The First Lady of New York City, Chirlane McCray, ratcheted up her efforts to bring resources for sufferers of mental illness at her first-ever community discussion on mental illness.

“Every single one of us has been touched either directly or through someone that we love and care about,” said McCray.

Roughly 20 percent of adult New Yorkers is impacted by mental illness, according to health statistics. With reforms in treating the mentally ill a signature agenda item, McCray helped usher ThriveNYC, which helps individuals cope with mental illness and HealingNYC that fights against the crisis of opioid use.

According to ThriveNYC, at least one in five adult New Yorkers will experience some form of mental illness in any given year. To help joust this statistic, the fairly new organizations have created a roadmap to help increase access to mental health treatment in schools, hospitals, and behind bars.

Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, attending the event, empathized with the crowded audience. “I know that almost 40 percent of the inmates in Riker’s Island suffer from some type of mental illness. It’s a conversation we need to have, not only to speak about it but to really come up with some real solutions,” said Clark.

One of the solutions ThriveNYC offers is the option for New Yorkers to take a free Mental Health First Aid course that helps identify signs of mental health disorders. At the conclusion of the eight-hour course, participants will receive a certificate that is applicable for three years.

“All of us have a role in making sure that our communities are present, empowered, and enriched,” said Councilwoman Vanessa Gibson.

Though launched in November of 2015, ThriveNYC has been allocated $850 million for mental health reform. It’s incorporated its programming at various agencies, including the NYPD’s Crisis Intervention Training, a program that teaches police officers tactics to assist people who are either under stress or suffer from a mental illness.

“Our goal is to train a quarter of a million New Yorkers [in] mental health first aid,” said McCray.    “We’re ahead of schedule and were able to train 1,300 residents for mental health first aids in the Bronx.”

NYC Health + Hospitals, the city’s public hospital system, has also been influenced by the ThriveNYC initiative, welcoming new programs, with one tending to women who may be suffering from post-partum depression.

“We have a new system that’s been able to screen 80 percent of new mothers and pregnant women,” said McCray.  “I want you to know that includes Jacobi and Lincoln and North Central Bronx Hospital.”

“It’s an example of how we’re trying to change the practice of our hospitals to make sure we’re meeting very real world and needs of our families,” said Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives Richard Beury, attending the forum.

HealingNYC has three goals: expand access to naloxone, a prescription that reverses opioid-related overdoses, connect more New Yorkers to those who struggle from addiction to receive medication and treatment, and to reduce the supply of opioids in the city.

NYPD Chief Kevin Ward encouraged attendees to reach out to law enforcement to prevent those who use opioids from harming themselves. “If you call 911 [for someone], or you’re overdosing, you will not be arrested…please call us you will not be arrested, we are here to help,” Ward said.

For individuals who are seeking assistance to guide them or a loved one through a mental crisis, ThriveNYC has a free 24/7 hotline.

“More than 5,000 residents called in the Bronx in the last four months,” said McCray. “We have a long way to go still.”

The number to the NYC mental health hotline is 1-888-NYCWELL (1-888-692-9355).