Healthy Minds Fairfax's goal is to improve access to mental health and substance abuse services for children, youth and families, and improve the quality of those services, through coordinating a continuum of services across multiple County agencies, the school system and a network of private providers.
In 2001, a system of care initiative was undertaken by the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Policy and Management Team (CPMT) to enhance the community's ability to meet the needs of youth and families with the most complex issues and highest risk factors for mental and behavioral health challenges. This system was later named “Health Minds Fairfax” in 2017. A system of care (SOC) is a plan in which community-based practices are implemented to assist children, youth and families who are at risk of experiencing mental or behavioral health challenges and/ or do not have access to mental or behavioral health resources and supports.
| Year | Development |
|---|---|
| 2006 | Leland House, residential crisis stabilization center was founded and opened in 2006 as one of the first achievements of the system of care initiative. This partnership with United Methodist Family Services (UMFS) was created to provide short-term residential crisis stabilization to prevent unnecessary hospitalization and residential placement for children and youth. |
| 2009 | To improve services and service planning processes, CPMT and Fairfax leadership endorsed the national system of care principles as a means for serving children and youth with complex mental and behavioral health challenges in the community. |
| 2010 | CPMT initiated Intensive Care Coordination (ICC), home-based services for youth at risk for residential placement, and Family Partnership meetings, utilized for children at risk for foster-care placement. CMPT contracted the local Community Service Board (CSB) for assistance and were able to services 72 families on an on-going basis. |
| 2011 | Leadership approved practice standards for integrating the systems of care model and principles into local programs that serve children and youth. |
| 2012 | CMPT approved a re-design of the local team-based planning processes that focuses on the strengths of the family. |
| 2013 | CMPT implemented a system of care training plan for staff and in all child-serving-systems. The CMPT also increased the ICC capacity to 100 families frequently serviced, following a partnership with UMFS. Both developments were successful and are shown to decrease residential and foster care placement(s) and reduce risk behaviors and improve mental health. |
| 2014 | Following the budget guidance of the Board of Supervisors, HMF began working to identify necessary services in collaboration with the County and FCPS (Fairfax County Public Schools) to address the most pressing needs in schools and the broader community. In light of this movement, Family Support Partners (FSP) were initiated for families receiving Intensive Care Coordination (ICC). Family Support Partners advocate for families receiving ICC and help them build natural resources to provide additional community support once treatment is complete. Brainstorming continued and other programs began to form. |
| 2015 | The Board of Supervisors approved an expansion of the System of Care approach to a larger population of children and youth with behavioral health issues. This resulted in a budget increase to expand behavioral health services within the Fairfax-Falls Church Community. |
| 2016 | As a result of the expansion, Short-Term Behavioral Health (STBH) was implemented to provide short-term behavioral health services to youth and families in the community. The Children’s Behavioral Health Blueprint, also called the “Blueprint,” was also completed in 2016 and set out to advance behavioral health systems of care and resources between 2016-2020 in the Fairfax-Falls Church Community. |
| 2017 | The local SOC initiative was re-named “Healthy Minds Fairfax” (HMF) in 2017, and they participated in several events to promote their work and services. In their efforts, they expanded Family Support Partner (FSP) services for families of children and youth with behavioral health issues, through a contract with NAMI Northern Virginia to increase resources and supports. CMPT also revised and approved the system of care principles and practice standards, along with local policies and procedures to be incorporated in the system of care training curriculum. |
| 2018 | Quarterly reports were presented to the Board of Supervisors, and the matrix of youth services was developed. HMF also developed several presentations and training modules for youth and families. |
| 2019 | Fiscal mapping was conducted and presented to Successful Children and Youth Policy Team (SCYPT) to provide an overview of programs and benefits of HMF’s efforts. |
| 2020 | HMF launched partnership with Northern Virginia Family Network to enhance families voice(s) in our local system of care. Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 was also the closing year of the Blueprint that was initiated in 2016. |
| 2021 | Following the presentation in 2019, SCYPT identified Behavioral Health as a priority area; the SCYPT team initiated a work group to implement additional community-wide goals and priorities for public policy as it relates to children, youth and families. |
| 2022 | HMF began working on Fairfax-Falls Church Children’s Behavioral Health Plan, also called “The Plan.” “The Plan” is a 2023-2027 version of the Blueprint that aims to expand strategies and resources for youth and families to ease community access to behavioral health services, resources and supports. |
| 2023 | Initiatives and goals for “The Plan” began in 2023, focusing on 4 key areas: Prevention/ Education, Access to Services, Navigation of Services (ease of accessing services and resources), and implementing System Level Changes (such as incorporating equity and trauma-informed/trauma-focused care). |
| 2024 | The Children’s Behavioral Health Navigation Services is being developed. In 2024, after mutual deliberation, Leland House closed. |