Health & Wellness Curriculum | A Whole Person Care Status Report

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Telecare has a long-range plan for expanding and deepening its Whole Person Care (WPC) efforts. We began by examining
co-occurring conditions—educating providers and ensuring that Telecare’s Co-Occurring Education Group is available in all our programs. Right now, we are laying the foundation for future efforts by focusing on health literacy.

We recognize that behavioral health providers need support as they work with clients to address their physical and substance use issues. In May 2016, Telecare introduced Phase 2 of our Whole Person Care initiative: health literacy. The Health & Wellness Curriculum consists of eight online modules on topics such as Diabetes, Cholesterol, Blood Pressure, Managing Our Stress Response, Tobacco Use, and more. Each module is accompanied by visually engaging and easy-to-follow handouts that staff can use to engage clients in conversation about these health concerns.

Though we’re still early in our company-wide implementation, the feedback so far is promising. Here is an update on our progress, as of April 2017. Below, you’ll find:

  • Where We’re Going: Implementation Timeline & Status Update

  • What We’re Seeing: Early Discoveries From the Field

  • More Info: Whole Person Care Goals

Implementation Timeline & Status Update

Right now, we are working on Phase 2: health literacy. Telecare’s programs have the flexibility to implement the health and wellness literacy curriculum at their own pace, but all programs must complete the curriculum by April 2018. Here is a snapshot of our progress over the last year.

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Early Discoveries from the Field

We spoke to staff at three Telecare programs that are moving quickly to fully implement the Health & Wellness Curriculum, a 16-hour, online training program that provides staff with basic knowledge about the chronic health conditions that our clients most commonly face. Here’s what staff have told us about the curriculum’s impact so far.

We're Increasing Linkages to Primary Care

Erich Stevens, Registered Nurse
San Diego Gateway to Recovery

 Early discoveries:

  • More conversations happening

  • More linkage to primary care

  • More physical health therapy

How the curriculum has helped:

  • "I think the modules and quick reference tools for use in the field have been extremely helpful to case managers and other non-nursing staff in better understanding these health issues and how to assist clients with them, which has typically been up to the nursing staff alone."

Why do it:

  • “It gives us more ways to help clients reach a higher level of wellness.”

Clients Are Taking More Initiative in Setting Doctor Appointments

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Tienna Jackson, Team Lead
Gateway to Recovery

Early discoveries:

  • Clients willing to make primary care appointments

  • More physical health therapy

  • Increase in health conversations

How the curriculum has helped:

  • “The worksheets that were available with each module were given to members to help support them in whatever their hopes and dreams are in regards to their health and wellness.”

Why do it:

  • "It reinforces to our staff the importance of addressing both the medical and mental health aspects of recovery with our members, and really, it has been working. Our clinicians and nurses are coming back with stories of how they tell people the importance of seeing a doctor, and members are open to making appointments with their primary care provider on the spot."

We’re About to Help Clients Better Understand How Physical Health & Mental Health are Connected

Rocio Perez, Clinician, Los Angeles Older Adults

Early discoveries:

  • Handouts help show clients how mental and physical health are connected

  • Increased efforts towards self-care

How the curriculum has helped:

  • “The Health & Wellness Curriculum has been especially helpful partnered with psychoeducation. One example is around diabetes. Many of our members are diabetic, and they don’t know what it is to be diabetic, or how it affects your mental health. Having the handouts have made it easier to talk with clients about the different ways to address living and dealing with physical ailments.”

Why do it:

  • “For me, being mentally OK and being physically OK go together, which is how we have implemented it in our office, and I see it working.”

Whole Person Care: Big Picture

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NatCon 2017 Conference

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This month, Telecare and other health and mental health organizations from around the country came together for NatCon17 in Seattle, WA. It was Telecare's third year hosting a booth at the conference, which is sponsored by the National Council for Behavioral Health.

“Telecare was honored to support the behavioral health community at the recent NATCON Conference,” said Robert Klar, Talent Acquisition Director at Telecare. “Telecare representatives from Operations, Development, Quality and HR were proud to speak with industry leaders about our mission, our products, and of course to encourage them to think about joining our organization.”

Thank you to everyone who stopped by the Telecare booth!

Links We Love: March

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Photo by George Etheredge for the New York Times

Photo by George Etheredge for the New York Times

  • "When you are emotionally connected to your peers in recovery, you stand the best chance of being protected from the compulsion to use and do things that get you into trouble with your illness." Patrick Kennedy and Glenn Close discuss mental health and advocacy work with the New York Times.
  • Mental Health America (MHA) has partnered with Booster.com, a free crowdfunding platform, to launch its first campaign to inspire individuals to "Fight in the Open." 

FROST: A Targeted Risk Assessment for Criminogenic Needs

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In April 2017, Telecare will begin training and preparation to use the FROST assessment in all criminal justice-based programs to help identify people at high risk of recidivism.

“We’re testing the FROST because we need to know which criminogenic needs are highest for our members, so that we are able to drive the appropriate interventions and treatment,” said Gary Hubbard, Vice President of Operations of Southern California and Arizona.

“Studies have shown that programs that target high criminogenic needs with members have a higher success rate and reduced recidivism.”

What Is FROST?

The assessment is called the Field Re-Assessment of the Offender Screening Tool (FROST).

Why the FROST Assessment?

Telecare’s Justice Involved Mental Health (JIMH) subcommittee chose the FROST because:

  • It is quick to complete

  • It can be administered by non-licensed staff

  • It measures for criminogenic risks

  • It is reasonable in cost

According to Hubbard, the subcommittee chose the FROST over another potential tool used by the Arizona court system— the Offender Screening Tool (OST) — because the OST was a pre-release measure. The FROST, by contrast, is used in the community and measures the eight criminogenic need areas that can lead to recidivism.

FROST SCORING

Frost Training

Telecare’s clinical leadership team will attend a free FROST training provided by the Arizona Supreme Court staff on April 11. Telecare's leadership will also participate in a train-the-trainer event that will be offered in the fall to build the expertise to distribute the FROST more widely to our existing JIMH programs.

Expanding Our Assisted Outpatient Treatment Services in Orange County

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Orange County AOT Facility in downtown Santa Ana

Orange County AOT Facility in downtown Santa Ana

On March 7, Telecare’s Orange County Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) program in Santa Ana, CA, moved into its new facility to accommodate their recent service capacity increase from 25 to 120 persons.

"Our amazing team will continue to offer services in the community, but we are so excited to have this new program site for members to feel included, safe, and valued," said Anna Bowes, Administrator for the Orange County AOT program. "The team is really looking forward to creating a community with our members. We plan to start an art gallery and offer gardening on our patio."

Originally co-located with Orange County STEPS, the Orange County AOT program is now located directly across from the Central Justice Center in downtown Santa Ana.

The space will serve as an important resource for providing more personalized care. "Now that we are closer to the Central Justice Center, we can offer hearings with an AOT judge at the program for our members who are not as comfortable at the courthouse,” Anna said. “We are also currently working with Orange County Health Care Agency and Genoa Healthcare to have an on-site pharmacy. We hope this service will increase access and efficiency in getting members connected with their medications.”

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For many members in the program, access to the proper care and resources can mean a world of difference. "I have been with other programs in the county and have left the state because I had a difficult time with the program rules," said an AOT graduate. "I felt like I as being pushed around a lot and I had a hard time living."

"Ever since I’ve been with AOT, I began making a comeback," he said. "I like AOT program a lot— it has been easy and the staff are very nice. I haven’t been to the hospital in almost five months and I received psychiatry and medication services with the help of AOT."

The member's mother is especially thankful for the services her son has received. "I feel like I have my son back," she said. Although the member graduated, he has chosen to remain in the program voluntarily.

The Orange County AOT program launched in October 2014. It was Telecare’s first Laura’s Law program and has seen eight clients graduate since it opened—one of which has been connected with outside Full Service Partnership (FSP) programs or psychiatrists for continued support in their recovery, while the other seven remain with the program on a voluntary basis. 

2017 Data

The information below compares hospitalization and incarceration statistics of members before and after they have been admitted to the OC AOT program from July 2016 to February 2017.

Learn More:

February Links We Love!

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Stock images of people living with mental illness range from insensitive to downright cringe-worthy. The organization Be Vocal: Speak Up for Mental Health created the Be Vocal Collection, a selection of free photos that counteract the often grim, one-dimensional portrayals of people with mental health conditions. You can read more about the inspiration behind the project here.

Every month, Sidewalk Talk, a community listening project based in San Francisco, sets up listening events in various cities, where trained volunteers make themselves available for mini therapy sessions with anyone who needs someone to talk to. Sidewalk Talks will be hosting numerous listening events in San Francisco and Oakland in March.

February Leadership Announcements

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We welcome the newest additions to the Telecare family:

Cindy S. Robins

New Administrator at Telecare Partners in Wellness program in San Jose, CA.


Renee Chiasson Rouwhorst

Director of Opportunity, Learning, and Leadership Development at Telecare's Corporate office in Alameda, CA.

Vanessa F. Garcia 

New Administrator at the Los Angeles Area 4 Full Service Partnership (FSP) program in Los Angeles, CA.

We are pleased to announce the promotions of the following Telecare leaders:

Stefan Bain

Was promoted from Clinical Director to Administrator at AgeWise in San Diego, CA.

 

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Verlonda Vaughn

Was promoted from HRIS Supervisor to HRIS Administrator at Telecare's Corporate Office in Alameda, CA.

Telecare Welcomes Back Mary Ann Tocio to Board of Directors

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Mary Ann Tocio, Telecare Board of Directors Member

Mary Ann Tocio, Telecare Board of Directors Member

Mary Ann Tocio, who served for 23 years as President and Chief Operating Officer of Bright Horizons Family Solutions, will be returning to Telecare Corporation’s board of directors.

"It is an honor and a privilege to announce Mary Ann's return to our board of directors," said Anne Bakar, President and CEO of Telecare. "She previously served on our board for five years, starting in 2001. Since then, we have been grateful to count on her as a trusted friend and advisor. I am delighted that she will be rejoining Telecare at such an important time in our history."

Before joining Telecare’s board, Mary Ann was the President and Chief Operating Officer of Bright Horizons Family Solutions, the world's leading provider of employer-sponsored childcare, early education, and work/life solutions. Bright Horizons has over $1.4 billion in revenues and operates more than 900 centers in four countries. In total, more than 26,000 Bright Horizons staff members provide care to more than 100,000 children. Bright Horizons has been recognized 16 times as one of Fortune Magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For in America."

At Bright Horizons, Mary Ann was responsible for all domestic and global operations. She retired from her position in June 2015.

In addition to her work at Bright Horizons, Mary Ann has served on private, not-for-profit, family-owned, and publicly-traded boards including Horizons for Homeless Children, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Burlington Stores, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Civitas Solutions, and Zany Brainy. Mary Ann received her MBA from Simmons College Graduate School of Management, and was honored by Simmons with the Phyllis Rappaport Alumnae Achievement Award, which recognizes alumnae who further the school's tradition of creating broader opportunities for women.

“Mary Ann’s leadership experience building high-quality, mission-driven service organizations on a scale that is much larger than Telecare will be extremely valuable as we grow. We will also learn from her vast knowledge about how to effectively engage our diverse workforce in our future mission."  Anne continued, “She has a great appreciation for our work in behavioral health and will be a tremendous partner. We are so lucky to have her join us at this important juncture in health care.”

"I am truly pleased and excited to be back on Telecare's board of directors," said Mary Ann. "I deeply appreciate Telecare's foundational values, and even more importantly, its commitment and willingness to learn, grow, improve, evolve, and do whatever it takes to help real people change their lives for the better. I look forward to the future that lies ahead."

Telecare Partners in Wellness Open House

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Click here to watch the open house celebration for Telecare's Partners in Wellness program.

The Telecare Partners in Wellness program, along with the County of Santa Clara and Third Sector Capital Partners, Inc., hosted an open house for community stakeholders and members on February 8 at their new facility in San Jose, CA.

"Telecare opens many new programs, but this has been a unique experience in terms of the level of effort invested by so many parties to launch this innovative model,” said Anne Bakar, President and CEO of Telecare. "We are thrilled to have been chosen by Santa Clara for this important work. It is in perfect alignment with the value we place on public/private partnerships as the industry shifts toward performance-based funding.”

Opened on September 14, 2016, Telecare Partners in Wellness is the nation's first mental health focused Pay for Success (PFS) project. The program aims to provide community-based mental health services to individuals in Santa Clara County who have a severe mental illness, with the goal of measurably improving wellbeing and quality of life while reducing more costly service usage, including the psychiatric emergency room and inpatient psychiatric settings.

PFS is a performance-oriented contracting model that drives government resources toward social programs that best provide results to the people who need them most. Through this model, Santa Clara County has contracted Keith Humphreys of Stanford University, who is conducting a rigorous 6-year evaluation of the program.

“With this project and our prior Pay for Success project, the County is better defining our objectives in serving vulnerable populations, and is creating incentives that ensure service providers achieve those objectives,” said Chief Assistant County Counsel Greta Hansen. “Through the evaluations of each program, we will have a much better understanding of how to further increase the impact of these and other programs going forward.”

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Speakers for the event included Anne Bakar, President and CEO of Telecare; Greta Hansen, Chief Assistant County Counsel for Santa Clara County; Kavita Narayan, Deputy County Counsel for Santa Clara County; Toni Tullys, Director of Behavioral Health Services for Santa Clara County; Miguel Marquez, Chief Operating Officer for Santa Clara County; and Caroline Whistler, President and Co-Founder of Third Sector Capital Partners, Inc.

We welcome the chance to participate in this innovative partnership with Santa Clara County and Third Sector, and are honored to have the opportunity to provide services in a new area.

Garfield's Five-Star Quality Measures

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In the spirit of providing excellent and effective services, we are proud to spotlight our Garfield Neurobehavioral Center in Oakland, CA.

Recently, Garfield achieved a five-star quality rating for their long-stay resident services from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service’s Nursing Home Compare quarterly evaluation.

Five stars is the most up-to-date reflection of how a nursing home is performing. These quality measures are set-up to capture and report clinical outcomes every quarter, which means programs not only have to meet specific quality benchmarks, but they must sustain them in order to keep their five-star rating.

“Craig and his team at Garfield achieved their five-star rating by transforming their morning huddle with the staff,” said David Farrell, Vice President of Subacute Operations at Telecare. “With the consistent exchange of information during these meetings, staff are aware of issues and are able to notice subtle changes in their clients, and can act on them before they turn into something serious.”

The meetings occur every morning with a rundown of client concerns and progress. The check-ins ensure that staff are held accountable for their own work, as well as the performance of their peers.

“The community meetings in the morning have created a team atmosphere for the staff,” said Tara Leiker, Interim Director of Rehabilitation at Garfield. “Employees are able to be more vocal in the morning meetings, which has helped change the culture to a more collaborative one.”

“The morning meetings have also gotten staff more aware of what is happening and the goings on of the program outside of their own workload,” said Norman Biala, Minimum Data Set (MDS) Coordinator. “The meetings are a big part of making sure we reach our goals—in order to maintain five stars, we need all staff to be involved.”

Along with open communication among staff, the team at Garfield has increased on-the-floor involvement from the managers.

“Having the management team taking on more rounds and being on the floor has shown the staff that the managers are really invested in the program,” Tara said. “Changing the management system away from a top-down approach has helped create positive morale among the staff and more accountability among the management team.”

In addition to improving communication among staff and management, residents are given an avenue to participate in their care through monthly resident counsels, where they can voice their concerns and know they are being heard.

The operations overhaul has proved to be beneficial. Garfield’s quality measurements in the last quarter show that pressure ulcers among residents have minimized, restraints have not been used, and falls have decreased.

Way to go, Garfield!

Telecare Opens Horizon View MHRC in Ventura County

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On December 28, Telecare opened the Horizon View Mental Health Rehabilitation Center (MHRC), a sub-acute inpatient facility located in Ventura, CA. Created in partnership with Ventura County Behavioral Health, the new program is a 16-bed locked facility serving adults aged 18 and older.

The new facility is a recovery-oriented space that provides residents with a living room, an open café, an outdoor environment, and an inspiration studio for the program's various activities. Residents also have access to their own private bedrooms and bathrooms. 

To get ready for the program's opening, Telecare hosted a Family and Friends Gathering on December 6 to welcome the families of the members who were scheduled to transfer to the MHRC from a neighboring county’s facility.

We are glad to partner with the county to provide these members with the opportunity to recover in their home community where they can be closer to their family, friends, and supports.

New Leadership Announcements

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We are pleased to announce the promotions of the following Telecare leaders:

Washington State

Pam Eggleston

Promoted to Regional Director of Operations in Washington State.

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Thurston and Mason Counties, WA

Tyvonne Berring

Promoted to Program Administrator at Thurston Mason Crisis Triage, an evaluation and treatment center that serves Thurston and Mason counties in Washington. 

Contra Costa County, CA

Clearnise Bullard

Promoted to Administrator at Hope House, a crisis residential facility in Martinez, CA.

Sub-Acute Successes

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Recovery Stories

The Recovery Center at Sarpy program is a Mental Health Rehabilitation Center (MHRC) in Bellevue, Nebraska. The program serves the entire state and is designed to assist adults living with a mental illness who have left acute psychiatric care in a local or state hospital, crisis center, or correctional facility, in preparing to return to their homes or lower levels of care.

MHRC Notable Statistics

Our MHRC's are designed to help residents prepare to move to the community and/or lower levels of care. The goal of these programs is to promote a sense of hope in residents for future roles in their community. The services provided at the MHRC programs are rooted in the RCCS, which supports a vision of recovery through empowerment, choice-making skill development, goal direction, and linkage to community supports. The charts below show the commitment to our no force first practices at two of our facilities in Alameda County. 

ADVERSE EVENTS This is part of a long-term campaign started in 1998 to reduce the trauma on residents’ lives by reducing the use of seclusions and restraints. This chart shows long-term improvement and the benefits of a sustained campaign.

Villa Fairmont MHRC

Our Villa Fairmont program has evolved many times over the years to meet changing needs of Alameda County. The program offers two components: 

  • Villa Classic offers sub-acute treatment for members coming out of acute care settings and serves adults and transition aged youth in a secure setting,

  • Villa Flex attempts to fill the gap in the system by creating a place for members who would benefit from a longer stay in a sub-acute facility.

The graph here shows the benefit of our long-term campaign to reduce the trauma on member's lives by reducing the use of seclusions and restraints.

ADVERSE EVENTS 1998-2015 Gladman cares for some of the most acutely ill, sub-acute level clients in the system. The data reflects that while the client acuity and assaults slightly rose over the past seven years, the rate of seclusions and restraint…

Gladman MHRC
The Gladman MHRC program cares for some of the most acutely ill, sub-acute level clients in the system. The 40-bed MHRC serves individuals whose psychiatric disabilities require extensive rehabilitation services beyond those provided in typical sub-acute settings. 

The data in the graph reflects that while the client acuity and assaults have slightly rose over the past seven years, the rate of seclusions and restraints remained at or near zero. This reflects the Gladman's staff's commitment to the RCCS. 

Links We Love!

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image via giphy

image via giphy

FY15-16 Year in Review: Video + Annual Report

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FY15-16 was a year of growth. We welcomed new members to our leadership team, introduced new technology at our programs, and created more learning opportunities for our staff and members than ever before. We served more than 31,000 unique individuals across eight states and 90+ programs.

This year, we worked with counties and health plans to address co-occurring conditions, strengthened our justice-involved mental health interventions, embraced a new population management model, and we opened the nation’s first mental health pay for success program.

We invite you to take a look at the video and read the report below to learn more about our achievements from FY15-16.

President and CEO Anne Bakar spotlights the organization's COEG Program.

Links We Love: November

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  • To support families who are struggling with hunger this season, give back to your community by donating to your local food bank.
  • According to NAMI, 68% of people living with a mental illness report that the holidays make their conditions worse. To combat this, NAMI shares ways to manage the "Holiday Blues."
  • Children who are on the autism spectrum can experience everyday situations differently–one of which is processing sensory information. Due to the commotion that comes with public events, Autism Speaks is partnering with the Noerr Programs Corporation to host Sensory-Friendly Santa programs on November 20 and December 4, where extra care has been taken to support these sensory and developmental needs of children who are on the autism spectrum.

Celebrating Success

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We have a lot to be thankful for this year. We grew our range of services, created new partnerships, and continued to help our members recover their hopes and dreams.

This month, our members took the time to reflect on the services they received, and how being at Telecare has helped them in their recovery. The videos below are some of the success stories that they have shared with us. We are inspired by their spirit and truly touched by their kind words. We hope you enjoy them too. 

Los Angeles Older Adults

The Los Angeles Older Adults (LAOA) Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) program was designed to assist underserved older adults 55 and over with various levels of behavioral health risk. The prevention component of the program promotes positive cognitive, social, and emotional development, and encourages a state of well-being. The early intervention component of the program aims at recognizing warning signs and addressing risk factors with the goal of avoiding the need for more extensive behavioral health treatment.

In the video below, we hear from Tom, a graduate of LAOA, who shares how learning the proper coping skills led to his renewed hope and take on life. 

Jay Mahler Recovery Center

The Jay Mahler Recovery Center is a voluntary, unlocked crisis residential unit that provides intensive mental health and psychiatric treatment services in a safe, welcoming environment.

Tatyana, shares what brought her to Jay Mahler and why it is so important to get help if you need it. 

San Diego County Recognizes Behavioral Health Court Program

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This month, the DA NewsCenter in San Diego commended Telecare's Mental Health Collaborative Court program.

"Behavioral health court offers a win-win solution where the offender becomes an integrated member of society," said San Diego Chief Deputy District Attorney Summer Stephan. "It avoids further victimization of other members of our community and it solves the root issue."

San Diego Mental Health Collaborative Court was created to support incarcerated individuals to successfully reenter the community. Assessment begins while the individual is still in jail, and services start as soon as they are released. Individuals must commit to the full 18 months in order to participate in the program, regardless of how many months they have left to serve in jail.

One graduate, Michael Bradus, spoke about his time at the program.

"I was on the streets because I didn't want to live anymore. It was the caring people here that said I had some self-worth," Michael said. "Because of the program, I am two years clean now and I am dedicating my life to giving back to other people."

Michael is currently participating in a Department of Rehab program where he is studying to be a drug and alcohol counselor, and hopes to become a social worker. 

"I am very proud of the people that are graduating today that are in behavioral health who agree to take on this probation because it's a hard program to get through," said Superior Court Judge of San Diego County Polly Shamoon. "For a lot of these people, everything about them is monitored every day and they could easily quit and walk away and they don't and we have a lot of great success stories."