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Mental health officer says program a success

Victoria Advocate - 6/20/2017

June 20--Gulf Bend Center's Executive Director Jeff Tunnell said the future is bright for programs aimed at preventing people with mental illnesses from ending up in jail.

During a meeting Monday, Tunnell updated Victoria County commissioners about the financial future of a program -- which is largely funded by state money -- that pays for two local law enforcement officers to respond only to mental health calls. This comes after Texas lawmakers recently allocated state money for similar programs, which Tunnell said should allow the Gulf Bend Center to continue receiving state grant money.

"We had a voice at the table," said Tunnell, adding that commissioners courts and sheriffs throughout the region helped lobby for the funding.

Right now, the program is only funded until the end of August, but Tunnell said his organization applied for another grant to continue the program. If the agency receives the grant, it will have to come up with a 50-percent match of whatever amount is awarded.

Although the program just started in April, Tunnell said it has been largely successful in helping people with mental illnesses. Between the beginning of May and June 7, the two officers helped defuse mental health crises and conducted more than 40 wellness checks, which means talking with people in the community who struggle with mental health issues, Tunnell said.

Ideally, Tunnell said he would like to increase the number of officers from two to six -- half of which would come from the Victoria Police Department while the rest would come from the sheriff's office.

"Their role is being more proactive and preventative, not reactive," said Tunnell.

Also Monday, Derrick Neal, who runs the Victoria County Public Health Department, told commissioners the agency will be looking for a new manager to run the agency's HIV/AIDS Resources Program.

This comes after the former manager, Alphonso Scallion, resigned last week, Neal said. The health department will be searching for candidates to fill the position, which entails managing programs including housing and medical care to people with HIV. The program manager also will be in charge of managing federal grants that fund the programs, Neal said.

"It's a lot to manage," Neal said. "And we want to make sure that we identify someone who is a good match for this program."

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