Dear District 5 Residents,
As I have stated before, mental health is an important topic for me. We know it is one of the leading causes of homelessness, substance abuse, and high school dropout rates. The National Student Clearinghouse's Research Institute, which regularly monitors enrollment rates, conducted a study showing that 25% of students experiencing mental health issues drop out of school.
Riverside University Health System Behavioral Health (RUHS-BH) provides effective and culturally competent behavioral health services to people living with a severe mental illness and/or substance use disorder, people experiencing a behavioral health
crisis, people who are in conservatorship, and children with serious emotional disturbance.
Services are provided countywide and include outpatient care, therapy, medication, intensive case management, detox, prevention, and residential care. Outpatient services are primarily targeted toward Medi-Cal beneficiaries, while our crisis services and prevention and early intervention programs serve a wider variety of community members. Mental Health Urgent Care Centers, Transitional Age Youth Centers, a sobering center, mobile crisis teams, and many other services are available across Riverside County. For more information on RUHS – BH services, call the 24/7 CARES Line at (800) 499-3008 or visit www.ruhealth.org.
As an IEHP board member, I voted to approve the Student Behavioral Health Incentive Program (SBHIP). Early identification and treatment through school-affiliated behavioral health services can reduce emergency room visits, crisis situations, inpatient stays, and placement in high-cost special education settings and/or out-of-home placement.
I will continue to champion and advocate for mental health resources as I believe it is the root of many issues we face in today's society, and if we treat the root cause, we can drastically change our community for the better.
Thank you for your continued support.
Yxstian Gutierrez