Bernalillo County: Education and Training (Behavioral Health)

Bernalillo County is seeking to support offerors to provide Behavioral Health Training and Education for professionals who have direct contact (due to their profession) with those living with behavioral health issues and/or community members who may interact with individuals with behavioral health needs. A two-fold approach is being recommended: (1) education interventions; and (2) training interventions that aim to increase understanding and provide information on how to best support populations with behavioral health challenges. Examples of proposed training and education include programs like Mental Health First Aid (MHFA); Emotional Connecting, Empowering, Revitalizing (eCPR); and train-the-trainer programs that focus on raising awareness, understanding, and skills to increase the use of evidence-based programs and aid the engagement and navigation of individuals with behavioral health needs through complex services delivery system.

Multiple interventions may be utilized in achieving the goal of increasing education and training related to behavioral health issues. A number of different interventions are used to provide training and skills to individuals whose occupations are focused on supporting people living with behavioral health issues. One of the proposed interventions may be a train-the-trainer program that provides in-person training for anyone who wants to learn about mental illnesses or substance abuse, including risk factors and warning signs. In an effort to insure sustainability over time, Bernalillo County highly recommends train-the trainer models. Trainings must be appropriate for a variety of professionals and non professionals working and living in the community as well as in primary and behavioral health care integration settings. There are also interventions used to provide education to individuals in the community and professionals who interact with people who are living with behavioral health issues.

Services that could be funded include educational programs about how to support someone who is having a behavioral health crisis and how to connect individuals with behavioral health concerns to community resources. Training programs could target professionals working with high risk individuals or practitioners needing support to be certified or prepared to work with such individuals. Such programs could also provide skills in client engagement and in symptom management to help keep individuals in services and reduce the need for higher intensity crisis services. Programs that could apply for this funding could vary widely, and therefore the target populations for those programs and the the proposed training and educational activities could vary.

The target population for this RFP is a broad group who could be eligible for training and/or educational interventions. Funding will target proposals that support training services and/or education for professionals with occupations focused on helping people with behavioral health issues, and community members who interact with people with behavioral health needs. The intended target population is community-wide, but priorities include the following:

• Individuals with training and/or education needs due to profession: School counselors, social workers, foster caregivers, educators, case managers (especially those working with high risk populations), peer practitioners, medical professionals seeing persons with behavioral health conditions, first responders without other opportunities for training, adult and juvenile parole and probation officers, MCO staff and care coordinators, social services personnel, therapists, and nonprofit practitioners working with high risk populations
• Education and training opportunities for community members with critical roles: Clergy, parents and family members, librarians, employers, landlords, neighborhood association leaders and staff, and public service personnel (e.g., bus drivers and customer service staff)

Amount: The County may fund several offerors with different proposed program formats at a total cost not to exceed $1,000,000 per year for three years (which includes NMGRT). The County is interested in using this RFP to fund one or more interventions for three-year contracts (ineligible for renewal after the third year).

Cost proposals will not be evaluated on the basis of lowest total cost. Rather, the cost evaluation will be based on offeror’s estimated average cost per client served and the ability to leverage additional resources. This will allow the County to more appropriately evaluate proposals of slightly different sizes and structures against each other and to ascertain the ability to leverage funding streams.

Eligibility: An offeror is defined as any person, corporation, or partnership who chooses to submit a proposal.

Link: https://www.bernco.gov/general-services/request-for-proposals.aspx

Note: A non-mandatory conference will be held May 1, 2018, at 10:30 a.m. in the Purchasing Conference Room on the 10th Floor of the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Government Center, One Civic Plaza NW, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 87102.

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