05-8576. 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 [phone].

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.
• 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

Form	Number of respondents	Responses per respondents	Hours per responses	Total hour burden
Individual Crisis Counseling Services Encounter Log Form	7,500	1	.03	225
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

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.