Response to API 2000: Time to Reconsider
by Loren Jones, CMH/API 2000 Project
Director
Reconsider?" and wanted to respond. I am the CMH/API 2000 Project
Director
and was probably the person you noted in your article that spoke at the
last
AMHB meeting.
First to correct on factual error: there was one proposal submitted
for the
SPE in response to our RFP. This was a submission from Providence
Hospital
with a subcontract with Southcentral Counseling (SCC). This
solicitation
was cancelled due to the proposal not being able to offer the service
by
April 1, 2000. This was a technical issue that caused the
cancellation of
the solicitation.
You then state "...when an essential component of the plan is not
coming
into place..." we should reconsider the "wisdom" of the plan. I want
you to
understand that we have a plan and as we implement this plan there will
be
challenges. We will have times when things will not happen as we
had
envisioned. This does not mean we should abandon the plan. It
does mean
that need to determine how to adapt and move forward. The Policy Team
that
I work for is doing just that and we have met several times to work
through
these issues and to give us direction.
It is true that the SPE will not be in place April 1, 2000 as
planned. This
does not mean that there will not be a SPE prior to API moving from
its
current location to a new site (at best in the fall of 2002). We
continue
to work on the issue of the SPE as well as all the other community
services
that are part of the plan: DET, enhanced crisis respite,
enhanced
detoxification and residential dual diagnosis treatment. We will be
looking
at the essential functions of the SPE and what we can do to assure that
this
service is provided.
API itself has been making changes and has operated an admitting unit
for
the past year. For the last three months of 1999 API had an average
daily
census below 60. While January is expected to be higher, we have seen
some
impact on length of stay, average daily census even with higher total
number
of admissions. API is working with us to understand what the
community
services need to provide to reduce the utilization at API. This has
been a
very positive outcome and one that we are learning from as we move
forward.
The other very positive outcome of this effort has resulted in 6
persons,
who had been at API for 2 to 18 years, being discharged and moved into
a
community placement. This is direct result of a partnership between
Assets
and API staff and the CMH/API Project.
I want to also share your concern that to downsize API without the
community
services in place would be a major mistake. It is the task of all of
us to
assure that these services are in place. By all of us I mean those of
us
who are charged with developing the services and securing the funding
but
also those agencies that can and should provide the service. We are
asking
these providers to provide the necessary servcies in the
community. This
may mean changes to their current operations and/or additional
services. I
am committed to assuring that the community services are in place, have
been
working well and have had the impact of assuring that all persons in
crisis
are appropriately assessed and referred to servcies that best meets
their
needs.
At the March meeting of the AMHB I will be there to make a presentation
on
the CMH/API 2000 project. I understand that Walter is looking at
setting
aside a 2 hour block of time during the Planning Committee meeting on
March
16, 2000. I hope that I will be able to answer your questions in
more
detail at that time.
I hope to see you in March.
Loren Jones