OGDEN -- In the face of further budget cuts, Weber Human Services is looking at last year to decide what to do next.
The organization cut its budget by about $1 million, which has been difficult but provided chances to rethink the way services are provided, said Michelle Jenson, quality improvement administrator.
Weber Human Services is a government organization providing Weber and Morgan county residents mental health, substance abuse and senior services.
After nearly $820,000 in cuts by the Legislature last year, about $400,000 of which came at the last minute, the agency was scrambling to find ways to trim costs but not services, said Randy Bates, chief financial officer.
The other problem the organization faced was that Weber Human Services had been operating in the red for a few years, Bates said, so costs had to be slashed not only to meet budget cuts but also to get the numbers back in the black.
That meant it cut about another $250,000 to begin operating within the budget and to prepare for larger cuts in the coming year, he said.
The situation can feel bleak sometimes, said Kevin Eastman, executive director.
When budget cuts reduce the number of beds for residential substance abuse programs and create other changes in service, he said, keeping the same level of services becomes tough.
"But the bottom line is, it affects people's lives and that's why we're here," Eastman said.
Bates said the silver lining is that cuts have forced workers to be more efficient and to streamline the way Weber Human Services functions.
It has also created opportunities in the way clients are treated, Jenson said.
By using a process called evidence-based practice, there are fewer adjustments in finding a treatment program that works for a particular person.
By knowing the cuts were coming, Bates said he hopes the agency can avoid any sudden cuts in staff or services. As it is, most staff loss was through attrition.
"Preplanning can help this," he said. "If we do it gradually, it doesn't affect the clients as much."
He said it was good to make changes, but he wished the agency had the same amount of money to serve more people, rather than less money to serve the same number of people.
While the number of residents treated in the mental health program increased slightly, the substance abuse program saw a 12 percent decrease in users, according to the recently released WHS annual report.
That's because more than $400,000 was cut in the Drug Offender Reform Act. Substance abuse programs were the programs being subsidized and causing the budget shortfalls.
To work within those budget constraints, Bates said, there were significant cuts in substance abuse programs.
He said this was also the first year the substance abuse programs had a waiting list, which reached three months long at one point and is now down to five weeks.
Eastman said interim help is provided, but he worries about delaying help for those seeking assistance, which is why he is fighting to preserve services in the face of shrinking budgets.
"The more cuts that come and affect our ability to treat, the more (clients) we expect to see in jail and the hospital," he said.
In the meantime, other community programs are seeing some of the overflow.
Eastman said he is aware Midtown Clinic's mental health program is being overloaded with people.
William Endy, Family Counseling Services executive director, said his agency is seeing increased referrals from Weber Human Services and local hospitals that know Weber Human Services is already full.
Endy wants people in the area to realize there are other services available if government agencies are full or don't provide specific services such as marriage and family counseling.
He expects Family Counseling Services to provide services to 2,600 people this year.
"I just want people to know they don't have to suffer alone and don't have to suffer thinking there are no resources available to them."
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