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CMHC wins storyboard award at NIATx Summit, SAAS National Conference

August 30, 2011

Community Mental Health Center, Inc. was named the storyboard award winner in both audience and judge's choice categories at the NIATx Summit and the State Association of Addiction Services (SAAS) National Conference, held in Boston this past July.

The storyboard submitted by Debbie Cohen, L.C.S.W., and Nancy Pieper, L.C.S.W., L.C.A.C., summarized a change project that took place from August 2010 to April 2011. The project was designed to reduce wait time from initial contact to first appointment for services for individuals with substance use disorders.

Through a grant from The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati and in association with NIATx, which stands for Network for Improvement of Addictions Treatment, CMHC worked to reduce wait time to enter treatment at the Lawrenceburg Outpatient Services location. As a result of the project, wait time was cut from 31 days to 10 days.

Moving forward, CMHC, Inc. will continue with another round of change projects aimed at increasing retention in treatment for individuals with substance use disorders.

Ms. Cohen is Director of Evalution for CMHC. Ms. Pieper is Program Director of Outpatient Services in the Center's North Region (Northern Dearborn, Franklin and Ripley counties). Both have participated in NIATx Change Leader training and are helping lead CMHC's improvement efforts using the NIATx methodology.

According to the NIATx website, "NIATx is a pioneering improvement collaborative that works with organizations across the country to improve access to and retention in treatment." The NIATx website says the State Association of Addiction Services "is the leading national organization that advocates on behalf of state associations of prevention, treatment and recovery providers and the individuals and families that they serve."