New 'Short Talks': Expanding Access to Mental Health Service in Rural Arkansas

Photo by Shaun Thomas

Johanna Thomas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – A joint project to help rural Arkansans gain access to mental health services is featured in the newest episode of Short Talks From the Hill, a research podcast of the University of Arkansas.

Johanna Thomas, associate professor of social work in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, discusses the project in the new podcast 

Earlier this year, the School of Social Work received two grants totaling almost $6 million from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

The grants will enable Thomas and other Fulbright faculty members to collaborate with Western Arkansas Counseling and Guidance Center in Fort Smith and Veterans Treatment Court to help rural Arkansas and veterans gain access to mental health services.

“We're seeing an uptick in the number of people who need primary care services, and being able to offer primary care services to people who are uninsured or underinsured has been huge for the area,” Thomas says in the podcast. “We're also seeing people being dropped off insurance, and insurance going away, so these services are critical in this area.”

Thomas explains how the researchers and health professionals will serve some people in rural areas:

“As part of the grant, we've also purchased an RV for a mobile mental health unit,” she says. “We'll actually be able to send out a therapist, and other therapists, out into rural communities. We have about a 27 percent rate of people who don't show for their appointments, and this is because they don't have access to transportation, they're unable to make it to their appointments for whatever reason, and so the purchase of the RV allows us to be able to make it to them. We're really excited about this.”

To listen to Thomas discuss this project, go to Arkansas Research, the home of research news at the University of Arkansas, or visit the "On Air" and “Programs” link at KUAF.com. 

Short Talks From the Hill highlights research and scholarly work at the University of Arkansas. Each segment features a university researcher discussing his or her work. Previous podcasts can be found under the ‘Short Talks From the Hill’ link at arkansasresearch.uark.edu.

Thank you for listening!

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among fewer than 2.7 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.

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