Housing, Substance Use, Racial Inequities
A Best-Self Superstar
by Annette Pinder
“Living in unprecedented times” is an ongoing refrain these days, and Kelly D. Dumas, LCSW, Chief Strategic Initiatives Officer at BestSelf Behavioral Health (BestSelf) is a superstar who is improving lives in unprecedented ways, while overseeing the agency’s housing and nontraditional substance use programs.
Lighthouse Women’s Residence provides substance use abstinence-based treatment for pregnant women with children up to age 11, providing support by licensed counselors and physicians 24/7, and parenting skills to assure a successful reintegration into the community.
Mobile Substance-Use Disorder Services. BestSelf’s clinic on wheels has mobile medical units throughout Erie and Niagara Counties that include nurses, prescribers, and clinicians for individuals who cannot or will not receive treatment.
Jail Services. Counseling and peer services for prisoners at the Erie County Holding Center, Alden Correctional Facility, and the Niagara County Jail, along with a medication program to treat addiction for Niagara County prisoners.
Maternal WRAP Program. Maternal WRAP supports pregnant women with an opioid use disorder in nine WNY counties, including intensive case management, peer and case management, and links women to necessary treatment from the birth to six months thereafter.
Family Connections. Referrals for this one-year program come from family treatment drug court and address problems that arise when the head of a household has substance issues, working with families and extended families in their homes to keep families intact.
Recovery Community. A peer to peer group run by people who have achieved recovery following treatment, it includes family support, cooking classes, movie nights, field trips, self-help meetings, and more.
Recovery Transition. A partnership with the Erie County Sheriff in which inmates work with a reentry and reintegration team prior to their release, linking inmates to support, housing, benefits, substance use treatment, the Niagara County Office of Mental Health, and a case manager and peer within the Niagara Falls police department to respond to overdose calls.
Harambee House. This 16-bed personal program provides residential housing for the severely mentally ill and 24-hour support to many who are living here as long as 10 years.
Homeless Services. This street outreach supports individuals suffering from severe mental illness living in local shelters and in need of housing and case management support, providing 70 to 100 percent of the cost required for their support and housing needs.
Housing program. This program focuses on individuals and families suffering from substance abuse issues who are homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless.
Safe Space. This haven for transition-age homeless youth ages 16 to 24 provides counselors and peers to help with needed services.
Kelly’s latest initiative is a racial equity and inclusion committee focused on promoting and hiring more individuals of color throughout the agency, including senior management positions. The committee reviews policies, procedures, job descriptions, and more, includes a training sub-committee, and book and movie club as employees address these important issues and encourage courageous conversations. Kelly was recently honored as an influential woman for her work in the non-profit sector. Learn more about all of these programs and more that are helping people at www.bestselfwny.org or call 716-884-0888.
