ACEs

Adverse childhood experiences, which refers to cumulative adversity, particularly during critical and sensitive developmental periods, that can be a root cause to harmful and persistent health challenges. ACEs include physical, emotional or sexual abuse; physical or emotional neglect or “household dysfunction” (including parental incarceration, mental illness, substance dependence, parental separation or divorce); or intimate partner violence. ACEs are highly prevalent, strongly associated with poor childhood and adult health, mental health, behavioral and social outcomes and demonstrate a pattern of high rates of intergenerational transmission.

 

Behavioral Health

Area of health focused on mental health, wellness and substance use issues.  

 

Behavioral Health Workforce

Workers who support needs related to mental health (including emotional, psychological and social well-being), wellness and substance use.

 

Behavioral Health Ecosystem

The entities that are involved in supporting the needs of children, youth and families related to mental health, wellness and substance use. This ecosystem spans many systems  – including our health care, early care, education, and social service systems. It involves clinical and behavioral health providers as well as schools, childcare providers, community-based organizations, social service agencies, parks, primary care physicians and many others.

 

BHCIP

Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program

 

CA-OSG 

Office of the California Surgeon General

 

CalAIM

California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal

 

CalHHS

California Health and Human Services Agency

 

CDE

California Department of Education

 

CDEP

Community-Defined Evidence Practices

 

CDI

California Department of Insurance

 

CDPH

California Department of Public Health

 

Children, youth and families

Meant to be inclusive of all those served and eligible to be served by the child and youth behavioral health ecosystem, including their families, caregivers and supportive network.

 

COE

County Office of Education

 

Community schools

A “whole-child” school improvement strategy where the district and school work closely with teachers, students, families, and partners. Community school strategies can be an effective approach to mitigate the academic and social impacts of emergencies that affect local communities, improve school responsiveness to student and family needs, and to organize school and community resources to address barriers to learning. 

 

CBO

Community-based organization

 

CYBHI

Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative 

 

DHCS

Department of Health Care Services

 

DMHC

Department of Managed Health Care

 

Dyadic Services

A family- and caregiver-focused model of care that offers preventive behavioral health services for recipients ages 0-20 and/or their caregivers. Dyadic behavioral health visits are provided for the child and caregiver or parent at medical visits, providing screening for behavioral health problems, interpersonal safety, tobacco and substance misuse and social determinants of health – such as food insecurity and housing instability – and referrals for appropriate followup care.

 

HCAI

Department of Health Care Access and Information

 

Integration

Weaving together the efforts of systems, initiatives and investments to enable collective effort and impact.

 

LGBTQ+

People who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and others who don’t identify as heterosexual, straight or cisgender. 

 

Master Plan for Kids’ Mental Health 

Statewide investment seeking to break down silos between child-serving systems – from health to education and others – and uses a “whole child” approach to address the factors that contribute to kids’ mental health and well-being. 

 

MCP

Managed care plans

 

Medi-Cal

California’s Medicaid program

 

MHSA

Mental Health Services Act 

 

MHSOAC

Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission

 

MHSSA

Mental Health Student Services Act (MHSSA), which provides grants for partnerships between county mental health agencies and local education agencies to deliver school-based mental health services to young people and their families.

 

MOU

Memorandum of Understanding 

 

No wrong door

Philosophy that individuals should be seamlessly connected to needed services regardless of their entry point to the system.

 

RFA

Request for Applications

 

RFI

Request for Information

 

RFP

Request for Proposals

 

SBHIP

Student Behavioral Health Incentive Program

 

SEL

Social Emotional Learning

 

SUD

Substance Use Disorder

 

Systems change

An approach to change that advances equity by shifting the conditions that hold a problem in place. Shifts in system conditions are more likely to be sustained when working at three different levels of change: explicit (such as policies, practices and resource flows), semi-explicit (such as relationships, connections and power dynamics) and implicit (such as the mental models, deeply-held beliefs and assumptions that influence one’s actions).

 

Toxic Stress

Can occur in response to strong, frequent and/or prolonged stressors, such as abuse, physical and emotional neglect, household dysfunction, caregiver substance abuse and/or the accumulated burdens of racial discrimination or economic hardship. Toxic stress can lead to long-term physical, mental and/or behavioral health issues.