September Newsletter

September Edition at a Glance
In this month’s edition, we highlight work that the Institute for Police, Mental Health and Community Collaboration has been doing in Boone County Missouri to help identify local solutions to address the high rate of incarceration among individuals with mental illness. Other news includes an update from CCSI’s Center for Collaboration in Community Health on their work to measure the impact and value of peer and recovery services, which is critical as our system moves toward reimbursement structures in which payment is made based on service value and outcome. As always, you’ll also find links to helpful resources and selected project updates.  
Institute Staff Travel to Missouri
Don Kamin
Director – Institute for Police, Mental Health and Community Collaboration
As part of the Stepping Up Initiative, many localities across the nation are evaluating how their mental health and criminal justice systems can work together to decrease the number of people with mental illness in jail. Staff from the Institute for Police, Mental Health & Community Collaboration recently assisted Boone County, Missouri with a “systems mapping” exercise to identify local solutions to the disproportionate rate of incarceration among those with mental illness. The event was reported in a recent article in the Columbia Daily Tribune. 

"When someone with mental illness commits a crime, they may need to be arrested. However, those with mental illness should not be incarcerated because of their mental illness or lack of access to treatment"

A systems mapping exercise is based on the Sequential Intercept Model - a framework for the interface between the criminal justice and mental health systems. It is founded on the ideal that individuals with mental illness should not enter the criminal justice system at a greater frequency than those without mental illness. When someone with mental illness commits a crime, they may need to be arrested. However, those with mental illness should not be incarcerated because of their mental illness or lack of access to treatment.
As illustrated in the figure above, the model is based on how individuals enter and typically go through the criminal justice system.  At each point, or “intercept,” there are opportunities to identify and divert individuals with mental illness from moving deeper into the criminal justice system. In communities where there is a poorly developed mental health system and no active collaboration between the mental health and criminal justice systems, the intercepts provide little opportunity for identification, intervention and diversion.  Likewise, as the mental health system develops and collaboration between the mental health and criminal justice systems is strengthened, there are more opportunities to identify and divert individuals from the criminal justice system to treatment facilities and other support programs.

Following this systems mapping workshop, a report was sent to Boone County officials, including recommendations for specific next steps and to serve as a guide for their continuing work.  For more information about the work of the Institute, please contact  Don Kamin, PhD.

Measuring the Impact and Value of Peer and Recovery Services
Earlier this month, staff from CCSI’s Center for Community Health attended the New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services (NYAPRS) 34th annual conference in Kerhonkson, NY. 

The theme of this year's conference was " Advancing Whole Health & Healthy Communities: The Pathway to Population Health."  This year’s program provided an opportunity to understand and address our rapidly changing healthcare environment, and offered guidance as to how to best respond to the opportunities, choices and challenges faced as a result of these changes.  The program also emphasized the values of wellness and recovery, healing and transformation, innovation, integration, empowerment, and activism. 

During the conference, John D. Lee, Joslyn Teter, and Brian Smith staffed a table focused on collecting survey data from attendees to learn more from both behavioral health providers and service recipients about what they believe the system should be measuring to demonstrate the impact and value of peer and recovery services.  Consistent with the values of the Center, we believe it is essential to hear directly from service recipients about what outcomes and measures are the most important.  The results from this process will continue to inform our measurement work moving forward. 
Transitioning Your Clinic to Open Access
Last month, the Center hosted a webinar on Transitioning Your Clinic to Open Access: Common Strategies and Lessons Learned. 

The session provided an overview of the strategies used and experience gained from outpatient mental health clinics that have transitioned from the traditional "call for an Intake" model to an "Open Access" model.  Important considerations included the staffing, scheduling, technical resources and cultural shift involved in transitioning to this more Managed Care friendly way of getting clients into care. If you missed it, check out the recording on the Center website!  

For more information, contact Dave Eckert, Senior Consultant.

School 17 Community School Initiative
We are excited to be working with Enrico Fermi School #17, the Rochester City School District, and the Farash Foundation to support their goal of moving to a Community School model.  It was great to have the chance to join them as they kicked off the new school year with a “Back to School Bash” last month.  An afternoon of burgers, barbering and entertainment drew parents, children and neighbors of School 17 to the grounds—in part to mark the start of the school year but also to make the community aware of services offered within the building.  Read the full article here. 

In the Spotlight
Congratulations to CCSI Board member
Lindsay Gozzi-Theobald, Vice President of Operational Excellence and Compliance Officer for Catholic Family Center, who was recently selected as one of Rochester’s
“Forty Under 40” honorees!