Program areas at NAMI
NAMI Collier County is a local nonprofit founded in 1987 that provides mental health support, advocacy, and education in our region. We are affiliated with NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness) and have worked hard for generations to serve the community in Collier County. We recognize that mental health is a multifaceted issue, so we provide a wide range of services to create a continuum of care for individuals with mental illness and their families. This includes support groups, supported employment, supportive housing, a food pantry, child-specific mental health services, and life skills programs.NAMI Collier offers free group therapy sessions, which address specific subsets of the population, coping with general mental illness, and caretakers. Others participate in our Supported Employment and Supportive Housing programs, which help people find and maintain stable and safe housing and employment, setting them up for long-term success.Transportation is also a central part of our Life Skills Paths. Participants choose a path based on their interests and existing skills. Options include basic life skills, retail, education, business, food service, and arts and fitness. As part of these paths, clients participate in outings to local business partners to help them gain practical experiences and feel more included in the greater Collier community.Participants in all programs also participate in regular social outings to help build community with each other and to feel more comfortable out and about.
The goal of Self-Directed Care (FloridaSDC) is to respect and promote self-determination, recovery and full community inclusion for people who have been diagnosed with a mental illness and who depend on government subsidized mental wellness services. Originating in 2005, the program serves over 90 people in the 20th Judicial Circuit of Florida including Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Hendry, and Glades counties.
NAMIs Health Under Guided Systems (H.U.G.S.) respond to the complex needs of children at risk of or with social, emotional, or behavioral health problems in Collier County and is one of the many programs offered by NAMI Collier at no cost. All research points to the earlier the intervention the better the outcome. H.U.G.S., a community based, childrens behavioral health program brings evidence-based mental and behavioral health care to the children in our community, 2 months to 18 years old through both preventative skill-building and assisting with and providing referrals for direct clinical services.