combat veterans and then first responders, but has now been “adapted and used virtually everywhere when a traumatic event impacts people’s lives.” She added that several strategies are employed under the umbrella of CISM, including Debriefing, Defusing, Grief and Loss sessions, Crisis Management Briefing, Critical Incident Adjustment Support, and Pre-Crisis Education.In her report, Pelts reviewed the success of AVCMHA’s Carter Kit initiative established last year. Carter Kit Sensory Bags, designed to expand Autism Awareness, include “clinically proven items to help children and adults cope during traumatic situations,” and contain sensory toys, a weighted blanket, noise-cancelling headphones, sunglasses, and a non-verbal communication card. Pelts said her agency has disbursed 240 kits, free with training, locally to “EMS, first responders, Ogemaw Transit Authority, COOR, IRESA, DHHS, local libraries, NMCAC, AVCMHA staff, school social workers and others.”At the end of her report, Pelts referenced a tour, led by Michigan State Representative Mike Hoadley, of the former Standish Max facility in Arenac County. Standish Max, which has been sitting idle for several years while still being maintained, is being looked at for potential conversion to a health care campus. Pelts said that she realized that it would take a great deal of money to effect such a conversion, but saw value in the possibility of including a mental health facility as part of that campus.Several commissioners commented on Pelts’ report. Commissioner Charles Finley said that he had attended a training session on the use of Carter Kits. “It’s a great tool to be able to offer,” he said. Commissioner Terry Dutcher expressed his opinion that the Standish Max facility could be used to house patients for many uses, while Commissioner D. Jay O’Farrell, who also sits on the AVCMHA Board, commented that with nine brick buildings and infrastructure in place at Standish Max, “it would be a shame to knock it down.” Commissioner Robert Huebel complimented Pelts on her pilot programs, saying that people facing the worst days of their lives need the reassurance provided by the programs.After Pelts’ presentation was completed, the Board voted 5-0 to appropriate $67,935 to the AVCMHA as Iosco County’s contribution for fiscal year 2024.Earlier in the meeting, the Board went into a Public Hearing, at which a resolution was approved in a 5-0 vote to request a grant from the Michigan Strategic Fund. $70,000 will be requested from the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Funding Round.The Board held an election for the Board of Canvassers. Susan Mayer was elected as the Democratic member, and Maureen Rudel the Republican member.On a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the grant agreement between the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and Iosco County for Recycling Infrastructure Grant Agreement Project #INF-23-009 in the amount of $171,647.00 with a match amount of $42,912 for a net total of $214,559.The Board voted unanimously to amend the Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) Trail Improvement Fund Grant to allow the use of granted moneys after Sept. 30. The extension ends on Sept. 30, 2024. According to Iosco County Controller/Finance Director Jamie Carruthers-Soboleski, the extension is needed for use in October and November to prepare the trails for snowmobiles.A resolution was unanimously approved to grant access to property located on Bissonette Rd. in Oscoda, which is jointly owned by the County and Huron Shores Regional Utility Authority (HRSUA), to the U.S. Air Force. According to Soboleski, the Air Force will drill three wells to monitor for PFAS, PFOA, and/or PFOS contamination in underground water.The Board approved Soboleski’s request to apply for a $500,000 grant from the Neighborhood Housing Initiatives Division’s CDBG Housing Improving Local Livability (CHILL) Program.The Board approved the Iosco County Child Care Annual Budget Summary for FY 2024, and approved a request from Deputy Court Administrator/FOC Supervisor to post and hire a full-time level 6 USW Local 15157-22 Diversion Worker for the FOC at a rate of $19.30 per hour.A request from the Iosco County Equalization Department to approve an agreement with Amalgam LLC of Mt. Pleasant for parcel maintenance was approved unanimously.The Agreement for Extension Services between Michigan State University Extension and the County of Iosco for 2024 in the amount of $154,977 was approved on a 5-0 vote.At Soboleski’s request the Board approved the hire of a full-time level 3 USW Local 15157-14 position for the Register of Deeds at a rate of $17.87 per hour.Board salaries and per diems were approved for the month of September.Statutory Finance minutes of the meeting held Sept. 6 in the amount of $119,175.55 were accepted as presented.The News-Herald mobile app brings you the latest local breaking news, updates, and more. Read the News-Herald on your mobile device just as it appears in print.Get ready for adventures with our June Summer Guide!Celebrate our 2023 graduates!Powered by BLOX Content Management System from BLOX Digital.

Skip to main contentYou have permission to edit this article.EditHomeNewsSportsObitsLifestyleOpinionClassifiedsMarketplaceTAWAS CITY – While presenting the AuSable Valley Community Mental Health Authority’s (AVCMHA) 2022 Annual Report to the Sept. 22 regular meeting of the Iosco County Board of Commissioners, CEO Diane Pelts shared her narrative on the need for collaboration and creativity with respect to the increasing demand for community mental health services in rural areas.Citing a continually increasing need for mental health treatment and care since the pandemic, Pelts noted that...

AuSable Valley CEO outlines vision for agency to Iosco BOC

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