Prenatal - 5 Grow & thrive | July 2023

Washington State Health Care Authority sent this bulletin at 07/25/2023 08:05 AM PDT

Where mission
and heart meet behavioral health, from the very start.

July, 2023

Welcome to the July 2023 issue of Prenatal - 5: Grow & Thrive - HCA’s new monthly newsletter about our behavioral health work in the early years of life.

Over the past few years, our team has maintained a growing email list of key partners, whom we updated regularly regarding our work. We started sending updates through this newsletter in May 2023, which is open to all. If you missed the earlier issues of our newsletter, you can find them under IECMH Updates on our webpage.

With that, we welcome you to keep reading to find out more of what’s happening in the P-5 behavioral health world, including our IECMH statewide tour, a webinar on lactation and substance use, and a special spotlight on Plan of Safe Care.

The Prenatal – 5: Grow & Thrive is a spin-off newsletter of HCA’s Prenatal – 25: Thrive newsletter, which focuses on behavioral health for the entire age span of pregnancy to early adulthood.

Announcements

IECMH Statewide tour

Your HCA IECMH team is coming to see you! This summer, we are visiting each region of the state, hosting listening sessions to hear from mental health providers about their experience serving families of young children and community networking events open to all local organizations. Visit the IECMH Statewide tour webpage to mark your calendar, register to attend, and spread the word with our marketing materials.

Agency Memo for Perinatal Substance Use

Department of Health, Health Care Authority, Department of Children Youth and Families, and Washington State Hospital Association have released a memo alerting birthing hospitals and mandated reporters of some state policy and clinical best practice changes related to perinatal substance use. You can read more about these best practices in our Spotlight on the Plan of Safe Care.

Events and training

IECMH statewide tour

Visit the IECMH Statewide tour webpage to register:

August 21, 2023 | Southwest region (Vancouver)
August 22, 2023 | Great Rivers region (Aberdeen)
August 25, 2023 | Salish region (Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe, Kingston)
September 8, 2023 | North Central region (Wenatchee)

First Steps quarterly webinar

TODAY! July 25, 2023. 10-11:30 a.m. | The First Steps Maternity Support Services (MSS) and Infant Case Management (ICM) quarterly webinar will present new clinical guidelines and review evidence on substance use and lactation, with Natalie Franz, MPH, the Maternal and Child Health Data Communications Consultant at Department of Health (DOH).

Register

IECMH office hours

July 27, 2023. 10-11 a.m. | The HCA IECMH team offers quarterly virtual office hours to support providers and agencies on topics related to IECMH and Apple Health (Medicaid). Join from our IECMH webpage, under Office hours.

MHAYC billing webinar

DATE CHANGE! October 26, 2023. 1-2:30 p.m. | HCA provides regular webinars to review guidance on billing related to Mental Health Assessment for Young Children (MHAYC). These webinars are designed for mental health clinicians, billing and coding staff, and agency leadership. Stick around for the last 30 minutes for open discussion with other IECMH providers.

Register

Spotlight

Plan of Safe Care (POSC) is a family-centered prevention plan designed to promote the safety and well-being of infants with prenatal substance exposure and their birthing parents. Plan of Safe Care has expanded beyond infants exposed to illegal substances and now includes infants exposed to any controlled substance. A family who falls within this new eligibility may not warrant a referral to Child Protective Services (A CPS referral being the appropriate path when there is an acute safety risk for the infant); and are instead referred to Help Me Grow Washington.

Help Me Grow Washington offers a community-based response to provide wrap-around services and supports to families who would traditionally be routed to child welfare. Birthing hospitals, clinicians, and care providers can connect birthing parents/caregivers and their babies to these supports through an online referral.

*Information cited, tailored to suit the purpose of the newsletter, please see Plan of Safe Care | Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families for the full POSC definition.

Plan of Safe Care online referral portal flow chart

Stay informed

Learn more by visiting the IECMH webpage for recent project updates.

Learn more

Subscribe to get the Prenatal - 5 Grow and Thrive e-newsletter each month.

Subscribe

If you have questions about this newsletter, please email us.

Email us

About the Health Care Authority (HCA)

The Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) is committed to whole-person care, integrating physical health and behavioral health services for better results and healthier residents.

HCA purchases health care for more than 2.5 million Washington residents through Apple Health (Medicaid), the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) Program, the School Employees Benefits Board (SEBB) Program, and the COFA Islander Health Care Program. As the largest health care purchaser in the state, we lead the effort to transform health care, helping ensure Washington residents have access to better health and better care at a lower cost.

Please do not reply directly to this message. For more information, visit the HCA website, where you'll also find contact information.

Disclosure notice

All messages we send via GovDelivery are subject to public disclosure, as are the names and email addresses of those who sign up for email notifications.

Nondiscrimination

The Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) complies with all applicable federal and Washington state civil rights laws and is committed to providing equal access to our services. Visit HCA’s website to view complete nondiscrimination statements.