Substance Use Disorder, Homelessness, and Mental Health in Kansas City
Where there is help, there is hope. First responders, hospitals, and nonprofits are rethinking their approach to helping those experiencing substance use disorder, homelessness, and mental health issues. Numbers prove residential facilities, like Benilde Hall, not only save healthcare resources and costs, but also result in better outcomes for those needing treatment and help, not to mention the community as a whole.
About Benilde Hall
In recovery, a “sense of community” must be established for the therapeutic process to continue, and sometimes even begin. Benilde Hall extends our continuum of care of services for clients affected by substance abuse, homelessness, and mental health by creating feelings of belonging and connectedness. In a “ripple effect,” we keep clients engaged in the therapeutic process as they become role models for the benefit of the whole community.
By providing services for treating substance use, mental health, and homelessness, individuals may return to the community as responsible, employed and permanently housed contributing members of society.
FACTS
· Opened in 1993
· Substance use disorder treatment
· On-site psychological services
· Case management
· Capacity to house 110
· 53 beds designated for veterans
· Individualized treatment plans
· RN on staff
· 12-unit permanent housing available for those who successfully complete program
· Work program: lawn, snow removal and house painting services
· Employment counseling
· Financial and independent living skills
· Recreation activities
· Legal advocacy and referrals
· Transportation
· Spirituality
· Referrals to community self-help groups
390 CLIENTS SERVED IN 2022
Out of 343 discharges:
· 89% were abstinent from substances
· 100% were housed
· 69% gained employment or income
· 60% were successfully discharged from the program
Veteran Homelessness Statistics
- On a single night in 2022, more than 33,000 Veterans were homeless¹.
- Veterans make up about 6% of the population of the United States and 8% of our nation’s homeless population².
- In 2020, an average of almost 17 American Veterans committed suicide every day³.
- More than 5 million Veterans experienced a behavioral health condition in 2020, and more than half of those did not receive treatment within the past year.
- More than 90% of Veterans with a substance use disorder have not received treatment4.
VETERAN HOMELESSNESS CAPITAL CAMPAIGN
Benilde Hall offers a transitional housing program with the goal to provide supportive housing and help homeless Veterans achieve residential stability. Services include skill building that will help hone skills to better prepare our Veterans for a successful, independent lifestyle.
The Veteran Homelessness Capital Campaign expansion has added 8 single rooms with a private bathroom for Veterans in the Grant and Per Diem (GPD) program.
In 2022 5
- 85 Veterans served through the Emergency Housing and GPD programs
- Out of the 67 Veterans who discharged:
87% of Veterans successfully completed either the Emergency Housing or GPD program.
99% of Veterans were abstinent.
100% of Veterans were housed.
88% of Veterans had income.
SAFE HAVEN FOR VETERANS
One of 24 Safe Haven programs in the US providing immediate housing for individuals who qualify for VA housing referrals. Clients can stay for up to 6 months.
In 2022 6
- 75 clients
- 5,691 bed nights
- 16 of those clients became permanently housed
Insurers and Community Nonprofits Join Forces in Favor of Residential Programs
Humana and Community CareLink’s pilot program changes how emergency responders handle calls and provide better care for people experiencing homelessness. Emergency room admittance is deferred if medically appropriate. Instead, individuals are placed in a residential facility for treatment of non-acute medical issues with the added benefit of stable housing while they are receiving care.
The pilot allows for 60 days at a residential program. In the 10 months that the pilot that has been running, 50 individuals were deferred from emergency room treatment into a residential program at Benilde Hall.
5
60 days at a residential program allow clients to find stability and potentially change their circumstances for a total of $66,000 compared to two nights and release at the ED at a cost of $370,000.
“Humana welcomed the opportunity to partner with CCL and Benilde Hall on this innovative approach to helping the homeless in the Kansas City community. The findings of this study will help inform future initiatives to improve the well-being of the city.”
Jeremy Gaskill, Humana’s central region president
Those with serious mental health and substance use disorders frequently use the local emergency rooms for treatment or end up in local jails, which causes financial burden on local hospitals and government. It is estimated that untreated adults with serious behavioral health disorders and substance use disorders cost the Greater Kansas City metro area $624 million annually.
For more information, press inquiries or media interviews, please get in touch.
3220 East 23rd Street
Kansas City, Missouri 64127
Phone: (816) 842-5836
Executive Director, Erin Fraser
efraser@mail.benildehall.org
1 2022 Point-in-Time (PIT) Count https://www.va.gov/homeless/pit_count.asp
2 The number of veterans experiencing homelessness rose slightly even before the coronavirus pandemic https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2021/03/18/the-number-of-veterans-experiencing-homelessness-rose-slightly-even-before-the-coronavirus-pandemic/
5 https://www.benildehall.org/veteran-homelessness-capital-campaign.html
6 https://www.benildehall.org/our-services/safe_haven.html
7 Emergency Room Deferment Program Saves Money and Helps People Experiencing Homelessness https://www.communitycarelink.com/post/emergency-room-deferment-program-saves-money-and-helps-people-experiencing-homelessness
