BRUNSWICK, Maine — A mental health nonprofit in Midcoast Maine has used funds from a $4 million federal grant to expand services at its certified community behavioral health clinic (CCBHC) in Brunswick.
Sweetser had increased services at its CCBHC, which is a clinic that offers treatment for both mental health and substance use.
The clinic currently serves around 600 people, but with the help of the grant, it could serve up to 200 more every year for the next four years, according to the CCBHC's Clinical Director, Joey Rossignol.
"The CCBHC has just allowed us to think outside of the box and allowed us to create new initiatives for the community they haven't had access to before," he said.
The nonprofit is wrapping up its first year using the funds and Rossignol said they've already been a game changer. The grant has allowed the clinic to double the size of its psychiatry team, take clients off waitlists and add walk-in appointments. Also, every single person who walks through their doors will be able to access services even if they are unable to pay or don't have insurance.
"Having that walk-in service available feeling like you can come out of here knowing that your needs are going to be addressed or you're going to be placed with the right group of people to help treat you is really important," Patrick Garrett, an access coordinator with Sweetser, said.
Sweetser is partnering with the University of New England to conduct a community needs assessment for midcoast communities, Rossignol said. Sweetser wants to hear directly from people about what is lacking in their communities, and the goal is to bridge the gap to some of those needs.
"In the past, mental health used to be siloed. Mental health and substance use were kind of two specific different treatments," Rossignol said. "Now CCBHC's and the way the country is going with mental health care is integrated that we address concurring disorders meaning that they tackle both barriers at the same time."
Sweetser is hoping its clinic in Brunswick will be a model to add more certified community health behavioral clinics in more parts of Maine.