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DATE & VENUE CHANGES for Concord Session
We need YOU to attend Public Information Session
on 10 Year Mental Health Plan!
Concord Public Information Session
November 15, 2018, 6:00 - 7:30 pm
Department of Health and Human Services
Division of Public Health Services Auditorium
29 Hazen Drive, Concord
"The new date of November 15th will allow the Department to incorporate feedback received during previous sessions and ensure the Ten-Year Mental Health Plan accurately reflects public comments on what the Plan should include. DHHS expects to post a proposed draft of the Ten-Year Mental Health Plan on the DHHS website on or around October 29th. The new date for the Concord session will give the public the opportunity to review the draft and provide comments during the Concord session and the ensuing public comment period." (
Read the DHHS press release)
It's critical that we pack this room! Pl
ease plan to attend to show your
support
for mental health, even if you don't wish to speak.
We need to focus on a unified message: New Hampshire's mental health service delivery system is not presently meeting the needs of vulnerable children, youth, adults and older adults with serious mental illness -
call on the Governor and Legislature to commit to investing adequate resources to move the 10 Year Mental Health Plan forward during the next legislative session.
You could also pick out one or two of these talking points to focus on, especially if they align with your personal experience or story. This list is not all inclusive - feel free to address other points not covered here.
- We need to immediately increase Medicaid Reimbursement rates:
- Low Medicaid reimbursement rates are a major factor in workforce shortages and result in:
- Long wait times for outpatient treatment
- Frequent turnover of staff
- We need to eliminate the practice of holding people in a mental health crisis in Emergency Departments by providing:
- Mobile crisis response services (including peer supports) statewide
- Increased availability of Designated Receiving Facility (DRF) beds, especially in the North Country
- Increased availability of crisis housing options including peer respite beds
- Develop a model of peer support for people waiting in Emergency Departments
- We need to increase the full spectrum of housing options available for people with serious mental illness including:
- Group homes and transitional apartments that have 24/7 staff and supports
- More subsidized housing vouchers
- Respite for families with children with Serious Emotional Disturbance
- Specialized options for older adults with mental health issues
- We need to expand available supports after (or to prevent) a hospitalization (step up and step down services) including:
- Statewide availability of partial hospital/day treatment programs
- Expanded access to clubhouse model programs
- More programs and services through peer support agencies
- Provide more options for inpatient and outpatient treatment for individuals with co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders.
- Need programs that eliminate the silos between mental health and substance use disorder conditions
- Need more specialized training and workforce development
- Enhance Services to Children with Serious Emotional Disorders (SED)
- Continue to expand Fast Forward program and other home based/ comprehensive community support services to families/children with SED
- Sustain current collaborative efforts between the DHHS Bureau of Children's Behavioral Health and NH Dept of Education Office of Student Wellness
- Ensure that all programs and services offered are trauma sensitive and informed
- Increase availability of respite care to families with a serious emotional disturbance
- Take steps to renovate/relocate the current Children's unit at New Hampshire Hospital to a setting that is intended and more appropriate for Children
- Make available more residential treatment for youth and young adults with co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders
- Reduce the number of people with mental illness who are incarcerated in our jails and prisons
- More consistent training for law enforcement/criminal justice/corrections to appropriately identify, respond and refer individuals with mental illness to alternative programs and/or treatment
- Need a full complement of Mental Health Courts operating throughout the state
- County jails need to provide more treatment options for mental illness and substance use disorders and especially need to ensure people are connected with available treatment programs at the point of discharge
- Need to eliminate the process of transferring people from New Hampshire Hospital to the Secure Psychiatric Unit by providing a higher level of care/security for these individuals within a hospital (rather than corrections setting)
- Develop alternatives so that all forensic patients currently served in the Secure Psychiatric Unit are treated in a hospital setting
- Improve health outcomes and increase the lifespan for individuals with serious mental illness
- Need to continue to invest in developing integrated primary and behavioral health care systems to reduce the incidence of co-morbid health conditions and premature death
- Expand and coordinate suicide prevention efforts throughout New Hampshire communities, including all health care facilities and providers
#Act4MentalHealth
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