BHHS Legacy Foundation has donated $75,000 to notMYkid’s Full Continuum of Care model to reach more people in the LatinX community in Phoenix. The program will serve 3,000 youth and parents with community outreach, prevention education, healthcare navigation services, and recovery support. The new programming will begin in November 2022 and will be delivered in both English and Spanish.

“The goal of our Full Continuum of Care is to provide treatment and recovery support services for youth and their families to reduce adolescent substance use disorder and mental health challenges,” said Kristen Polin, CEO of notMYkid. “Our holistic approach is built on a framework of evidenced-based strategies that encourages healthy development and well-being. Youth are struggling with drug abuse and mental health challenges. The cost of addiction comes with a high price tag to our communities, both monetarily and through lives lost to addiction or suicide.”

The new program will utilize a three-tiered approach to address substance use and mental health at every stage from early initiation of behaviors, treatment, and recovery support

The first tier is prevention education and community outreach events. notMYkid will host engaging presentations to provide education and information on vital behavioral health topics including Drug Use, Vaping & Cannabis, Teen Mental Health, Anxiety & Stress, Internet Safety, Relationships, Bullying, Body Image & Self Esteem.

The second tier includes family support programs including early intervention classes and parent coaching workshops. The programs are developed with evidenced-based strategies and peer-to-peer components to engage youth and their caregivers.

The third tier is family navigation support. Family navigation services are intended to improve outcomes for children and their families by providing information and empowerment in the decision-making process.

Polin added, “The goal of family navigation is to empower families to make informed choices that are right for them. Our team will assess the family’s needs and strengths and collect appropriate referral information. We help families understand mental and behavioral health challenges and provide on-going assistance with navigating the mental and behavioral healthcare system.”

"BHHS Legacy Foundation Board and Staff greatly value the holistic approach that notMykid provides to families struggling to address substance abuse and mental health issues in their families,” said Jerry Wissink, CEO of BHHS Legacy Foundation. “We continue to look forward to a successful partnership in serving the LatinX community with this important programming in the Phoenix.”

A few interesting stats:

· Youth who drink before the age of 15 are five times more likely to develop a substance use disorder.

· Teen overdoses doubled in 2020 and increased another 20% in 2021. Connecting teens to treatment and recovery support is vital in preventing life-threatening conditions and destruction to young lives.

· According to the Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS), Hispanic teens are using drugs at alarmingly higher levels when compared to teens from other ethnic groups. The data shows how substance use has become a normalized behavior among LatinX youth. Hispanic teens reported high rates of drug use compared to Caucasian and African American teens. The survey reported 62% drank alcohol, 54% used illicit drugs, and 47% used cannabis/marijuana.

· Arizona is one of five states that led the country with the highest percentage of youth who have 3 or more adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s). The striking consequences with ACE’s are higher rates of substance use among youth. Compromised youth mental health leads to negative risk taking and an increased chance of developing a substance use disorder

· The proportion of children seeking emergency mental health services who required immediate hospitalization rose 75% in 2020 compared with 2019.

About BHHS Legacy Foundation:
BHHS Legacy Foundation supports organizations that enhance health and quality of life in the Greater Phoenix area and the Tri-State region of northern Arizona. It does this by funding grants to nonprofits with health-related programs, nurturing collaborative partnerships, and raising funds through Legacy Connection to support community organizations. To date, BHHS Legacy Foundation has invested more than $110 million in nonprofits to support programs in our communities. For more information visit http://www.bhhslegacy.org.

About notMYkid:
notMYkid has a mission to empower and educate youth, families, and communities with the knowledge and courage to identify and prevent negative youth behavior. Recognizing that the challenges our youth face today are complex and can potentially devastate and derail futures, notMYkid passionately works to educate and protect our community’s kids by providing life-saving peer-to-peer programs and support. We are dedicated to helping youth overcome challenges during their most vulnerable years.

Following two decades of service, our nonprofit has completely transformed to meet the unique needs facing youth and their families by providing a full continuum of life-saving prevention, early intervention, behavioral health support, and wellness programs. Our team of behavioral health experts deliver the highest quality educational content, trauma-informed programs, and behavioral health services for youth to nurture healing and support growth. A calendar of events and program offerings are updated daily. For more information, resources, or to donate, visit http://www.notMYkid.org.