Over the past year, New Directions Northwest, Inc. (NDN) has developed the Eastern Oregon Behavioral Health Training Center (for ease, we are calling it ‘The Center’). 

The Center will increase access to behavioral health services throughout Eastern Oregon by providing training and growth to qualified behavioral health providers. In other words, the more certified providers we have in our region, then the more chances our community members will have to locally provided mental health services.

The Center also aims to become the Eastern Oregon training hub for Oregon Health Authority (OHA) certified and the Mental Health and Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO) accredited courses.

New Directions Northwest has the facility, technology, trainers, state certifications and accreditation to provide these certified and accredited courses.  

Why have an Eastern Oregon training hub? Prior to the Center, Eastern Oregon attendees had to travel to more metropolitan areas, such as Portland, Salem and Bend for training. The costs associated with those trainings included travel time, fuel, lodging, and per diem. Additional costs at times include time away from families and the need to arrange for childcare and transporting children back and forth to school.  For those that live in Eastern Oregon, travel is not conducive in winter months, and if a course is only offered once a year, cancelled trips due to bad weather can prolong attendee certification.

Training courses are available to anyone that meets the criteria. Training descriptions and associated fees can be accessed at: https://newdirectionsnw.eventbrite.com/

We are happy to announce that through two generous grants from the Greater Oregon Behavioral Health Initiative (GOBHI),  scholarships and stipends are available to attendees from the following areas (which make up the GOBHI region and nearby tribes) - Baker, Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Lake, Malheur, Morrow, Sherman, Umatilla, Union, Wallowa, Wheeler counties, and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), and Burns Paiute Tribe.

 

Scholarships and stipends include:

• • Stipends for attendees experiencing barriers to attending training.
  • Scholarships that significantly reduce the fees for CADC training courses for attendees employed with CMHPs and any other entity contracted with GOBHI to provide substance use disorder treatment services to EOCCO members. 
  • Scholarships covering 100% of the training fee for the 40-hour Peer Support Specialist Certified Recovery Mentor Certification for attendees residing within the 12 county GOBHI region and tribes, who have been in recovery for at least 1 year.

 

By the end of 2024 the Center’s goal is to see 30 new Certified Recovery Mentor’s (CRMs) and 36 new Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselors (CADCs) in the Eastern Oregon region.  Courses are being taught on-site at the NDN Outpatient Facility in Baker County.

Registration for courses can be accessed on this EventBrite page:

https://newdirectionsnw.eventbrite.com/

Additional training opportunities can be accessed at: https://www.mhacbo.org/en/