One of Santa Clara County’s newest mental health programs is expanding due to high demand.
The Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Navigator program was launched in San Jose and Gilroy last July to connect residents to county-contracted mental health services. Part of the program’s plans is to expand field service. As demand increased, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors announced in January that he would approve an additional $366,770 for the next fiscal year, bringing the program’s total funding to $855,801. With additional funding, the program will place three peer navigators in fields covering Cupertino, Los Gatos, Mountain View, Palo Alto and Sunnyvale.
Bruce Copley, director of behavioral health for access and unplanned services, said the county connected about 8,000 people to medical services through the Navigator call center in its first year.
“We were successful with the call demand that was expected,” Copley told the San Jose Spotlight. “Individuals recognize that it is a resource for themselves and their families.”
The infusion of funds has made it possible to hire additional peer support staff to meet customers face-to-face and suggest appropriate medical services, he said.
Copley said the program’s first year budget was $489,029. With the increased funding, he will have two additional peer navigators working in the field. The team also includes a program manager, an office his specialist, and qualified clinical staff who provide clinical support to her six peer his specialists.
“It brings our services to the community,” Copley said. “And meet with people with more difficult problems to help develop strategies for how to overcome the obstacles they face in accessing health care and other community services.” what the family needs. ”
Trained peer navigators listen and inform, connecting people to mental health, substance use, suicide prevention and support group resources. Navigators are familiar with county services and the nonprofit partners that offer these programs. As colleagues, family members and caregivers of those who have gone through the behavioral health system, they become compassionate guides from their lived experience.
Copley said people who call the center typically have trouble finding local resources, such as those with private insurance or families struggling to find a primary care doctor. It is said that there is
“The team is there to help them navigate, identify what the problem is, and develop a plan to get what they need in terms of support,” he said in the San Jose Spotlight. told to
Santa Clara County Superintendent Joe Simimian said community mental health needs are widespread and growing, but it can be difficult for residents to navigate a complex, confusing and disjointed system. rice field.
“We want people to have easy access to these services,” he told San Jose Spotlight. “The challenge is further complicated by the fact that people are living… at a very difficult time in their lives… hurting.”
Simimian said the demand for the program made it clear that it needed to penetrate deeper into the community.
“A local library like Los Gatos is an ideal place,” he says. “We need more partnerships like this to serve communities where people need services and where they are easily accessible in trusted and familiar locations.”
Santa Clara County residents can contact the Behavioral Health Navigator program by calling (800) 704-0900, option 4, or by email. [email protected]
Contact Lorraine Gabert: [email protected]
