Wayne Mellinger, "Report on the HEART Action Team" Santa Barbara's Behavioral Wellness Commission
TO: Sharon Byrne, Chair of the Behavioral Wellness Commission FROM: Wayne Martin Mellinger, Ph.D. First District Commissioner RE: My visit with the HEART Team DATE: 14 October 2020 The Housing, Empowerment, Action and Recovery Team (HEART) was chartered to address the present and expanding housing and treatment crisis facing clients and potential participants of the Department of Behavioral Wellness in Santa Barbara County The team has produced policy, program and capital recommendations for incorporation into the budget and programs of Behavioral Wellness. I attended the bi-monthly meeting of the HEART action team on 14 October 2020, held via Zoom, which lasted an hour an a half. My visit allowed me to observe a group that I used to be active in but had not attended for a several years. When “systems change” was first introduced to the Department of Behavioral Wellness in 2014 I attended several action teams, including Crisis Action, Consumers and Famil...