Welcome to Skagit County
October 15, 2015
Public invited to discuss transition of regional behavioral health services
SKAGIT COUNTY – Members of the public are invited to participate in early stage deliberations as planning begins toward the transition of behavioral health services currently provided at the North Cascades Gateway Center in Sedro-Woolley.
Facilities to be transitioned out are the North Sound Evaluation and Treatment Center for individuals detained because of a mental disorder under the involuntary treatment law, and Pioneer Center North, which provides long term inpatient treatment for individuals with chronic substance use disorders.
A public meeting will be held Friday, October 30, 1-4 p.m. at the Best Western Cotton Tree Convention Center in Mount Vernon. This session will be co-hosted by Skagit County and the North Sound Mental Health Administration (NSMHA), which serves five counties including Skagit.
“North Sound Mental Health Administration and Skagit County will collaborate with multiple stakeholders to identify therapeutic, recovery-focused models to transition behavioral health services to accessible locations in a five-county region including Skagit,” said Skagit County Commissioner Ken Dahlstedt, who serves as Chairman of the NSMHA Board of Directors.
“At our October 30 meeting we will discuss the transition of behavioral health services from the North Cascades Gateway Center, currently home to Pioneer Center North and North Sound Evaluation & Treatment Center,” Dahlstedt continued. “We hope to see a variety of potentially impacted individuals and groups including consumers, family members, advocates, service providers and agencies.”
The following topics will be on the agenda: 1) presentation of information gathered from key regional stakeholders and consumer focus groups that are currently being conducted; 2) a presentation on potential models of service to provide detox and residential substance use disorder treatment to replace the services that are now provided at Pioneer Center North; 3) review of services provided at the North Sound
Among those in attendance will be County consultant Denna Vanderloot and Betsy Kruse, Deputy Director, NSMHA.
“The changes that are taking place at the North Cascades Gateway Center provide the North Sound Region (Snohomish, Skagit, Whatcom, Island, and San Juan counties) with the opportunity to move toward innovative, integrated and evidence-based treatment services for individuals in our communities with mental and/or substance use disorders,” said Dahlstedt. “We will provide time for comment and discussion of proposed models and how they might be adapted in the region. Next steps and opportunities for continued collaboration will also be discussed.”
The Best Western Cotton Tree Convention Center is located at 2300 Market Street, Mount Vernon. Please RSVP to rebeccac@co.skagit.wa.us by October 23, 2015. For more information call (360) 419-3363.