How You Can Get Involved in Local Advocacy
There are 58 counties in California and each one has their own department that manages mental health, which is usually called the County Mental Health or Behavioral Health Department. Sometimes this department is combined with other departments like the Department of Drug and Alcohol Services. Usually with a simple Internet search you can find your county's mental health department website.
Each of the 58 counties in California is responsible for having a county planning process to make sure that the programs being created are ones that the community says they need. Going to your mental health board meetings is a way to get a general idea of what is happening in your county around mental health services.
If you want to get involved and make sure that you have a say in the services and programs available to youth and young adults in your county, you should contact your MHSA Coordinator or Ethnic Service manager and tell them that you want to get involved in your local MHSA planning process. Here is the most recent roster of MHSA coordinators broken out by county, and Ethnic Service Managers.
If you would like some help with contacting them, or have questions about getting involved locally, contact CAYEN, and we are happy to help!