[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 33 (Friday, February 17, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9679-9681]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-3681]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request

    Periodically, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
Administration (SAMHSA) will publish a summary of information 
collection requests under OMB review, in compliance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request a copy of these 
documents, call the SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer on (240) 276-1243.

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

    The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's 
(SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) will create a toolkit 
to be used for the purposes of collecting 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 the 
recent 2009 Project A'apa Atu (for the Tsunami in American Samoa), 2010 
Tennessee Recovery Project (following devastating flooding), Healing 
Joplin and Project Rebound (following the 2011 tornadoes in Joplin, 
Missouri and Alabama), and most recently the multiple CCPs that 
resulted from 2011 Hurricane Irene, and flooding throughout the summer 
of 2011 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 functions 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. We have confirmed the feasibility of using scanable forms 
for most purposes. Because the data will be collected in a consistent 
way from all programs, they 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/
Family Crisis Counseling Services Encounter Log; (2) Group Encounter 
Log; and (3) Weekly Tally Sheet.
    [cir] Individual/Family 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 or family, 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 only one form to capture all family members who are 
actively engaged in the visit. Information collected includes 
demographics, service characteristics, risk factors, and referral data.
    [cir] 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.

[[Page 9680]]

     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 a licensed mental health professional.
     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.
     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.

Highlights of the Propose Revisions, Based on Public Comments Received 
From the 60-Day Review

     The previous Individual Crisis Counseling Services 
Encounter Log is now revised to Individual/Family Crisis Counseling 
Services Encounter Log. Previously, when encountering a family, crisis 
counselors would complete a separate Individual Encounter Log for all 
family members participating in the encounter. It is anticipated that 
the new form will reduce the burden of completing so many Individual 
Encounter Forms by 30% or more, by allowing crisis counselors to 
complete just one form on the family unit. Consequently, the name of 
the form, many of the fields, and the instructions have been revised to 
align with this change.
     In response to public comment a new field within the 
demographics has been added to capture aggregate level information on 
persons with disabilities or other functional or access needs. This new 
field is now included on the Individual/Family Crisis Counseling 
Encounter Log, Group Encounter Log, Adult Assessment and Referral Tool 
and Child/Youth Assessment and Referral Tool. The forms also provide 
the statutory definition within the instructions.
     To encourage compliance with program guidelines that 
Crisis Counselors conduct outreach in pairs, we have added an 
additional field for a Crisis Counselor to record their employee 
number.
     In order to better classify services and contacts made by 
phone, a new field was created on the Weekly Tally Sheet to capture and 
distinguish the type of telephone contact being recorded. Additionally, 
under location of service for the remaining forms, a checkbox has been 
added underneath the Phone Counseling section, for respondents to 
indicate if the phone counseling session was ``Hotline, helpline, or 
crisis line.''
     In order to better understand the number of individual or 
families that were displaced following the disaster, we have separated 
permanent home and temporary home by adding a ``home (permanent)'' 
option as a separate selection for location of service on all forms, 
except the Weekly Tally Sheet, where this field does not apply.
     In order to capture the helpfulness/usefulness of the 
program and the resources, referrals, and services provided, questions 
were added to the Participant Feedback Form.
     A new field was added to the Individual/Family Encounter 
Log and Group Encounter Log to capture the materials distributed as 
part of an individual, family, or group encounter ``Were materials 
(flyer, brochure, handouts, etc.) provided to this/these 
participant(s)?'' This will reduce confusion among crisis counselors 
and reduce the burden of having to count the materials and complete a 
second form (the Weekly Tally Sheet) for materials distributed as part 
of the encounter.
     For the Adult and Child/Youth Assessment and Referral 
Tools, language and guidance has been provided that ``The Child 
Assessment Tool and the Adult Assessment Tool must be administered by 
licensed mental health professionals. Paraprofessionals may not 
administer these tools''.

                                       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              200             196             .08           3,136
 Log............................................
Group Encounter Log.............................             100              33             .07             231
Weekly Tally Sheet..............................             200              33             .2            1,320
Assessment and Referral Tools...................             200              14             .25             700
Participant Feedback Survey.....................           1,000               1             .25             250
Service Provider Feedback Survey................             100               1             .25              25
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................           1,800  ..............  ..............           5,662
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    Written comments and recommendations concerning the proposed 
information collection should be sent by March 19, 2012 to the SAMHSA 
Desk Officer at the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB). To ensure timely receipt of 
comments, and to avoid potential delays in OMB's receipt and processing 
of mail sent through the U.S. Postal Service, commenters are encouraged 
to submit their comments to OMB via email to: [email protected]. Although commenters are encouraged to send 
their comments via email, commenters may also fax their comments to: 
202-395-7285. Commenters may also mail them to: Office of Management 
and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory

[[Page 9681]]

Affairs, New Executive Office Building, Room 10102, Washington, DC 
20503.

Summer King,
Statistician.
[FR Doc. 2012-3681 Filed 2-16-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4162-20-P