Agriculture is crucial to our state and local economies and we are thankful for all the hard working farm families that work day in and day out to feed, clothe and fuel our world. The agricultural community features many unique stressors and struggles and often people can feel isolated in this line of work. We are happily partnering with the United State Department of Agriculture, Indiana Rural Health Association and Purdue University to increase community resources around mental health services.
The Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) has received a $500,000 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute for Food and Agriculture’s (NIFA) Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network (FRSAN) Program. ISDA is partnering with the Indiana Rural Health Association (IRHA) and Purdue Extension to reduce mental health stigma and connect individuals engaged in agriculture-related occupations to existing stress assistance programs. ISDA will be working with the IRHA to help those who live and work in agriculture to become more comfortable with mental health care options by holding 23 community workshops across Indiana. Conversations about mental health stigma and resources, as well as recognizing signs of those in mental health distress will be discussed. The regional community meetings will begin in February of 2022. For a list of regional meetings and locations closer, please visit indianaruralhealth.org.
To supplement these activities, Purdue Extension will also survey and analyze the mental health call center landscape and capacity in Indiana and then create and deploy a specialized training module for mental health call center workers supporting farmers, farm families and agribusinesses. Together ISDA, IRHA and Purdue Extension will highlight the importance of mental health care through broad promotions. This will include creating mental health promotional materials and visual reminders for the farming community that will be shared at events across Indiana, such as the Indiana State Fair. This initiative will increase awareness of existing mental health resources, build knowledge on farming and agricultural stressors and help Hoosiers reduce stigma and better-recognize mental health needs.
To view the program's full press release please click here.
| Organization | Project Summary | Resources | Contacts |
|---|---|---|---|
Indiana Rural Health Association
| The Project Team will help those who live and work in agriculture to become more comfortable with the options of care for mental health challenges by holding multiple localized group discussions across Indiana. Conversations about mental health stigma and resources, as well as recognizing signs of those in mental health distress will be discussed so they are more recognizable. The Project Team will develop a training which will include QPR certification. Twenty-three trainings will be conducted over the course of the grant cycle throughout the State of Indiana in partnership with AgriInstitute, who has a vast knowledge of the farming and ranch community. AgriInstitute's extensive listservs as well as the Indiana Rural Health Association's membership listservs will be used to promote these trainings throughout the state. Trainings will also be promoted on the Project Team's social media platforms; Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. IRHA will ensure that appropriate resources are available at all trainings. A registration process will be developed for each training through our marketing director to track the number of registrants. Sign in at the in-person event will be utilized as well to track actual attendance. In tandem, the Project Team will highlight the importance of mental health care through broad promotions. This will include social media and disseminating mental health promotional materials during trade shows/conferences. | Indiana Rural Health Association: https://www.indianaruralhealth.org/ Healthy Minds, Healthy Lives workshop dates: https://www.indianaruralhealth.org/services/healthy-minds-healthy-lives-workshops/ | Kathy Walker, Program Director, Indiana Rural Health Association- kwalker@indianarha.org |
Purdue Extension
| Equipped with a deep understanding of the current mental health landscape in regards to agriculture professions and rural communities, Purdue Extension will promote mental health awareness efforts through a variety of identified communication methods specifically targeting rural communities and farmers. Those efforts will include, but are not limited to social media outreach, podcasts, in person programming and outreach, mainstream media promotion, and on farm mental health resources. Along with this effort, and in conjunction with the rollout of the new national 9-8-8 mental crisis hotline in July of 2022, Purdue Extension will develop and deliver a data driven training program that will equip call center personnel to appropriately respond to agricultural workers and individuals living in rural communities who are experiencing a mental health crisis. | Tools for Today’s Farmers Podcast: https://anchor.fm/toolsfortodaysfarmers Purdue Extension Farm Stress: https://extension.purdue.edu/farmstress/ Video Resourced from Purdue Small Farms Conference 2021: https://www.purdue.edu/dffs/smallfarms/mental-health-information/ | Abby Heidenreich – Purdue Extension Orange County – 205 E Main St #4, Paoli, IN 47454 - (812)-723-7107 – Email: aheidenr@purdue.edu Angela Sorg – Purdue Extension Dekalb County – 215 East 9th Street, Suite, 300, Auburn, IN 46706 – Email: asorg18@purdue.edu Dr. Angie Abbott – Purdue Extension Health and Human Sciences/Assistant Dean and Associate Director - 812 W. State St. Matthews Hall 110, West Lafayette, IN 47907 – (765)-494-8252 – Email: abbottar@purdue.edu |
