[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 82 (Friday, April 29, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22356-22357]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-8576]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

    In compliance with section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 concerning opportunity for public comment on proposed 
collections of information, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health 
Services Administration will publish periodic summaries of proposed 
projects. To request more information on the proposed projects or to 
obtain a copy of the information collection plans, call the SAMHSA 
Reports Clearance Officer on (240) 276-1243.
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collections of 
information are necessary for the proper performance of the functions 
of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other 
forms of information technology.

Proposed Project: Toolkit Protocol for the Crisis Counseling Assistance 
and Training Program (CCP)--NEW

    The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's 
(SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) will use a toolkit to 
collect data on the Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program 
(CCP). The CCP provides supplemental funding to states and territories 
for individual and community crisis intervention services during a 
federal disaster.
    The CCP has provided disaster mental health services to millions of 
disaster survivors since its inception and, as a result of 30 years of 
accumulated expertise, it has become an important model for Federal 
response to a variety of catastrophic events. State CCPs, such as 
Project HOPE (after Hurricane Floyd in North Carolina), Project 
Heartland (in Oklahoma City after the Murrah Federal Building bombing), 
Project Liberty (in New York after 9/11), and Project Outreach for 
Recovery (after the Rhode Island nightclub fire) have primarily 
addressed the short-term mental health needs of communities through (a) 
outreach and public education, (b) individual and group counseling, and 
(c) referral. Outreach and public education serve primarily to 
normalize reactions and to engage people who might need further care. 
Crisis counseling assists survivors to cope with current stress and 
symptoms in order to return to predisaster functioning. Crisis 
counseling relies largely on ``active listening,'' and crisis 
counselors also provide psycho-education (especially about the nature 
of responses to trauma) and help clients build coping skills. Crisis 
counseling typically continues no more than a few times. Because crisis 
counseling is time-limited, referral is the third important function of 
CCPs. Counselors are expected to refer clients to formal treatment if 
the person has developed more serious psychiatric problems.
    Data about services delivered and users of services will be 
collected throughout the program period. The data will be collected via 
the use of a toolkit that relies on standardized forms. At the program 
level, the data will be entered quickly and easily into a cumulative 
database to yield summary tables for quarterly and final reports for 
the program. CMHS has confirmed the feasibility of using scannable 
forms for most purposes. Because the data will be collected in a 
consistent way from all programs, the forms can be uploaded into an 
ongoing national database that likewise provides CMHS with a way of 
producing summary reports of services provided across all programs 
funded.
    The components of the tool kit are listed and described below:
     Encounter logs. These forms document all services 
provided. Completion of these logs is required by the crisis 
counselors. There are three types of encounter logs: (1) Individual 
Crisis Counseling Services Encounter Log; (2) Group Encounter Log; and 
(3) Weekly Tally Sheet.
     Individual Crisis Counseling Services Encounter Log. 
Crisis counseling is defined as an interaction that lasts at least 15 
minutes and involves participant disclosure. This form is completed by 
the Crisis Counselor for each service recipient, defined as the person 
or persons who actively participated in the session (e.g., by verbally 
participating), not someone who is merely present. For families, 
complete separate forms for all family members who are actively engaged 
in the visit. Information collected includes demographics, service 
characteristics, risk factors, and referral data.
     Group Encounter Log. This form is used to identify either 
a group crisis counseling encounter or a group public education 
encounter. A check at the top identifies the class of activities (i.e., 
counseling or education). Information collected includes services 
characteristics, group identity and characteristics, and group 
activities.
     Weekly Tally Sheet. This form documents brief educational 
and supportive encounters not captured on any other form. Information 
collected includes service characteristics, daily tallies and weekly 
totals for brief educational or supportive contacts and material 
distribution with no or minimal interaction.
     Assessment and Referral Tool. This tool provides 
descriptive information about intense users of services, defined as all 
individuals receiving a third individual crisis counseling visit. This 
tool will be used beginning three months postdisaster and will be 
completed by the crisis counselor.
     Participant Feedback. These surveys are completed by and 
collected from a sample of service recipients, not every recipient. A 
time sampling approach (e.g., soliciting participation from all 
counseling encounters one week per quarter) will be used. Information 
collected includes satisfaction with services, perceived improvements 
in self-functioning, types of exposure, and event reactions.

[[Page 22357]]

     CCP Service Provider Feedback. These surveys are completed 
by and collected from the CCP service providers anonymously at six 
months and one year postevent. The survey will be coded on several 
program-level as well as worker-level variables. However, the program 
itself will be identified and shared with program management only if 
the number of individual workers was greater than 20.

                                       Estimates of Annualized Hour Burden
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                                                     Number of     Responses per     Hours per      Total hour
                      Form                          respondents     respondents      responses        burden
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Individual Crisis Counseling Services Encounter            7,500               1             .03             225
 Log Form.......................................
Group Encounter Log Form........................           4,000               1             .03             120
Weekly Tally Sheet..............................           4,000               1             .08             320
Assessment & Referral Tool......................             100               1             .08               8
Participant Feedback............................           1,000               1             .06              60
CCP Service Provider Feedback...................             100               1             .08               8
                                                 -----------------
Total...........................................          16,700  ..............  ..............             741
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    Send comments to Summer King, SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer, 
Room 7-1044, 1 Choke Cherry Road, Rockville, MD 20850. Written comments 
should be received by June 28, 2005.

    Dated: April 25, 2005.
Anna Marsh,
Executive Officer, SAMHSA.
[FR Doc. 05-8576 Filed 4-28-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4162-20-P