MetroHealth Awarded More Than $500,000 to Expand Services for Victims of Violent Crime

Trauma grant photo

The MetroHealth Trauma Recovery Center (TRC) has been awarded nearly $552,000 to support crime victims as part of Governor Mike DeWine's Community Violent Prevention Grant Program, administered by the State of Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services.

The TRC, part of MetroHealth's Institute for H.O.P.E.^TM, is among 39 community-based intervention programs to receive funding through the program, which distributed a total of $20 million in grants to support collaborative approaches by non-profit entities and governmental agencies that partner to reduce community violence.

The funding will allow the MetroHealth TRC to expand and enhance its services to victims. Plans include:

• Hiring a clinical therapist to provide trauma-focused therapy to survivors of violence.
• Hiring a dedicated peer mentor coordinator to expand and facilitate volunteer visits
• Hiring a community outreach education coach to facilitate groups and offer support to community members and organizations

"We are incredibly grateful and honored to receive this award," said Megen Simpson, Director of the TRC. "Collaboration is key in addressing trauma. It is important to provide services, but it is more important to ensure the services being provided are filling a need that is beneficial to survivors, organizations, and the community. After someone experiences a traumatic injury, the experience goes beyond the hurt person and has ripple effects on family members and loved ones. It is our hope that the Trauma Recovery Center can assist in alleviating the stress and trauma after injury, advocating with survivors, and establishing a safe space for emotional healing for all."

"At MetroHealth, we see far too many examples of the crushing impact violence has on victims and their families," said MetroHealth President & CEO Airica Steed, Ed.D, RN, MBA, FACHE. "We're proud of the work the Trauma Recovery Center team does not only to care for those victims, but also to work with others in our community to find ways to stop the cycle of violence and bring this epidemic to an end. We are grateful that the state of Ohio recognizes the TRC's extraordinary work and, with this grant, is helping us to do more."

The MetroHealth TRC provides coaching support, peer mentorship, victim advocacy, care coordination and access to other resources for patients of the System as well as members of the community who are in need. In 2022, the TRC served a record 2,500 patients, a number that reflects the increase in traumatic injuries, especially those caused by violent crime.

The TRC was established in 2017 through funding from the federal Victims of Crime Act grant program administered by the Ohio Attorney General's office. The team's innovative approach to addressing trauma in the community led to a groundbreaking partnership with the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas to provide trauma counseling for defendants in the Violence Intervention Prevention (VIP) Docket in 2021. The three-year pilot project aims to provide services for 150 participants with a goal to help individuals heal from trauma in hopes to mitigate future violence.

The MetroHealth TRC is one of eight centers within the state of Ohio and the only TRC embedded within a hospital system in Northeast Ohio.