Gibson Center soon to go mobile to reach rural areas

Gibson Center for Behavioral Change in Cape Girardeau is building a bus. Or, rather, they are having one built for them. As soon as late winter or early spring, the facility will dispatch a mobile unit out to rural Southeast Missourians who have little or no access to mental health services.

Ryan Essex, chief operating officer for Gibson Center, said the mobile unit will be staffed with behavioral health counselors, case managers and peer specialists. The bus will have a waiting room and three offices for private sessions, and also telehealth stations where individuals can speak to counselors and other medical staff at Gibson Center.

Essex said a secondary purpose of the mobile unit is outreach and education. He said Gibson Center will be able to educate people on the risks of overdose and distribute life-saving medication, such as Narcan, a nasal spray designed to help reverse the effects of an opioid overdose in minutes.

Funding for the creation of mobile service in rural areas of Missouri came as part of the American Rescue Plan Act through the state's Department of Mental Health. Essex said Gibson Center had been thinking about implementing a mobile unit for some time and applied for funding when it became available in 2021.

"We don't have offices in places like Morley, Delta, or Scott City," Essex said. "So, we see this is as an opportunity for us to connect all of our offices together via this mobile service."

Because of supply chain issues, the completion of the mobile unit is taking longer than anticipated, but Essex said there are plans in place and staff will be ready to roll as soon as the bus is. He said Gibson Center will advertise on its website and social media a schedule of dates and places the bus will visit so people can make appointments to be seen. Essex said walk-ins will be accepted as well, and those without health insurance.

"Also, a goal would be to establish a routine of regular visits to communities when possible," Essex said. "If we know that we have 15 or 20 people that are always there and wanting our services, that's an area where we'll try to set up a regular schedule of visits. I think it's all going be driven by what the demand tells us."

Essex said one challenge will be reaching people in communities where Gibson Center hasn't already established a presence or formed a partnership with local agencies. He said they will have to contact city governments for help finding partners to set up the mobile services.

"We may have to get really creative trying to tap in and create relationships with partners," Essex said. "But we're really excited to be able to bring this new way of delivering services to the communities that we have largely been disconnected from over the years."