Advocates See Gaps In Sonoma’s Mental Health Services
When a person is having a mental health crisis but hasn't committed a crime and isn't suicidal there are few good options on where to take them.
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
Sonoma County Reshapes Approach To Mental Health Care
Like the man in west Santa Rosa last March, a growing number of people with severe psychiatric illnesses are winding up in jail and hospital emergency rooms, The Press Democrat found during a six-month review of local mental health services. As the mental health system shifts further and further away from a centralized model, which historically placed people in large institutions for treatment, county officials, mental health advocates and medical professionals are now trying to bring all the pieces together to serve more than 20,000 people in Sonoma County estimated to suffer from serious mental illnesses. (Espinoza, 8/19)
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
Array Of Mental Health Programs Serves Sonoma County
Over the past decade, Sonoma County has reshaped its approach toward caring for people with mental illness, increasing its investment in community-based outpatient programs while reducing its reliance on psychiatric hospitals. County officials say they’ve embarked on a new era, one that hopes to fulfill the decades-old promise of creating a safety net of mental health services robust enough to meet the needs of the community. (Espinoza, 8/19)
In other mental health news —
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
Mendocino County Revives Sales Tax Measure To Fund Mental Health Services
Voters in Mendocino County will get another shot at approving a sales tax increase to fund mental health and substance abuse services, after narrowly rejecting a similar measure last November. This time, Measure B has broad support, including the approval of key county officials who opposed last year’s Measure AG. The 2016 initiative was spearheaded by Sheriff Tom Allman, who was seeking money to build a psychiatric hospital that, among other things, would reduce the number of people with mental illness ending up in jail. (Espinoza, 8/19)
Los Angeles Times:
Burbank Unified Renews Contract For Mental Health And Wellness Centers
The mental health and wellness program in the Burbank Unified School District will continue at least another year after the school board renewed the district’s contract with the Family Service Agency of Burbank, a local nonprofit agency, on Thursday. Wellness centers at John Burroughs and Burbank high schools provide a supportive environment, where students can walk in to share their thoughts and feelings with counselors from the Family Service Agency. (Vega, 8/18)