NYC Support and Connection Center offers renewed hope
NEW YORK - Mental health issues are more severe than ever coming out of the pandemic. The city's only Support and Connection Center in East Harlem gave us an inside look.
The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene opened the facility in 2020 as part of its ongoing effort to address drug abuse and mental illness. Clients have seen life-changing results.
Raymond Bird lived on the streets outside a Harlem church for two years, using drugs and battling schizophrenia. One day, a bad trip gave him the awakening he needed.
"Sweat was just jumping off my head," the New Orleans native recalled. "And I told [a friend] that if something was happening, if I would fall out, please call the cops on me. Please call the paramedics. Come and get me. I don't want to die out here like this."
First responders brought Bird to the Support and Connection Center.
"I'm listening to all these voices coming to me," Bird said. "And this wasn't just voices in my head. These was voices that was that was audible, you know, coming from everyone."
Designed around harm-reduction models, staff from the nonprofit Project Renewal cater their care around what the client wants. They surround the client with supportive services, addressing medical, behavioral and housing needs.
"That really breaks the cycle of criminal legal system involvement and unnecessary hospital trips for individuals with serious mental illness and substance use," said Dr. Michael McRae, the city's acting executive deputy commissioner for mental health.
McRae says clients leave after five days, but they can check themselves back in whenever they want. The goal is to give them a team to succeed on their own terms.
"I want to be a better, productive member of society," Bird said. "I want to be Raymond, and not that guy that was on the streets."
Bird felt seen by team members like occupational therapist Julie Abraham.
"It's just being able to manage your time, being able to manage your money, being able to do the things that you need and want to do so that you can have quality of life," Abraham said.
Seven months clean, Bird has a new smile with help from a dental care service and he has a new outlook on life.
"There's so many people that care about me," he said, "and the most important is that I care about myself."
The city plans to expand the capacity at the Support and Connection Center from ten to 25 once COVID restrictions are lifted. A second Support and Connection Center will open in the Bronx later this year.
To get connected to mental health resources, call 1-888-NYC-WELL, text WELL to 65173 or click here.