Meeting of the Technical Subcommittee on Communication, Information Sharing, and Public Messaging
January 11, 2023 2:30-4:00 pm via Zoom
Meeting Minutes - Approved by Members 01/25/2023
- Call to Order/Roll Call
- Meeting called to order via Zoom at 2:35 pm by Dr. Allison Brown, University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) Behavioral Health Crisis Hub, Jane Addams Center for Social Policy and Research (partner to Illinois DHS-DMH in support of CESSA implementation)
- Member Roll Call:
- Jim Kaitschuk, Director of IL Sheriff's Association- present and approved the minutes
- Lee Ann Reinert, DMH Deputy Director, Policy, Planning, and Innovation (designee for David Albert, DMH Director) - present and approved the minutes
- Emily Miller, Vice-President for Behavioral Health Policy, IL Association of Rehabilitation Facilities (IARF) - present and approved the minutes
- Expert Consultants:
- Dr. Allison Brown, UIC
- Peter Eckart, UIC
- Dr. Mary Smith, UIC
- Jessena Williams, DMH
- Matt Wells, DMH
- Christina Smith, DMH
- Scott Block, Administrative Offices of the Illinois Courts
- Jill McCamant, IL Dept of Public Health
- Jen Wooldridge, IL Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board
- Other (public) participants:
- Matt Fishback, Cook County Sheriff's Office
- Dana Craig, IL Deaf and Hard of Hearing Commission
- Samuel Jones
- Craig Kowalski
- Sarah White
- DMH/UIC Behavioral Health Crisis Hub Updates - Lee Ann Reinert, DMH
- National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD) recently co-hosted a third National Convening with Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the McKinsey Health Institute (MHI), held on December 13, 2022. It focused on the 5 topic areas of sustainable funding, technology, workforce, equity, and communications. Over 550 state leaders, individuals and organizations participated in this key event. Lee Ann shared about the public messaging implications that were presented. This included asking for input on prioritizing on specific areas, including communications. It was recommended that the state's communications campaign include representation from individuals with lived expertise and community members to ensure that communications are presented in a culturally competent manner. Additionally, with the roots of mistrust and trauma in the current 911/law enforcement landscape, it was further recommended to create opportunities for listening via town hall-type of activities. There was also a theme of peer-to-peer campaigns providing critical public messaging tools. In Illinois, the American Indian Health Systems has received a SAMHSA tribal grant that focuses on the need to be cultural aware and responsive to tribal communities. There are current areas within the Chicagoland area that have tribal communities. It will be integral for this agency, who is just beginning with this funding award, to partner with us as a resource for planning around communications and engaging with those communities that are high-risk.
- The CESSA Law Enforcement Communications tool has been distributed. We are getting questions about eh potential difference between CESSA and Mental Health Code and involuntary commitment. DMH is working with DHS Legal on the interpretation. There are very strong opposing positions, about he laws and what they mean.
- As we communicate, there are more questions arising, showing that people are listening.
- At the IL legislative level, there were two bills introduced at the recent Lame Duck session, relating to a past proposal to moving funding from the 911 fund to the 988 Trust Fund. The first bill introduced proposes that the funding is not taken from the 911 fund, but instead from the General Revenue Fund (GRF). The second bill introduced proposes that the funding is not taken from the 911 fund, with no other alternatives offered.
- At the recent CESSA Statewide Advisory Committee, a detailed plan for the planning activities from Jan until the July 1st deadline to implement CESSA was outlined. Peter reviewed this plan, by identifying principal activities that need to be accomplished by the deadline. Most of the plan's work and deliverables lie within the work of CESSA Statewide Advisory Committee, CESSA technical subcommittees and CESSA regional advisory committees. The Communication, Information Sharing, and Public Messaging sub-committee's work will be at the regional advisory committees to support their work and communicate about the work of the CESSA.
- Review of 988 Public Messaging (presentation by Jessena Williams, DMH)
- Presentation developed in response to question from last subcommittee meeting about what was done in the 9-8-8 planning period around public messaging.
- The subcommittee that grew out of the Statewide Coalition for 988 planning provided recommendations on how to move forward with 9-8-8 public messaging.
- Previous Committee's Recommendations
- Develop an outreach plan that identifies stakeholders, champions, and partners in public and private sectors.
- During 9-8-8 planning, compiled outreach plan and identified partners.
- Partnered with DHS Communications Team and shared outreach plan with them.
- Submitted implementation plan to SAMHSA which included a section on public messaging.
- Increase education and awareness of and identify how to do that through various written materials and auditory information
- Looked at how to ensure that all public messaging tools were accessible and how to send (email, bulk printing).
- Partnered with DHS Communications. Social media and digital communications marketing was developed.
- To use any template that SAMHSA or the federal level developed for consistency in messaging and to maximize state dollars to focus on outreach plan.
- UIC and DMH used SAMHSA-developed logo, slogan, and templates of a fact sheet and other materials with a blanket permission to customize.
- Tailor the messaging so that it is accessible and engaging to our different groups, individuals, and populations in our state.
- During 988 planning, ensured that the message was consistent that 988 is for anyone, anywhere, at any time.
- Integrated SAMHSA's guidance on cultural competency and best practices.
- Identified language that was intentionally positive and aimed to combat stigma, educate, and increase awareness.
- Looked at how different populations may be more or less receptive to certain language.
- Emily: Who do these 988 communications currently go to?
- Jessena: We have been sharing via our website, email, and listservs. Has included focus group participants, state partners, CESSA and 988 listservs. Getting ready to start bulk shipments that will start with DMH funded providers then branching out from there.
- Emily: Important to reach people not in relationship with DHS as well. Can we utilize other state agency's outreach and listservs?
- Jessena: We have added trade organizations and Jill with IDPH as recipients of our information. We know we need to continually add and working to do that. We have also added a spot on our 9-8-8 webpage for individuals to be added to our listserv.
- Emily: I can commit to encourage SAC members to push out to their various outreach organizations and let everyone know that whoever wants to receive updates, they can click the link and sign up.
- Questions from the subcommittee members:
Emily: Are there DMH representatives in attendance with the regional advisory committees (RAC) regularly?
Allison: Yes, that is the role of the public messaging sub-committee to figure out how to coordinate with the RACs, as CESSA public messaging will be tied more to the RACs at the community level.
Lee Ann: UIC Crisis Hub was created because of recognition of our limited staff at DMH. It as quickly identified when CESSA was enacted that the size of the DMH team was inadequate to meet the needs of the work. Therefore, UIC is an extension of DMH when they are in attendance at the RACs. Each RAC has assigned an designated UIC staff. They facilitate at all of the RACs, to ensure that they are moving and progressing according to the priorities, under the direction of DHS/DMH. There has been a form developed for communication between UIC staff and the RACs to ensure clear coordination and partnership.
Emily: I will share that form and its purpose at the upcoming CESSA SAC.
Emily: Are we to rely on the RACs to inform this sub-committee and what they need at the community level?
Allison: Develop a list of what we think are priorities.
Lee Ann: SAMHSA/Vibrant has been shared a data report about the numbers of individuals who have been identified as needed to be linked to mobile crisis response services when contacting 988 Lifeline Call Centers (LCCs). There also needs to be work with the RACs to develop those lines of communication about the availability of services with MCR. Currently, DMH is communicating this, but there is a need to mobilize trusted messengers to spread the word about services as well. The trusted messengers are included in the recommendations of this sub-committee's work: Identifying key statewide stakeholders and local constituencies in the 11 EMS regions requiring ongoing communication. These stakeholders must be related to the targeted audiences in the regions, at the community level.
- Public Comment: None
- Emily asked for a motion to adjourn, was moved by Lee Ann Reinert, and motion had a consensus due to a lack of dissent. Meeting adjourned at 3:46 pm
