County enters contract to recruit mental health professionals
CHENANGO COUNTY – The Chenango County Department of Mental Hygiene Services has been given the green light to contract with an outside agency that may help it recruit qualified employees.
Recent authorization by the county Board of Supervisors has allowed Mental Hygiene Services to enter a contract with the Syracuse-based agency Central New York Services (CNYS), a not-for-profit behavioral health organization committed to improving quality of life for individuals and families affected by mental illness and substance abuse. CNYS has a network of health professionals from all over the state and other parts of the country who are qualified to work in the psychiatric and medical fields, which can benefit firms like Chenango Mental Hygiene Services in the process of recruiting new employees.
“This contract is going to allow us greater flexibility in terms of what qualified applicants we are able to get,” said Ruth Roberts, Chenango Mental Hygiene Director of Community Services.
According to Roberts, the contract has potential of putting an end to the long search for key positions at the county’s health facility in Norwich.
The resolution adopted by the Chenango County Board of Supervisors specifies that the contract with CNYS be paid using money already available in the budget for the county Office of Mental Hygiene Services. Funds totaling $265,798 will be transferred from existing contractual and personnel services appropriations to a newly designated account for CNYS. Those funds include $86,687 from a reinvestment in community contract, $74,000 for a nurse practitioner in psychiatry, $59,211 for an extra hire psychiatrist, and $45,900 in fringes for clinic staff.
“These aren’t new dollars and I’m not adding anything to what’s already been budgeted,” Roberts explained, additionally noting that the contract with CNYS allows her to skip the county’s lengthy hiring process which requires her to go to the Health and Human Services Committee before getting approval from the full county board. “It can get very cumbersome, especially when hiring highly qualified health professionals in a competitive field,” she said.
CNYS currently offers similar contracted support services for the Tioga County Department of Mental Hygiene and the Tompkins County Department of Mental Health.
Roberts said entering a contract with CNYS comes at an especially critical time for the county as Bassett Healthcare in nearby Cooperstown will soon be closing its inpatient psychiatric unit due to its difficulty recruiting and retaining qualified health professionals. That could mean increased demand for services here in Chenango.
“Finding qualified individuals isn’t a problem that’s unique to us here in Chenango County,” she added. “There is a shortage of health professionals and difficulty finding people who can work in that field across the state and across the nation.”
Recent authorization by the county Board of Supervisors has allowed Mental Hygiene Services to enter a contract with the Syracuse-based agency Central New York Services (CNYS), a not-for-profit behavioral health organization committed to improving quality of life for individuals and families affected by mental illness and substance abuse. CNYS has a network of health professionals from all over the state and other parts of the country who are qualified to work in the psychiatric and medical fields, which can benefit firms like Chenango Mental Hygiene Services in the process of recruiting new employees.
“This contract is going to allow us greater flexibility in terms of what qualified applicants we are able to get,” said Ruth Roberts, Chenango Mental Hygiene Director of Community Services.
According to Roberts, the contract has potential of putting an end to the long search for key positions at the county’s health facility in Norwich.
The resolution adopted by the Chenango County Board of Supervisors specifies that the contract with CNYS be paid using money already available in the budget for the county Office of Mental Hygiene Services. Funds totaling $265,798 will be transferred from existing contractual and personnel services appropriations to a newly designated account for CNYS. Those funds include $86,687 from a reinvestment in community contract, $74,000 for a nurse practitioner in psychiatry, $59,211 for an extra hire psychiatrist, and $45,900 in fringes for clinic staff.
“These aren’t new dollars and I’m not adding anything to what’s already been budgeted,” Roberts explained, additionally noting that the contract with CNYS allows her to skip the county’s lengthy hiring process which requires her to go to the Health and Human Services Committee before getting approval from the full county board. “It can get very cumbersome, especially when hiring highly qualified health professionals in a competitive field,” she said.
CNYS currently offers similar contracted support services for the Tioga County Department of Mental Hygiene and the Tompkins County Department of Mental Health.
Roberts said entering a contract with CNYS comes at an especially critical time for the county as Bassett Healthcare in nearby Cooperstown will soon be closing its inpatient psychiatric unit due to its difficulty recruiting and retaining qualified health professionals. That could mean increased demand for services here in Chenango.
“Finding qualified individuals isn’t a problem that’s unique to us here in Chenango County,” she added. “There is a shortage of health professionals and difficulty finding people who can work in that field across the state and across the nation.”
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