Grand jury recommends county mental health facility improvements
In its most recent report, the 2014-2015 San Luis Obispo County Grand Jury examines adult access to mental health services in San Luis Obispo County, and recommends eight actions to improve county services.
They found that up to 45 days could pass before an adult requesting help actually meets with a professional, and up to 60 days before receiving a diagnosis. To decrease such delays, they recommend improvements to the county’s current use of two separate hotlines, process changes for hiring and managing its psychiatric support staff, and taking proactive outreach to clients with pending appointments. It also recommended physical changes to the county’s psychiatric health facility.
Finally the report recommends that San Luis Obispo County establish a crisis stabilization unit to bridge the gap between mobile crisis intervention and inpatient hospitalization at its existing psychiatric health facility. Similar units already exist in places such as Fresno and Santa Cruz counties.
In its conclusion, they noted, “all people interviewed, especially those in their positions for a long period of time, believe the county has instituted best practices and is very good at providing mental health services. These same individuals also recognize mental health services could be improved.”
The full transcript of grand jury reports is at www.slocourts.net/grand_jury.
