Newsletter Article

Here for You

By Amie Miller, PsyD., Executive Director

At CalMHSA, our job is to recognize where our strengths lie so that we can turn our attention to your behavioral health departments — and how we can apply our expertise and resources to assist with your efforts, ease your load, and expand Californians’ access to the services they deserve.

You know all too well that demand for behavioral health services has outpaced workforce recruitment to the point of crisis. At the same time, these are increasingly uncertain times, with more demands than ever from the state.

With your trust and partnership, we’ve set an ambitious course for our work to help you address these challenges so you can best serve those in your care. In our March issue of CalMHSA Connect, you’ll find details about our efforts to:

Establish a new kind of EHR: With a semi-statewide electronic health record system that truly addresses the needs of behavioral health providers and integrates interoperability standards. It has launched in three pilot counties and will be live by July 1 in 23 counties.

Address the workforce crisis: With everything from a new master’s training program to remote supervision, and from staffing to loan forgiveness opportunities, we’re excited about a set of new programs that we’ve developed based on what we’ve heard from you. And we continue to look for more solutions and more ways to support in this area.

Certify peer counselors under Medi-Cal: As the statewide certification entity for this new program, we continue to uplift the voice of peers, grow your workforce, and expand offerings with a free training for supervisors, a certificant registry, and new areas of specialization.

Care for Californians: We continue our partnership with the Department of Health Care Services to administer the CalHOPE Support Program — with $33 million awarded to local organizations — as well as CalHOPE Connect, a chat app we developed that provides free, live counseling via text.

Help your staff with CalAIM implementation: Counties that have Behavioral Health Quality Improvement Program participation agreements can reach out for subject matter expertise on various topics to help with CalAIM implementation until June of next year.

We are, indeed, humbled by your commitment to care for your communities as we endeavor to continually find new ways to be here for you.

March 28, 2023