Overview

Mission

The Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative is an interagency initiative of the Commonwealth’s Executive Office of Health and Human Services whose mission is to strengthen, expand and integrate Massachusetts state services into a comprehensive, community-based system of care, to ensure that families and their children with significant behavioral, emotional and mental health needs obtain the services necessary for success in home, school and community.

Values

• Child-Centered and Family Driven
  Services are driven by the needs and preferences of the child and family, developed in partnership with families, and accountable to families.
• Strengths-Based
  Services are built on the strengths of the family and their community.
• Culturally Responsive
  Services are responsive to the family’s values, beliefs, norms, and to the socio-economic and cultural context.
• Collaborative and Integrated
  Services are integrated across child-serving agencies and programs.
• Continuously Improving
  Service improvements reflect a culture of continuous learning, informed by data, family feedback, evidence and best practice.

Vision

The Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative places the family and child at the center of our service delivery system, and will build an integrated system of behavioral health services that meets the individual needs of the child and family.  Policies, financing, management and delivery of publicly-funded behavioral health services will be integrated to make it easier for families to find and access appropriate services, and to ensure that families feel welcome, respected and receive services that meet their needs, as defined by the family.

Strategic Priorities

1. Increase Timely Access To Appropriate Services

2. Expand Array of Community-based Services

3. Reduce Health Disparities

4. Promote Clinical Best Practice and Innovation

5. Establish an Integrated Behavioral Health System Across State Agencies

6. Strengthen, Expand, and Diversify Workforce

7. Mutual Accountability, Transparency and Continuous Quality Improvement

This information is provided by MassHealth.