Providence St. Joseph donates $1.43 million to local mental health programs

Gift to NAMI and National Council made in honor of the 143,000 people of Providence St. Joseph Health

Every great social movement begins with a simple act. It starts with one person helping another, which in turn inspires the next person to do the same. Soon, there’s a chain reaction, with entire communities coming together to meet the need.

To truly address the nation’s growing mental health crisis, it will take all of us working together starting at the grassroots level. That is why Providence St. Joseph Health is looking for ways to empower our communities by giving people training and resources to support family, friends and neighbors living with mental illness and addiction.

Today, I am pleased to announce that we are donating $1.43 million to two programs that do exactly that. This donation is being made in honor of the 143,000 caregivers, physicians, volunteers and board members who make up Providence St. Joseph Health, a not-for-profit health system serving the Western United States.

The funds will be shared with the following programs and will go toward training individuals in the communities we serve across Alaska, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington and Texas.

1. Families helping other families

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Family-to-Family is a free education program for family members and loved ones of people impacted by mental health conditions. It’s taught by parents, spouses and siblings who have gone through similar experiences and who are giving back by volunteering to help others.

The full program is a comprehensive series of 12 classes. With funding from Providence St. Joseph Health, NAMI will create a shorter version to provide immediate assistance to the families and friends of those in crisis. In addition, NAMI will train new program leaders in the communities Providence St. Joseph Health serves. These program leaders, in turn, will share their training with thousands of more people in need. Our donation will also be used to provide training materials in different languages spoken in our communities.

2. Understanding the signs of mental illness and substance use 

Mental Health First Aid, sponsored by the National Council for Behavioral Health, is an eight-hour course that teaches people how to identify, understand and respond to signs of people with mental health and substance abuse problems. With this program, almost 700,000 people – from police and corrections officers to teachers and bus drivers to faith leaders and parents – now have the skills to recognize when someone needs help and the ability to help them get it.

With our donation, we’re adding momentum to and sustaining the Mental Health First Aid program in the communities Providence St. Joseph Health serves. The grant enables: 45 caregivers to be certified as instructors, the delivery of 1,300 Mental Health First Aid courses; and the training of 50,000 people living and working in the Providence St. Joseph Health communities.

Just the beginning

Supporting these two programs is part of a larger commitment to addressing the mental health crisis. When Providence Health & Services and St. Joseph Health came together in July to form Providence St. Joseph Health, we identified mental health as an urgent need in every community we serve.

We are proud to have the leadership of Maureen Bisognano, president emerita of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, in our efforts to address this critical issue. Maureen is serving as the chairwoman of our advisory panel on mental health and wellness. Read my blog post about Maureen’s involvement and the five ways we plan to address the mental health crisis in our communities.

In the meantime, it’s an honor to get started by partnering with NAMI and the National Council on these life-saving community programs. It’s even more of an honor to do so in the name of Providence St. Joseph Health caregivers who extend extraordinary acts of love, kindness and compassion to those in need on a daily basis.

Join the conversation 

It’s Mental Illness Awareness Week! This is a great opportunity to raise awareness about this important cause. Help us spread the word.

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