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Aug. 1, 2022
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Summer is in full swing, and we may find ourselves outdoors exploring the thousands of miles of hiking trails in Oregon, Washington and Idaho; paddling, floating and swimming in gorgeous lakes, rivers and oceans; surfing on the Oregon coast, or enjoying the sun in our local parks.
However, for many of us, the United States Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade has cast a shadow over the joys of summer. Abortion rights are now in the hands of individual states, and it is expected that roughly half of the 50 states will ban the procedure.
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The rights of Oregonians will remain the same, regardless of the Supreme Court’s decision:
- Our state does not require waiting periods, parental involvement or restrictions on publicly funded abortions.
- Kate Brown announced that Oregon joined Washington and California in a Multi-State Commitment for Reproductive Freedom. The three governors declared they would protect both patients and doctors from attempts to enforce abortion bans or other restrictions on reproductive health care in their states.
To find accessible reproductive health services in your area, visit the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) Reproductive Health Program website.
In other news, OHA is proud to announce that 988 officially launched July 16. In Oregon and nationwide, people experiencing a behavioral health crisis can now call, text or chat online with 988 to get compassionate care and support from trained crisis counselors. Established to improve access to crisis services in a way that meets our country’s growing suicide and mental health-related crisis care needs, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline:
- Is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- Has a number that is easy to remember, like 911
- Is available to help people who are experiencing a range of behavioral health crises, including thoughts of suicide or self-harm, substance use, or any other kind of behavioral health crisis
People can also dial 988 if they are worried about a loved one who may need crisis support. The 988 dialing code connects callers to the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and a network of local crisis call centers throughout the country. In Oregon, 988 call centers are operated by Lines for Life statewide, and Northwest Human Services in Marion and Polk counties.
We are fortunate to live in this stunning state where we have protections over our physical health and expanded services for our mental health. This summer let’s find ways to celebrate the wonder of the outdoors by exploring the seven regions, visiting Oregon State Parks as they celebrate their 100th anniversary, and cooling off in our lakes, rivers and oceans. With so many places to go and things to do, you can plan your trip here. Enjoy the fresh air and the sunshine and remember to take care of yourselves and each other.
 Families with children experiencing mental, emotional or behavioral health challenges may not know where to turn, or who can help. Navigating complicated systems can be a burden, and the stigma attached to mental health concerns can make it difficult to know who to talk to. Communities need an organization that not only helps families navigate these systems, but also connects them with other parents and caregivers with similar experiences.
Funded by OHA, Reach Out Oregon is an initiative of the Oregon Family Support Network, Inc. It has an interactive website and a Parent Support Warmline (833)-REACH-OR/ (833)732-2467. Both offer parents and caregivers the opportunity to connect with one another about their lives, the complex needs their children may have, and offer insight on how to get the services they need. In 2020, Reach Out Oregon launched a social media platform for further connection and support.
Since Reach Out Oregon launched in 2020, the Warmline has received 2,042 contacts from parents/families seeking help and connected them to Family Support Specialists. Family Support Specialists are parents who know what it’s like to experience some of the challenges and behaviors that kids go through during difficult times. It helps to know that you are not alone in this experience, and that’s what Reach Out Oregon is known for — connecting parents with other parents who “get it,” and with meaningful help — instead of judgment.
These connections are a vital resource for children and families, especially in rural areas. A recent call into the Warmline shows the necessity of these services: a mother called about her two young sons, and how her recent divorce has affected them. One of her sons had been picking fights at school and faced several suspensions. Her son was also having trouble making friends. She felt isolated, with no one to talk to about this new and troubling behavior. The Family Support Specialist, Lori, took time to listen and share her own lived experience and empathy. Lori offered information about local groups and programs to help to the mother and her children. Lori made an appointment to follow up in the next few days, offering emotional support and more resources to aid the family.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made these services even more necessary. Connecting with people in-person has become much harder, and both the online community and the Warmline have proven to be effective and useful to communities in need. Sandy Bumpus, Executive Director of OFSN said, “We were able to use the Reach Out Oregon Parent Support Warmline and website to support needs for information about the pandemic, and to coordinate a large-scale food box program statewide — for those families marginalized through difference, including race, ethnicity and those living in rural communities.”
Parents often need information or support around something that is challenging in their child’s and their family’s life – especially when their child’s emotional, behavioral or mental health is impacted; and Reach Out Oregon is here to help.
Call Reach Out Oregon’s Parent Support Warmline at (833)-REACH-OR/ (833)732-2467 Monday through Friday from noon to 7 p.m. (except holidays) or visit them online. They have a weekly virtual support group and they also offer events and trainings for parents and advocates online. These services are currently available in English and Spanish.
If you have questions or need more information, contact Melissa First at melissaf@ofsn.net.
What is IAT?
Interdisciplinary Assessment Teams (IATs) are a developing program within the Child and Family Behavioral Health continuum of care. Once formed, the teams will:
- Provide access to comprehensive assessment and evaluation services to youth with intensive behavioral health needs throughout Oregon.
- Ensure a thorough assessment for each child or adolescent.
- Provide treatment recommendations that support their long-term wellness.
The teams will be customized to serve the needs of the youth, but have multiple different disciplines available for consultation including:
- Developmental pediatricians,
- Psychologists,
- Psychiatrists,
- Social workers,
- Occupational therapists, and
- Speech therapists.
What IAT is trying to solve?
In some cases, youth and their families wait months for evaluations, then end up with the wrong service. With timely, thorough, and comprehensive assessments and evaluations, we will get a clear understanding of a young person’s unique needs, and guidance on how to support successful outcomes.
Senate Bill 1 (2019) approved funding for IATs. Over the past few years, the landscape of assessments and mental health care has changed dramatically. Staffing and capacity issues have only increased since COVID-19. In this changed environment, OHA is now working on moving IATs forward with two goals in mind:
- Offer support to our communities that need help in our current crisis.
- Work toward the full vision of IAT with programs throughout Oregon.
To achieve the first goal, we are developing pilots — smaller versions of IAT — to provide quick access to the evaluations necessary for youth to access the services and systems they need. For the second goal, we are working with systems and providers to develop the infrastructure necessary to provide full IAT across Oregon to include telehealth, and possibly mobile teams, to make sure that everyone has access to this service.
Please reach out to John Linn at john.r.linn@dhsoha.state.or.us with any questions or for more information if you:
- Have a program that you think would be a good fit for an IAT pilot or,
- Are a provider or part of a health system and you would like to connect.
Uplift – Virtual Summit for Teens
Youth ERA is offering a four-day virtual summit in late August for students (ages 14-19) to learn how to be a peer mentor. In the summit, students will learn how to identify signs of distress, practice listening and self-care skills, identify strengths, build resilience, and counter issues like bullying and youth suicide.
OHA has provided funding for the first 2,200 high school students in Oregon to attend at no cost ($475 per student). Students who complete the summit earn a $75 gift card and can win prizes as well.
To learn more about the summit, please visit the Youth ERA Uplift website, or check out this informational poster.
Students can apply at this link.
- The August 2022 Uplift events are for Oregon students only. Applicants may need to prove they attend a school or university in Oregon.
- Accepted applicants must attend all 4 days of the Uplift program to be considered for any gifts or prizes.
- Youth ERA can schedule short presentations for classes or assemblies to share the information directly with students. Presentations for staff teams are also available.
If you have questions or need more information, contact Maj Bonnet at mbonnet@youthera.org or 541-335-1367.
Collaborative Problem Solving: Classes available at no charge to participants
OHA recently awarded funding to The Child Center to help families strengthen positive relationships and build the skills needed for success at home, at school, in the community and throughout life.
The Child Center:
- Offers free Collaborative Problem Solving classes to people throughout Oregon. Sessions are once a week for eight weeks.
- Is focused on providing services to seven regions in Oregon that have limited mental health provider resources.
For more information, please visit The Child Center’s website and share widely with families and communities.
Eating disorder treatment training series
Eating disorders affect 30 million Americans and 95 percent of those affected are between the ages of 12 and 25. To address the lack of knowledge and expertise on this subject among health professionals in Oregon, we have engaged Therese Waterhous, PhD, RDN, CEDRD-S, owner, clinician and trainer at Willamette Nutrition Source, LLC, to offer a seven-month virtual training series. Therese will be joined by two guest speakers to address specific health equity considerations in eating disorder treatment. This training is made available through federal funding and there is no charge to registrants.
For more information, visit our website. You can register at Eventbrite. You may register for as many trainings, including the entire series, as you like, and this training is open to everyone. The next lecture is August 10 from noon to 1:15 p.m. with Dr. Therese Waterhous. The topic will be: “Next Steps After Screening and Diagnosis: Effective Treatment Concepts & Levels of Care.”
On August 31 we are also hosting a Q and A session with Dr. Waterhous from noon to 1:15 p.m.
If you have questions from the prior trainings that you’d like answered, send them to Sam Haskins at sam.l.haskins@dhsoha.state.or.us.
If you have general questions about the series or need more information, contact Kathleen Burns at kathleen.m.burns@dhsoha.state.or.us.
Open Clinical Consultation (Intellectual/Developmental Disability and Mental Health)
OHA is sponsoring a quarterly Open Clinical Consultation with experts from National Association of Dually Diagnosed (NADD). These consultations focus on supporting youth and families dually diagnosed with an I/DD and MH condition. This is a great opportunity for clinicians or other professionals working with this population to ask questions and get consultation around best practices for supporting dually diagnosed youth and their families.
If you are interested in bringing a case for consultation, please contact Jessica Stout at jessica.l.stout@dhsoha.state.or.us. Everyone is invited to attend and listen to the discussion and consultation.
Suicide Prevention Trainings:
Question Persuade Refer (QPR): QPR Training for Trainers
Virtual training
- Wednesday, August 10, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Wednesday, September 21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Contact QPR@linesforlife.org for more information.
System of Care Learning Collaborative
Each second Tuesday of the month from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Oregon Family Support Network, Youth ERA and OHA facilitate a conversation for people involved with System of Care work.
Conversation topics include how to develop skills that center youth and families, how to be culturally and linguistically responsive and how to ensure services and supports are community-based. Bring your questions and a desire to learn and unlearn!
Contact Nat Jacobs at nat.jacobs@dhsoha.state.or.us for more details.
A Time for Families
A Time for Families is a weekly drop-in discussion hour for parents and family members hosted by Chelsea Holcomb and OHA’s Family Partnership Specialist, Frances Purdy. Join us Thursdays from noon to 1p.m.
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Click here to join the meeting conference ID 676907 or
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Join by phone:1-669-254-5252 | Meeting ID: 161 993 2307 | Passcode: 676907 | One tap mobile: +16692545252,,1619932307#,,,,*676907#
Capacity in the children’s psychiatric and substance use disorder residential system
The CFBH unit has been closely monitoring capacity at all Oregon Health Plan child behavioral health residential facilities since spring 2021. The goal of this work is to develop a centralized access process, so we know how many children and families need services. As a result, we can identify where capacity needs to be increased to support people with the right service, at the right time.
Goal capacity:
- Acute psychiatric and psychiatric residential: 286 beds
- Substance use disorder residential: To be determined
Operational capacity as of June 3:
- Acute psychiatric and psychiatric residential: 137 beds (48% operational capacity, -51% goal capacity)
- Substance use disorder residential: 31 beds (51% operational capacity)
Projected operational capacity: Acute psychiatric and psychiatric residential
- By fall 2023: 268 beds (94% goal capacity)
988 and Mobile Response and Stabilization Services ($6.5 million)
The 988 Call Center contracts have moved through the public comment phase, and 988 went live July 16, accepting calls from people of all ages in crisis. Learn more about 988 in Oregon on OHA’s 988 web page. If you do promote the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline in your work, consider how you will switch messaging from NSPL over to 988. Note that calling the NSPL number (1-800-273 TALK (8255)) will remain available even after 988 is launched.
OHA is working with communities with lived experience in the behavioral health system to guide the design, implementation and policies of 988 and a broader crisis response system, especially through the Crisis System Advisory Workgroup (CSAW). OHA recognizes that many individuals and families with lived experience and from disproportionately affected communities have experienced adverse impacts of the crisis response system due to systemic and historical social injustice.
With community partnerships and insights, OHA hopes that 988 can provide an empowering, culturally responsive experience for individuals in crisis and that the system will meet the unique needs of groups disproportionately impacted by health inequities, including youth, rural populations, communities of color, veterans and people in the military, Tribal communities and people who identify as LGBTQIA2S+.
While 988 is the first step, OHA continues to work with partners to develop a crisis response system that will help divert people from emergency rooms and connect people to other community-based behavioral health treatment facilities, such as the Behavioral Health Resource Networks, funded by Measure 110 dollars.
Important facts to know:
- 988 will be available through every landline, cell phone and voice-over internet device in the United States, as well as text and chat.
- The current technology for 988 will route callers by area code, not geolocation.
- 988 is not currently available when phones are locked or do not have prepaid minutes.
- The transition to 988 will not impact the availability of crisis services for veterans and military service members. They can call 988 and press 1 to connect with the Veterans Crisis Line.
- For support in Spanish, callers can press 2 to connect with the Red Nacional de Prevención del Suicidio.
The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline has an infographic with more information on what happens when people call, text or chat.
Mobile Response and Stabilization Services (MRSS) is moving towards its January 2023 go-live date. Currently, the Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) encompassing MRSS is in the Rules Advisory Committee where it is receiving guidance and insight from community members, those with lived experience, crisis response staff, and those from traditionally under-served and under-represented communities. A portion of the funding for crisis response services across the lifespan has been distributed. MRSS funding will be distributed to counties based on an equitable funding formula that directs funding to where it is needed most.
In anticipation of the January go-live date for MRSS, Learning Collaboratives are being held the second Monday of each month to gather further insight and inform the community of MRSS.
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Click here to join the meeting conference
- Or call in (audio only): +1 971-277-2343,,359995712#
- Phone Conference ID: 359 995 712#
Contact Brian Pitkin at brian.m.pitkin@dhsoha.state.or.us with any questions.
Psychiatric Residential Treatment Services ($12 million)
In 2021, OHA’s Legislatively Approved Budget provided funding to support investment in treatment services for Oregon’s youth and families experiencing an intensive behavioral health crisis. In the same year, the Oregon Legislature through House Bill 5024 appropriated funds to OHA for the expansion of community-based residential settings for individuals requiring a higher level of care.
OHA has issued a Request for Grant Applications (RFGA) to support the development of:
- Children Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities for children with severe emotional disturbances.
The Children Psychiatric Residential RFGA is committed to addressing children experiencing a need for psychiatric residential treatment intervention in Oregon. Children experiencing mental and behavioral health needs experience delays in accessing all levels of care, and some cases, Oregon’s system does not have capacity available to provide residential treatment to accommodate them. The goal is to create an equitable, inclusive, and effective approach in providing treatment to children with severe emotional disturbances.
Applicants can apply for real property, new construction, or acquisition/rehabilitation projects with start-up costs listed in Notice.
The RFGA will be open through 11:59 p.m. Friday, September 24, 2022.
Interested applicants can learn more about the grants and learn more about the Social Determinants of Health web page, under the RFGA: Children Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities.
Restorative Services and Juvenile Psychiatric Security Review Board services
OHA continues to seek providers interested in working with this complex and dynamic group of youth.
- An organization would need to become, or increase capacity to become, experts in Psychiatric Treatment Services with a specialty in forensic support and collaboration with families and the court system.
- Young people receiving restorative services or under the Juvenile Psychiatric Review Board are generally dealing with a complex set of circumstances, and the work is both rewarding and challenging.
If you are interested in this work, please contact Jessica Stout at jessica.l.stout@dhsoha.state.or.us.
Young Adult Residential Treatment Homes ($9.2 million)
Developed in collaboration with the Intensive Services, Housing & Social Determinants of Health Unit, the Request for Application (RFA) focused on young adult residential treatment programs. The RFA is now in the final stage of the review process. This RFA focuses on:
- Centering health equity,
- Expanding the Young Adult Residential programs, including up to an additional 20 residential treatment beds, and
- Developing a 10-bed Secure Residential Treatment Facility for young adults with higher acuity needs.
The RFA is expected to be released mid to late July and will be posted and accessible on the OHA Social Determinants of Health web page.
Contact Jessica Stout at jessica.l.stout@dhsoha.state.or.us with any questions.
We are currently hiring for several positions within our team - keep an eye out for posts in this newsletter or on the OHA website.
For feedback and suggestions for our newsletter and information: kids.team@dhsoha.state.or.us
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