Message from the Commissioner

I am pleased to introduce the City of Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS) 2018-19 Annual Report: Setting the P.A.C.E. This report illustrates our priorities and commitment to advancing excellence in care for the people of Philadelphia. As I look back on the past year, I’m humbled by all we continue to accomplish on behalf of the people of Philadelphia and the communities we serve. These accomplishments would not be possible without the hard work, dedication, and innovation of more than 1,100 employees across the six divisions within DBHIDS, our vast provider network, our City partners, our community stakeholders, and — most importantly — the people we serve. DBHIDS is a comprehensive system with a strength that comes from teamwork, collaboration, and a willingness to do whatever is necessary to ensure the people of Philadelphia receive high-quality supports, services, and treatment. Increased access to care was a top priority in 2018-19. We continued to partner across City agencies to implement recommendations from the Mayor’s Opioid Task Force and served as a key partner for the City of Philadelphia Resilience Project. Through these efforts we made significant progress connecting people to services and saw the number of people accessing services at a five-year high. In my role as Commissioner, I am blessed to work with wonderful staff. As a servant leader, I am immensely thankful for staff’s willingness to serve Philadelphians. Each day, I see new examples of how we bring integrated services to people with the greatest needs and how collaboration among public, private, and nonprofit entities enables efficient and effective service delivery. I am proud of our accomplishments, and we are committed to doing more. This report serves to highlight not only what we have done but what we will continue to do to ensure Philadelphia receives the best care possible. As a new year begins, we are “Setting the P.A.C.E.” to achieve greater outcomes for the people of Philadelphia. Sincerely,

David T. Jones Commissioner, DBHIDS President, CBH Board of Directors