Services to Help Mentally Ill Get Off Streets

Services for the mentally ill homeless will be increased dramatically next year under a proposal approved Tuesday by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

For the first time, temporary living quarters and mental health care will be combined in an effort to help the increasing number of mentally ill homeless get off--and stay off--the streets.

The $1.2-million state-financed program will be directed countywide, not just in downtown San Diego where problems with the homeless have been most publicized, said Peggy Smith, director of the county Department of Mental Health’s central region.

Smith said the money will finance a 12-bed short-term residential treatment program, where homeless persons will be given shelter and mental health evaluation and care for as long as 30 days. Also included will be 40 apartments and two hotel units where clients will be allowed to live on their own and will have daily contact with mental health counselors.

No such programs now exist in the county, where only a “minimal amount” of money is spent on the mentally ill homeless, Smith said. The new program will pay for 13 staff members who will be working in the county’s five regions, compared to three people now concentrating on the mentally ill homeless downtown.

Among the program’s other highlights:

- A “socialization center” where participants in a sheltered workshop will learn to perform routine tasks and manage their time.

- Regionally located “outreach teams” that will serve about 300 people a year. The teams respond to tips from law enforcement, social service agencies and street people, and go to the streets in an attempt to help the homeless where they are.

- Case management services for 300 people, a program in which county employees assist the home less in obtaining social services that will help them find permanent shelter.

- A self-help companion program, similar to the foster grandparent program, where volunteers will be paired with homeless people and will help them and follow their progress for several months.

- Training for about 250 merchants and social service workers to make them better able to handle the problems posed by the homeless.

The outreach and case management services will be performed by county staffers, while the program’s other elements are to be done by private agencies under contract, Smith said. The state money has already been set aside for San Diego County and will begin flowing as soon as state officials give final approval to the county’s plan.

Smith said recent studies have estimated that there are 6,500 homeless people in San Diego County. She said county officials believe that 27% to 30% of those are mentally ill.