Improving Services by Holding Hands, Not Pointing Fingers
Behavioral Healthcare › Vol. 26 Nbr. 3, March 2006
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Summary
At that time, 60% of the Detoxification Center's financial support came from the Colorado Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 6% from the local county commissioners, 11% from the city, and 23% from the center's humanitarian foundation, a grants- and resource-related division of the community mental health center. At the board's direction, the CEO and COO met with leaders at community agencies, city government, and county government to address the urgent funding need and announce the detox bed decrease. To move the task force toward decisions and solutions, a smaller group of decision makers was formed, comprising two hospital CEOs, a local psychiatric facility s senior administrator (which also provided detox services), die assistant director of county government, acity intergovernmental liaison, PPMHs CEO and COO, and the deputy police chief. Pikes Peak Mental Health Center won the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations' (JCAHO) 2005 Ernest Amory Codman Award in the Behavioral Health Care category.
Imagine a community with a social detox center decreasing its number of beds, along with facing gaps in linkages from detox to outpatient treatment because of funding cuts. This results in overcrowded and misused emergency rooms filled with intoxicated people, and patients leave before being seen. Law-enforcement needs increase to respond to inebriatedpeople on the streets. Community agencies become increasingly frustrated and mistrustful of each other. The community essentially is in crisis because of substance abuse issues.See the full content of this document
Extract
Improving Services by Holding Hands, Not Pointing Fingers
That was the community climate in Colorado Springs in 2001. Pikes Peak Mental Health (PPMH) decreased its detox bed availability because of funding cuts. Yet throughout this crisis, much community dialogue occurred and a new model was born.
For behavioral health agencies to transform into quality-leading community players, new approaches and tools for building interagency trust and overcoming embroiled politics are a must. But how do you do this when behavioral health is misunderstood, mistrusted, and often viewed as an afterthought? What follows is the a...See the full content of this document
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