County ready for new state mental health requirements

A performance plan to address needs of the severely or persistently mentally ill in Oregon has been finalized.

The plan was announced by the Oregon Health Authority in late July and was instituted after lengthy discussions between OHA and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Wallowa Valley Center for Wellness, the county’s only mental health care organization, already has met many of the new requirements of the performance plan.

“We are proud to have one of the most diversified county mental health programs in the state, and the programs we offer boast some of the highest fidelity scores in the state as well,” said Center for Wellness Executive Director Chantay Jett.

Those programs include the Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) program, which provides team-based 24/7 treatment, rehabilitation and support services for severely mentally ill, and the Supported Employment program.

According to the National Alliance on Mentally Illness, studies have shown that ACT is more effective than traditional treatment for people experiencing mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder and can reduce hospitalizations by 20 percent.

“We feel that we will be able to meet all requirements (of the new plan) fairly easily,” Jett said.

The three-year plan announced by OHA seeks to expand community-based mental health services, better integrate behavioral and physical health across the state and reduce commitments to the state hospital, according to OHA Director Lynne Saxton.

The Legislature has invested millions in recent years to transform community mental health services and is expected to make additional changes in the future.

Under the new plan, the state will be required to make significant changes in how it delivers and invests in behavioral health services. These steps include:

• Improving the way adults with severe and persistent mental illness transition to integrated community-based treatment.

• Increasing access to crisis services and community-based support to avoid incarceration or unnecessary hospitalization.

• Expanding services and support that enable adults with severe and persistent mental illness to successfully live in the community including strengthening house and peer support services.

Following the decommissioning of the Oregon State Hospital, the construction of a new facility and the creation of a Behavior Health Collaborative, the Justice Department has suspended its investigation into the Oregon community mental health system for the next three years.

The Behavioral Health Collaborative set up by OHA will develop additional recommendations for consideration by the 2017 Oregon Legislature. The collaborative is made up of consumers, clinicians, hospital representatives, county officials, community mental health providers, judges, public safety officials and others with expertise and experience in addressing mental health issues in Oregon.