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IN THE NEWS
CONTRA COSTA'S DRUG MEDI-CAL WAIVER PLAN HEADING FOR STATE REVIEW
OPEN HOUSE ON MARCH 10 FOR NEW LAURA'S LAW PROGRAM
HOMELESS PROGRAM CONDUCTS ANNUAL POINT-IN-TIME COUNT
COMMENT PERIOD UNDERWAY FOR 2016-17 MHSA FUNDING PLAN
CHILDREN'S MENTAL HEALTH CLINIC REOPENS AT NEW ANTIOCH HEALTH CENTER
BHS ADDS ADULT MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM CHIEF, ACTING MEDICAL DIRECTOR
Mission  
OUR MISSION
The mission of Contra Costa Behavioral Health, in partnership with consumers, families, staff, and community-based agencies, is to provide welcoming, integrated services for mental health, substance abuse, homelessness and other needs that promotes wellness, recovery, and resiliency while respecting the complexity and diversity of the people we serve. 
Vision   
OUR VISION
Contra Costa Behavioral Health envisions a system of care that supports independence, hope, and healthy lives by making accessible behavioral health services that are responsive, integrated, compassionate, and respectful. 
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Martinez, CA 94553
  
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Main DIRECTOR'S REPORT

SPRING EDITION 2016
Cynthia Belon
Cynthia Belon,  LCSW
Director of Behavioral 
Health Services
 
A Victory for Accessible Substance Use Disorder Treatment

From clinic openings to program launches, Behavioral Health Services has had a busy winter. We are finding new and better ways to improve health outcomes for Contra Costa residents, including some of our most vulnerable consumers.
This month we also reached a milestone for one of the most important changes to our system, Contra Costa's plan for a Drug Medi-Cal Waiver Organized Delivery System (ODS).
Very soon, thousands of county residents who need treatment for substance use disorders (SUD), but who have not had the insurance in the past to cover it, will gain access to those services through Medi-Cal.
This is fantastic news for community health in our county, and for our many residents who need that help to improve their lives.
It is also a fantastic challenge for our Behavioral Health system of care.
That is why, as we put the finishing touches on our plan to accommodate an estimated 4,000 additional patients each year, I want to thank the many stakeholders, including our clients and consumers, who dedicated their time and expertise to the process to ensure we get it right.
Over the past few months, we conducted focus groups, surveys and town hall meetings to identify areas of need and potential service expansions. We engaged patients, doctors, nurses, community healthcare providers, social workers, mental health and homeless advocates, civic leaders, advisory board members, law enforcement partners and the courts.
Through your efforts, we have a plan that accurately assesses the needs of our community and offers realistic, evidence-based strategies for expanding and improving services.
It is no easy matter to double the capacity of our county's SUD treatment programs.
But as we prepare to submit our draft plan to the state this month for review -- the next step toward making it happen -- I am confident that the state and federal approval processes will go more smoothly, thanks to your diligence.
That progress is not all we have to celebrate in BHS. In February our children's mental health clinic in Antioch relocated to the new Antioch Health Center, where it shares space with primary medical services -- another versatile resource for our consumers.
The Assisted Outpatient Treatment program, our county's response to Laura's Law, also opened its doors to clients in February. We are now working with our community partners to spread the word about who qualifies for this new service, and how to access it.
Our Homeless Program, through its partnership with the Contra Costa Zero:2016 campaign, is also developing new tools, including ways to cultivate affordable housing opportunities by making it easier for property owners to rent to our consumers. Stay tuned for news about that in the near future.
In closing, I'd like to welcome a pair of familiar faces to the division's management team: Dr. Jan Cobaleda-Kegler, our new Adult Mental Health Program Chief, and Dr. Jon Whalen, who is serving as the acting medical director of Behavioral Health Services.
Dr. Colabeda-Kegler previously managed our Central County Children & Adolescent Services Clinic in Concord and Dr. Whalen has practiced in the same clinic. Both have dedicated many years to the service of county residents, and I am confident they will excel in their new roles.
 
Thank you for all your hard work, and for your continued interest in the Behavioral Health Division. We hope to report many more positive developments in the coming months.
Sincerely, 
CB Signiture 2
Cynthia Belon, LCSW 
Behavioral Health Director
Contra Costa County Behavioral Health
  
ODSCONTRA COSTA'S DRUG MEDI-CAL WAIVER PLAN HEADING FOR STATE REVIEW

Behavioral Health Services intends to submit a detailed plan for expanding substance use disorder (SUD) services including residential services within the month, an endeavor that could double the county's capacity to serve patients struggling with addiction.

 
BHS, led by its Alcohol & Other Drugs Services (AODS) program, began developing its proposal to participate in the Drug Medi-Cal Waiver Organized Delivery System (ODS) soon after the waiver was announced last August.
The waiver allows Medi-Cal coverage for substance use disorder treatment, including residential and medication-assisted treatment, in participating counties that enact evidence-based service expansions that align with American Society of Addiction Medicine standards.
To develop the ODS plan, Behavioral Heath held numerous focus groups, work sessions and town hall meetings to garner community input from patients, doctors, nurses, community healthcare providers, social workers, mental health and AOD advocates, civic leaders, law enforcement partners and the courts.
During the next step of the process, the state Department of Health Care Services will work with the county and Medicare to ensure the draft plan complies with the waiver's requirements. Both state and federal government must approve before the plan proceeds.
For more information, contact AODS Program Chief Fatima Matal Sol at [email protected].
AOTOPEN HOUSE ON MARCH 10 FOR NEW LAURA'S LAW PROGRAM 
Mental Health Systems, the provider for Contra Costa's Assisted Outpatient Treatment program (AOT), invites anyone interested in the county's implementation of Laura's Law to an open house at its new Concord office March 10 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
 
AOT, developed with Contra Costa Superior Court, the Public Defender's Office, and other partners in accordance with Laura's Law, began screening prospective patients Feb. 1. The program will have capacity for 75 patients in its first 12 months.
Laura's Law allows California counties to use the civil court system to supervise care for people with severe mental illness who meet specific legal criteria, which include a history of hospitalization or violence and of declining offered treatment.
Click for printable flier.
AOT creates both a treatment program and a process for referring prospective patients that includes clinical evaluation, emphasis on voluntary participation, and respectful and fair court representation if needed.
 
Mental Health Systems runs the Contra Costa ACTiOn Team, the part of AOT that provides direct services to patients, including mental health treatment, medication management, resource counseling, vocational rehabilitation and access to housing services.
 
The AOT program is also offering free, on-site training for providers, law enforcement and community groups about the program and how to make referrals
 
The open house is scheduled from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 10 at 2280 Diamond Boulevard, Suite 500, in Concord. Follow this link to RVSP.
 
For more information about AOT or to request training, contact David Seidner at [email protected] or 925-288-3908.
HOMELESS PROGRAM CONDUCTS ANNUAL POINT-IN-TIME COUNT 
More than 60 volunteers joined Homeless Program staff and our community service providers to help document the extent of homelessness in Contra Costa on Jan. 28 and 29, during the county's annual point-in-time count (PIT).
Chief of Homeless Services Lavonna Martin (R foreground) interviews a consumer on Jan. 28 during Contra Costa's annual point-in-time count.
Outreach teams conducted surveys at shelters, soup kitchens and encampments across the county and, for the first time, partnered with the 211 hotline and other local call centers to enable consumers to self-report survey information for PIT while accessing services.
Data from this effort help government agencies, service providers and community advocates develop effective local responses to homelessness, and are also a required part of the county's requests for federal and state funding for homeless services.
The program expects to release detailed demographic data this spring. During the 2015 count, 3,715 people were identified as homeless in Contra Costa County.
For more information, contact Homeless Program Chief Lavonna Martin at [email protected].
 Volunteer Voices: Point-in-Time Count 2016

   
"It was interesting to meet and connect with people. Despite my concerns, they were all willing to talk to me and share their experiences. Leaving, driving away in my own car, I felt very ... fortunate."
- Burt Rodgers
2016 PIT volunteer


 
 
"Meeting these gentle people who are hanging out under the eaves, just trying to stay dry, while strolling among the Bay Area's most expensive boutiques is definitely a little ... cognitively dissonant. With all our resources, we should be able to take better care of the neediest among us."
- Steven Falk
2016 PIT volunteer
PLEASE PROVIDE FEEDBACK TO LET US KNOW HOW TO IMPROVE
Feedback The Behavioral Health executive team encourages all staff to provide us with feedback about what is and is not working. An easy way to submit a comment is to click on the feedback link that appears in every edition of the Behavioral Health Connection.

If you follow the link, you can leave a comment with a third-party online vendor that the administration will receive, read, and consider. The vendor allows anonymous comments, if you do not wish to disclose your identity.

We value your comments, and appreciate your candor. Please let us know what we can do better.
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COMMENT PERIOD UNDERWAY FOR 2016-17 MHSA FUNDING PLAN
Public review of the proposed update for Contra Costa's Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Three-Year Program and Expenditure Plan runs through March 21, to be followed by an April 6 public hearing before the Mental Health Commission.
The update includes changes proposed to the plan for local use of MHSA funds from the state and reflects the county's prioritized mental health needs, as developed through community outreach to stakeholders such as consumers, providers and family members.
This year's update proposes to use $43.1 million during the 2016-17 fiscal year to fund 85 programs that support the plan's priorities.
County residents are encouraged to read the update and submit public comments.
A copy of the update, the full plan, related documents, and forms and information about how to participate, are all available on our web site or by calling 925-957-5150.
The Mental Health Commission hearing is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. on Wednesday, April 6 at 550 Ellinwood Way in Pleasant Hill.
For more information, contact Warren Hayes at [email protected].
AHC
CHILDREN'S MENTAL HEALTH CLINIC REOPENS AT NEW ANTIOCH HEALTH CENTER
The East County Children & Adolescent Services clinic moved last month, co-locating with primary healthcare services at the new Antioch Health Center.
(L to R) BHS Director Cynthia Belon, Mental Health Program Supervisor Amanda Dold and BHS Deputy Director Matthew Luu chat with Congressman Jerry McNerney at the Antioch Health Center opening celebration Feb. 17.
 
The combined clinic is Contra Costa Health Services' latest move to integrate behavioral and physical healthcare for the region's consumers. The behavioral health section offers individual, family and group therapy, as well as intake assessment and case management.
 
The mental health clinic was previously located on Lone Tree Way in Antioch. The new location, at 2335 Country Hills Drive, includes more space and more up-to-date amenities for patients and staff. It began serving patients on Feb. 23.
FacesBHS ADDS ADULT MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM CHIEF, ACTING MEDICAL DIRECTOR
Dr. Jan Cobaleda-Kegler, who previously managed the Central County Children & Adolescent Services Clinic in Concord, has joined the Behavioral Health Division's management team as its new Adult Mental Health Program Chief.
Joining Dr. Cobaleda-Kegler in a new leadership role is Dr. Jon Whalen, also a longtime provider at the
Dr. Jan Cobaleda-Kegler and Dr. Jon Whalen
Concord clinic, who now serves as the division's acting medical director while the search continues for a permanent successor for Dr. Ross Andelman, who retired from the county in January.
Dr. Cobaleda-Kegler brings extensive experience to the position as a service provider, supervisor and manager in a broad spectrum of community-based mental health treatment settings, including more than 20 years with Contra Costa mental health programs.
As chief of adult programs, her new responsibilities include leadership and supervision of the county's mental health programs for adults and older adults, including the regional clinics.

Behavioral Health Connection Newsletter

 

Courtesy of the BHS Communications Team 

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