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 Feb. 3, 2025
In this issue...
Reflections from Chelsea Holcomb, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) Child and Family Behavioral Health (CFBH) Director
I want to start by thanking Christa Jones for visiting our newsletter for the last two months. She has been a delight to work with since joining OHA’s Behavioral Health Division and a true champion for young people and their families. I am glad to be back and to celebrate February with you!
February holds a special place in our hearts, marked by two significant observances — Black History Month and Valentine’s Day.
Though distinct in their origins, both offer a powerful opportunity to reflect on love, community and unity — values essential to the emotional and behavioral well-being of our children and families. In a time when connection and support are more important than ever, these observances remind us of the role of love and belonging in our lives.
Black History Month, established in 1926 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, celebrates the resilience, achievements, and contributions of Black/African American people throughout history. Chosen to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, this observance has evolved from a weeklong celebration to a month dedicated to honoring Black/African American culture, reflecting on progress, and acknowledging the ongoing work needed to promote inclusion.
For children and families, Black History Month is not only a time to honor the past but also to embrace values like resilience, cultural pride, and community support. When children see their culture celebrated, they develop a deep sense of belonging, which inspires them to pursue their dreams despite challenges. In my work, I’ve seen how crucial it is for children — especially those families impacted by multi-systems — to feel seen and valued. Black History Month provides a space to address the challenges Black children face, including racial trauma and identity development. By creating environments where children can embrace their heritage, we nurture their mental health, resilience, and sense of empowerment.
As an individual and collectively, it is our responsibility to hold ourselves accountable by actively learning about and celebrating Black history year-round, not only during the designated month of February. We must celebrate Black excellence every day and take the initiative to research, learn, and build understanding without relying on others to educate us. Our challenge, goal, and mission are to examine the inequities that persist and actively work toward eliminating them. Black History Month is a time to ask, "What am I doing to address the inequities in our society and advocate for social justice throughout the year?" This celebration is about daily action, continued education, and a commitment to dismantling systemic barriers, with each of us reflecting on how we can make a meaningful difference in fostering justice and belonging for all.
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It’s February, and Oregon is beginning a new legislative session. We are grateful that behavioral health is one of the Governor’s top priorities, and that attention is being directed toward the needs of youth, families, and the committed individuals who serve them each day.
The Child and Family team dedicates considerable time each session to working on bill analysis and supporting meaningful understanding of the behavioral health topics raised throughout session. This takes form through many activities, including bill analysis, engaging the voice of lived experience, and responding to questions from elected officials about the potential impact of bills on the communities we serve.
We expect many bills related to children’s behavioral health this session. There are many ways to engage during legislative session, whether that’s listening in to hearings, submitting testimony, attending sessions at the capitol, or reaching out to your legislators. If you’re interested in seeing all the bills, please visit the Oregon Legislative Information webpage.
During the 2023-2025 legislative session, Oregon’s Legislature passed a bill to increase the availability of developmental pediatricians and child psychiatrists in Oregon. The legislation funded expanded training for Child Psychiatry and Developmental Pediatrician fellowships.
Beginning in July 2025, seven new fellows will start their training: five at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and two at Good Samaritan Hospital in Corvallis. This expansion will help increase the number of child psychiatrists in Oregon, improving access to care across the state. Additionally, OHSU will expand its Developmental Pediatrician fellowship in 2026.
This success story is a direct result of the hard work and collaboration that went into the legislative session, and it will make a meaningful difference for youth and families across Oregon. We are excited to have these highly specialized doctors join and expand Oregon’s behavioral health workforce.
The Expedited Assessment Services for Youth (EASY) program announced its expansion to serve almost all regions of Oregon. This program provides youth with access to comprehensive psychological and neurological assessments within 7 to 10 days. It prioritizes youth with complex needs, including those involved with the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS), Oregon Youth Authority (OYA), and county juvenile justice systems.
Using an interdisciplinary approach, EASY collaborates with developmental pediatricians, psychiatrists, and nutritionists to ensure assessments are comprehensive and tailored to each youth’s needs. The program also works with the Oregon Office of Developmental Disabilities (ODDS) to support eligibility screenings when appropriate. EASY operates without requiring insurance, eliminating barriers for families seeking support, and can travel up to four hours from the clinic to meet the needs of a youth and their family.
Initially a pilot in Multnomah and Deschutes counties, EASY is now expanding. Providers include:
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Neurobehavioral Health of Central Oregon: Serving Deschutes County and expanding to Southern Oregon (Josephine, Jackson, Klamath, and Lake counties).
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Mindsights: serving Multnomah county and expanding to the tri-county metro area (Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington counties), and to Northern and Central coastal range counties (Lincoln, Tillamook, and Clatsop counties).
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Yellow House Clinic: A new EASY provider which will be serving Lane County.
This expansion has as its goal improving access to critical assessments and support services for youth statewide, ensuring timely and coordinated care for those at risk. For referrals, visit the OHA EASY webpage. For more information, contact John Linn.
Children deserve to be supported in their communities in the least restrictive level of care to meet their needs. Therefore, to strengthen child and caregiver well-being and promote placement stability, ODHS Child Welfare developed the Response and Support Network (RSN).
RSN provides immediate response and individualized supports to resource and post-adoptive parents to help address challenges and connect them to longer term resources.
Support is available 24 hours a day via phone and services can include in-home parent mentoring, peer support, care coordination, mental and behavioral health support, and other resources to meet families’ needs for up to 60-90 days. RSN helps to maintain community-based placements for children who may have historically been served in residential treatment facilities due to their mental health, behavioral, or developmental needs.
RSN is currently available in Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas counties through collaborations between ODHS, a local coordinated care organization (CareOregon), and service providers Clarvida and Catholic Community Services of Western Washington. Over the last year, RSN has served 228 individual children and their caregivers.
RSN has demonstrated success in stabilizing children with intensive needs, preserving placements, and preventing entry into residential treatment and temporary lodging. Caregivers have expressed that being able to get the services they need when they need them and 24-hour access to support as just some of the beneficial components of RSN. One caregiver shared, “We used the crisis hotline nearly every week. Having someone come over to help really helped.” Another voiced that they “felt both heard and supported.”
In response to RSN’s successes, ODHS put forward a request in the 2025-2027 state budget to expand this service to communities statewide, policy option package 111. Expanding RSN would offer support to more caregivers and children in care, address gaps in our service array, and ultimately save costs associated with higher levels of care.
OHA’s Youth Suicide Prevention Team is gathering feedback on cultural considerations as we develop the statewide priorities for Youth Suicide Prevention for 2026-2030. We invite you to share your insights.
The deadline to submit the feedback is February 14.
El equipo de OHA de prevención del suicidio en los jóvenes está desarrollando las prioridades estatales del 2026-2030 para la prevención del suicidio en los jóvenes. Les invitamos a compartir sus comentarios, específicamente sobre consideraciones culturales.
For translation or other accessibility needs / Para traduccion o accesibilidad: Contact Jill Baker at jill.baker@oha.oregon.gov.
The Black Youth Suicide Prevention Coalition (BYSPC) youth leaders held their first in-person meeting in Portland on Jan. 4, 2025. Since their selection in fall 2024, the group has met regularly to collaborate on key initiatives, including planning a town hall, selecting wellness projects for their peers, and advising OHA on the Youth Suicide Intervention and Prevention Plan. This meeting marked a celebration of their efforts and commitment during the first half of the school year.
Jill Baker, Young Suicide Intervention & Prevention Plan Manager at OHA shared, “These young people are full of good ideas, wisdom, excitement, and passion for the work — we are in good hands with them.”
The Black Youth Suicide Prevention Issue Brief from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) addresses Black youth suicide and explores prevention strategies. It highlights the importance of community engagement in addressing the needs of Black youth. The BYSPC exemplifies how “community-based” efforts, like building connections and offering safe spaces, are important.
On January 10, Ebony Clarke hosted a thank-you lunch to recognize the adults who have supported the Black Youth Suicide Prevention Coalition since its launch in the summer of 2023.
This group includes representatives from the faith community, education, community-based organizations, county prevention, young adults, and mental health providers. Their contributions in recruiting, interviewing, and supporting the youth leaders of the Coalition have been invaluable. Our suicide prevention team is deeply grateful for their continued dedication and support.
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The Children’s System Advisory Council (CSAC) is the advisory group for OHA Child and Family Behavioral Health programs. Established in 2005, the council has evolved over the years. A redesign workgroup of OHA representatives, system partners, and individuals with lived experience has been meeting regularly to reshape CSAC. Key priorities include updating the council’s bylaws, which were last updated in 2018, considering a potential name change and improving membership and meeting processes.
The workgroup has made several important decisions, including transitioning the main council meetings to a quarterly schedule. They are also nearing the finalization of a new membership application and process, which will allow for verbal conversation as an alternative to a written application. This change is part of a larger effort to make membership processes more relational, inclusive, and equitable. While the work continues, the group recognizes the need for further input. Some decisions have been paused to gather feedback from youth and young adults with experience in behavioral health systems.
The next meeting of the council is scheduled for Feb. 28, 2025, 10 a.m. to noon. Meeting links can be found on the council’s web page.
For additional information, please contact Christianna Rhoads or Tamara Bavaro.
Screening for eating disorders is essential to identify at-risk youth. Early detection, diagnosis, and treatment improve long-term outcomes for both youth and their families.
This series is designed to educate a broad audience — including schools, families, and professionals working with youth — on how to recognize the signs and symptoms of eating disorders and provide the necessary support.
February webinars will be held on Feb. 12 with a topic of “Screening and Best Treatment for Eating Disorders" and Feb. 26 with a topic of “Trauma Informed Care for Eating Disorders: Why, When and How” from 12-1:15 p.m. To register, simply click on the dates provided. For questions, please contact Kathleen Burns, CFBH lead.
This series will include live Spanish translation, and handouts will also be available in Spanish.
¿Hable español? La serie se traducirá activamente al español y los folletos también estarán disponibles en español.
An Oregon-specific Ally Training from the Trevor Project will be led by Kyle Teller, PhD, to support understanding of how to support LGBTQ+ youth and foster inclusive communities. This training equips participants with the knowledge and tools to create safer environments for LGBTQ+ individuals. The sessions will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
What you’ll learn:
- Common LGBTQ+ terminology and its importance in communication
- The “coming out” process and the challenges LGBTQ+ youth face
- How to create supportive spaces at home, in school, and within communities
- Resources available from the Trevor Project
Upcoming sessions and registration links:
Fighting Despair on “Hidden Brain”
In this podcast, Shankar Vedantam delves into the emotional toll of despair — how it arises, its impact on mental health, and how people can overcome it. The episode emphasizes the power of connection and the importance of finding meaning and building resilience to navigate through despair.
Fentanyl education resources for parents and community-based organizations
Explore funding opportunities and resources available to support community education on fentanyl, including funding for film screenings, outreach materials, and billboards. Read more.
Oregon high school students are invited to participate in a PSA video contest, focusing on the dangers of fentanyl and the importance of family conversations. Read more.
Find events, opportunities, trainings and resources in last month’s posting on our newsletter page. Many of these trainings are also on our training opportunities page. We will send updates mid-month — Look for the next one in your inbox on February 18.
For feedback and suggestions for our newsletter and information: kids.team@oha.oregon.gov.
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