REGIONAL UPDATES

UPDATES FROM REGION 1

Tami Rucker Region 1 Administrator

Region 1 was in the unique position of working on Behavioral Health Organization (BHO) conversions for Spokane County from March-December 2019. Ninety-seven individuals who previously had been funded by the BHO who resided in seven assisted living facilities were referred to HCS over the course of 9 months. These individuals’ BHO funding was scheduled to end at the end of December. Ninetyone people were assessed in CARE; only one was determined not functionally eligible for services, and one was not financially eligible. Eighty-nine were referred for Expanded Community Services for behavioral support, and 82 were approved and put on the Residential Support Waiver (RSW). The other seven clients were eligible for Community First Choice. Clients who appeared to meet criteria were also referred to the Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) for funding and ongoing support, and the MCO funded many of the transitioning clients.

We had several key staff involved in the conversion to assist with smooth transitions, and many others also stepped in to support these efforts. Kudos to Denise Maroney in the Intake Unit, Courtney Heiser in Financial, case managers Donna Cecchini, Kelly Garrett, Sandi Smith, Shari Olson, Francina Mutombo and Jenni Johnston, and to the wonderful people on their teams who lent a hand to help when needed! These 82 clients are now being case managed by the Behavioral Support Team in Spokane. We held a thank you breakfast on Jan. 24, 2020, to acknowledge everyone involved and celebrate this success. This was a great example of efficient and client-centered collaboration between the BHO, ALFs, MCOs and HCS staff, and represents many, many hours of work!

UPDATES FROM REGION 2

Sonya Sanders Region 2 Administrator

Region 2 HCS ended 2019 with a nursing facility closure and we began 2020 with a nursing facility closure. Staff have been busy assessing clients and meeting with families and providers while finding appropriate placement for residents. Facility closures are difficult for all parties involved, especially clients. Part of our job in relocating clients is to keep them calm and respect their decisions. I am proud of Region 2 staff for the work they are accomplishing in this process. For over a year, Region 2 HCS established the WMS/Supervisor Q&A. The purpose of these sessions is to allow an informal forum for supervisors and WMS managers to discuss issues regarding personnel, leadership, team building, etc. Each session has a blend of WMS managers, seasoned supervisors and new supervisors. The goal for these sessions is that all managers in attendance will learn from one another and seasoned managers will provide insight and encouragement to new managers.

Debbie Willis Region 3 Administrator

The past year felt like a whirlwind of activity in Region 3 and our team’s innovation and commitment to truly transforming lives is going strong. We implemented multiple pilots unique to Region 3 to improve services and supports to our most vulnerable clients. These included but are not limited to: • Houseless pilots in Tumwater and Vancouver: These pilots were inspired by the good work in the original Tacoma pilot. The pilots include social services and financial services working together to coordinate efforts and stationing staff in the community to support clients where they are to create better access to our services. • NFCM/Hospital/Financial Pilot: This pilot assigns financial staff to work only

NFCM and hospital cases to help improve workflow, communication and customer service to our clients and the nursing facilities and hospitals. • Housing Search Pilots: We are piloting two different housing search tools, one created by Region 2 being piloted in Vancouver and another in Tacoma provided by a company call AIDA. Both of these tools help our staff find available homes that match the needs of our clients and save our staff time.

All pilots require additional work to get up and running and those making it happen have done an outstanding job! These efforts take a “village” which includes all disciplines: clerical, financial, NFCM and in-home/residential, as well as extra work for supervisors/program managers/FSAs.

This good work does not go unnoticed. I am proud of all our region has done and continues to do.

Do you have a photo you’ve taken of Washington’s scenery? Submit it to meghan. erkkinen@ dshs.wa.gov and it might be featured in an upcoming issue!

Clark County, WA