Paper
Sunday, November 4, 2007
309
Transforming the Public Mental Health System in California: Collaborative Opportunities for Nurses
Dale M. Mueller, EdD, MSN, CNAA, School of Nursing, California State University at Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA, USA
| Learning Objective #1: 1. The learner will be able to identify ways that nurses can participate in collaborative efforts for statewide system reform. |
| Learning Objective #2: 2. The learner will be able to identify opportunities for expanded nursing roles in a transformed mental health system. |
A ballot measure (Proposition 63) was passed in 2004 by the voters of California which is leading to expanded and more meaningful mental health services delivery in the public mental health system. The measure, now known as the Mental Health Services Act, imposed a tax on millionaires to fund a transformation of the public mental health system from the current medical model to that of a model focusing on Wellness, Recovery and Resiliency. This strengths-based approach incorporates peer-support, and consumers and family members have been active participants in the transformation through a series of stakeholder meetings and employment initiatives. Provider, educator, and employer collaboratives are being created to better address historically fragmented and under-funded services. These local and regional collaboratives are experiencing success in embracing the cultural and linguistic contexts of mental health services for Californians, whose population is one of the most diverse in the nation. Opportunities for nurses in statewide policy formation for mental health care and also in service capacities in the Wellness, Recovery and Resiliency model will be presented.