“One in four individuals, over the course of their lifetime, will develop a mental illness,”according to R. Patrick Halpern, the Executive Director of the  Mental Health Association of the New River Valley, Inc. (MHANRV).

The MHANRV is a private, nonprofit organization that is a local affiliate of Mental Health America, and they provide public education and direct services to those affected with mental health issues. Their mission is “to promote the optimal emotional wellness and psychological well-being of individuals, families, and communities in the New River Valley.”

One of their featured services is the Pro Bono Counseling Program, which provides free mental health counseling to those who qualify throughout the NRV. Since its inception in 1998, the Pro Bono Counseling Program was the first free mental health clinic in the Commonwealth of Virginia and one of the first in the entire nation. The program consists of volunteer counselors (psychiatrists, clinical social workers, clinical psychologists, marriage and family therapists, and professional counselors) and trainees, who conduct counseling sessions at the main office in Blacksburg, in their own offices, or in a variety of other sites dedicated to this program.

There are more than 50 licensed-eligible counselors that have participated in the Pro Bono Counseling Program, providing greater access to mental health services. Some of the most common mental health issues these professionals evaluate and counsel are relationship and economic problems, stress, anxiety, mild depression, and even some more of the severe disorders such as: chronic depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.

The qualifications to receive the services of the Pro Bono Counseling Program are as follows:

• Applicant must be a current resident of the New River Valley
• Applicant’s income must be at 200 percent less than the current Federal Poverty Level, based upon family size
• Applicant must have no mental health insurance of any kind, including Medicaid/Medicare (can have health insurance, but plan must exclude mental health insurance of any kind)
• Applicant must have no other source for mental health care, including Employee Assistance Programs or university-operated counseling facilities
• No court-order patients will qualify

The MHANRV now partners with Radford University’s Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) in Counseling Psychology program, offering a way for Psy.D. students to practice what they have learned, while receiving supervision. These students provide counseling at various sites including the Pulaski Wellness Center, which should open in January to provide services to residents of Pulaski County.

Dr. James Werth, Director of RU’s Psy.D. program, highlighted the importance of seeing people in various locations, “We can counsel people across the New River Valley on Mondays and Wednesdays so that traveling is less of a problem for clients.”

Other programs that the MHANRV has to offer include: The Parenting Through Separation and Divorce Program, which focuses on the well-being of children by providing help and support to the parents or caregivers involved; The Crisis Intervention Team, a pre-booking jail diversion program that looks to improve interactions between law enforcement and those with mental illness, and helps to prevent the inappropriate restraint, incarceration, or stigmatization of those with mental illness; and The Bridge Program, a post-booking, pre-trial jail diversion program that helps those with serious mental illness or mental illness and substance use disorders. It seeks to divert willing participants with these disorders from the criminal justice system to community-based treatment.

“Most everyone is touched by mental illness, whether it be a loved one, a friend, a colleague, or ourselves,” Halpern said. If you have or know someone with a mental health issue or if you are interested in volunteering and providing your professional services to the Pro Bono Counseling Program, please contact the MHANRV, please call for a free confidential screening interview.

The Mental Health Association of the New River Valley is located at 303 Church Street in Blacksburg. Contact the MHANRV by phone at 540.951.4990 or e-mail mhainfo@mhanrv.org.

Josh Nash is an intern for the New River Voice.