The concept of a special district is not new, but it is so necessary if we are to address all facets of mental health in our homes , schools, and community. The vital work of First Step is one slice of a much larger pie of services, starting with proactive programs for at risk children and working its way up to crisis response. There are certainly many options for designing a system that demonstrates excellence in stewardship for fund disbursement as well as methods fir reviewing metrics and outcomes as criteria for continued funding. There are many of us who have seen the gaps and failures of the current service system up close snd personal. Advocates, professionals without agency affiliations snd other stakeholders can surely avoid the turf wars that seem to be of concern. Much effort was put into envisioning what this might look like when work groups brainstormed over creating the best possible designs for our youth via the Here4YOUth project. I hope there will be support for the mental health district. We can’t move forward effectively without it.
Couldn't agree with your more, Ronni. If this is a move that deters commissioners from supporting the mental health district it will be very devastating Certainly crisis intervention is extremely important, but there are many other areas of deficit in our mental health system and services and commissioners shouldn't be lured into thinking this will take care of everything.
At this point, I'm having to agree with Tom. He's been in the trenches on this stuff so he's got the practical knowledge of what it takes. Always open to listen to other POVs, of course.
I think this is a great approach. But I don't think it should be considered a replacement for a mental health tax district. There are too many other gaps that also need funding.
Thanks for laying all of this out!
The concept of a special district is not new, but it is so necessary if we are to address all facets of mental health in our homes , schools, and community. The vital work of First Step is one slice of a much larger pie of services, starting with proactive programs for at risk children and working its way up to crisis response. There are certainly many options for designing a system that demonstrates excellence in stewardship for fund disbursement as well as methods fir reviewing metrics and outcomes as criteria for continued funding. There are many of us who have seen the gaps and failures of the current service system up close snd personal. Advocates, professionals without agency affiliations snd other stakeholders can surely avoid the turf wars that seem to be of concern. Much effort was put into envisioning what this might look like when work groups brainstormed over creating the best possible designs for our youth via the Here4YOUth project. I hope there will be support for the mental health district. We can’t move forward effectively without it.
Couldn't agree with your more, Ronni. If this is a move that deters commissioners from supporting the mental health district it will be very devastating Certainly crisis intervention is extremely important, but there are many other areas of deficit in our mental health system and services and commissioners shouldn't be lured into thinking this will take care of everything.
Thank you for explaining the possibilities ahead. Much needed, Carrie.
At this point, I'm having to agree with Tom. He's been in the trenches on this stuff so he's got the practical knowledge of what it takes. Always open to listen to other POVs, of course.
I think this is a great approach. But I don't think it should be considered a replacement for a mental health tax district. There are too many other gaps that also need funding.
Thanks for making us aware!
God bless Tom. I was so glad he jumped in to that role at First Step.
Thanks for helping us to keep our fingers on the "pulse" of this vitally important issue.