Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

General Psychiatry Residency Community Outreach

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What is PROPS?

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PROPS is a subcommittee of the residency program at the Menninger Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at the Baylor College of Medicine. Residents participate in various outreach activities to enhance their exposure to the field of community psychiatry while providing service to the community.

Psychiatry Resident Outreach to the Public Sector

PROPS was originally created by a group of residents at Baylor in the mid-1980’s to organize efforts for community service and thereby enhance resident participation in the public sector. In 1985, Dr. John Battaglia, then a second-year resident, worked with Houston Independent School District and Houston Psychiatric Society to address mental illness among children. He created a course on suicide awareness which residents taught in area middle schools.

This became the beginning of PROPS. Years later the activities of PROPS have multiplied such that there are now many programs in which residents participate each year. Though there are faculty mentors involved with the program, including Dr. French-Rosas and Dr. Asghar-Ali, the efforts are provided entirely by residents.

Harris County Sheriff's Office Police Outreach

More than 2,700 crisis intervention training (CIT) programs exist in the United States, aiming to improve collaboration between mental health treatment teams and police officers.  Better mental health outcomes and reduced healthcare costs usually result from CIT enhancements. A burgeoning liaison between police and mental health professionals is possible if interdisciplinary collaboration is prioritized. Through a collaboration with the VA, Harris County Sheriff’s Office, and APA SAMHSA Fellowship, a CIT interdisciplinary collaboration was formed in the Houston metro area. This initiative is led by Dr. Somto Obi and Dr. Nancy Shenoi with the intention to disseminate a high-quality mental health curriculum to local Houston law enforcement.