Nebraska DHHS: Children's Mental Health and Substance Abuse Statewide Infrastructure Grant (SIG): Steering Committee

Nebraska Medicaid Program

Current Initiatives

Children's Mental Health and Substance Abuse Statewide Infrastructure Grant (SIG)

Youth Subcommittee

Purpose:
The Youth Subcommittee focused on the state infrastructure areas to support community efforts to meet mental health and substance abuse needs of youth and their families in Nebraska.

Meeting
Minutes

Background:
The Surgeon General's National Action Agenda for Children's Mental Health issued in 1999 framed both the promotion of mental health in children and the treatment of mental disorders as major public health goals. Despite this emphasis, some families still have difficulty accessing appropriate care for their children. Families may even give up custody of their child because the intervention they need is beyond the financial reach of the family.

Youth across the United States are touched by multiple systems that are often uncoordinated. Consequently, children are falling through the cracks.

Nebraska has one of the nation’s highest per capita state ward populations. Nationally, children in foster care use mental health services at a rate up to 15 times higher other children in the Medicaid system. Nebraska has a number of systems that interface with youth and their families. Protection and Safety, education, juvenile justice, and children’s behavioral health systems can partner with youth and their families to enhance state infrastructure that supports coordinated community level interventions and programs.

Charge:

Developed strategies to decrease the number of children who are made wards of the state primarily to access mental health and substance abuse services
Developed strategies to incorporate family-centered practice into individualized plans of care for youth across systems

Timeline:

August – February, 2006

Sponsoring
State Infrastructure Grant

Members:

Committee Members	Affiliation	Location
State Agency
Todd Reckling	DHHS	Lincoln
Lonnie Stark	DHHS	Scottsbluffs
Judy Vohland	Dept of Education Voc Rehab	Grand Island
Roxie Cillessen	DHHS Medicaid and Long Term Care	Lincoln
Barb Schliesser	Department of Education UNL	Lincoln
Adria Bace	Department of Education UNL	Lincoln
Karen Stevens	Safe Schools Department of Education	Lincoln
Sue Adams	DHHS Behavioral Health	Lincoln
Others
Vicki Weisz	UNL Center, Families & Law	Lincoln
Reece Peterson	UNL Barkley Center	Lincoln
Deb Scholten	Local Health Directors	South Sioux City
Jose Soto	Southeast Community College	Lincoln
Marilyn McGary	Urban League of Nebraska	Omaha
Kim Hawekotte	Omaha Juvenile Attorney	Omaha
Local SOC
Harriet Lambrecht	Families Care	Kearney
Deb McCoy	Region IV Behavioral Health	Norfolk
Renee Dozier	Region V Behavioral Health	Lincoln
Doug Swanson	Beatrice Safe Schools Healthy Students	Beatrice
Mary Dean Harvey	Omaha Safe Schools Healthy Students	Omaha
John Street	Grand Island Public Schools	Grand Island
Joan Francis	Panhandle Partnership	Kimball
Dick Shea	Sarpy County Detention Center	Sarpy County
Debra Schorr	Lancaster County Commissioner	Lincoln
Rodale Emkin	Supervisor - Phelps County Commissioner	Phelps County
Jill Shubauer	Region III Behavioral Health	Kearney
Provider
Rudi Mitchell	Carl T. Curtis Health Center	Macy
Marcia Hovlan	Director Winnebago Counseling Center	Winnebago
Ruth Hendrichs	President and CEO Lutheran Family Services	Omaha
Katie McLeese Stephenson	Cedars Youth Services	Lincoln
Denis McCarville	Uta Halee/CAFCAN	Omaha
James White	Provider	Omaha
Jerry Easterday	Medical Association	Lincoln
Maria Prendes-Lintel	FIRST Project	Lincoln

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