Muskegon SafERteens Screening Rates More Than Double
In April of 2023, with assistance from the Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center (MI-YVPC), the Trinity Health Muskegon (THM) Emergency Room formally launched SafERteens – a 30-minute one-on-one intervention delivered to youth who have witnessed, engaged in, or are at future risk of becoming involved in violence. As we celebrate the first anniversary of implementation, I would like to thank the many individuals and departments that have had a hand in its success and offer a special thanks the THM Emergency Room Registration Team.
In October of 2023, the THM Emergency Room Registration Team assumed responsibility for delivering screening questions to youth, who seek treatment in the Emergency Room for any reason, to determine if they qualify to receive the SafERteens. With their support more than 900 teens, ages 14 to 20, have been screened since the program began and, thanks to new workflows, the screening success rate has soared from 21% to an impressive 58%. The Registration Team’s efficiency and dedication have been the driving force behind this incredible achievement!
Increasing SafERteens Interventions – Welcoming Community Health Workers to the Team
Reflecting on our journey so far, I am very grateful for the dedication and passion of the emergency department registration, nursing, and intervention teams. Their hard work has been the cornerstone of our success. To date, SafERteens interventions in the Emergency Room have been delivered by hospital social workers and hospital chaplains. Looking ahead, we plan to further enhance our intervention capabilities by bringing on board a full-time community health worker. The community health worker will allow us to significantly increase our intervention rates of delivery.
Moving forward, we are gearing up to further expand SafERteens into the greater Muskegon County community − more to come! By extending the reach of SafERTeens, the aim to create a ripple effect of positive change that touches the lives of even more youth in need.
Finally, I would like to offer a very special thanks to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for their ongoing funding and technical support; Professor Patrick Carter, Lynn Massey, Katy Clark, and Marilyn Laski from the MI-YVPC; Dr. Justin Grill, Dr. Jerry Evans, Dr. Steven Van Rees, Justin Derks, Iris Towers, and Claudine Weber from Trinity Health Muskegon, along with all of our individual and institutional donors your ongoing support. Being part of this project has been one of the highlights of my career, and I am eager to watch it continue to succeed.
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