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Spokane County’s REACH team outlines first-year results, plans to expand to rural communities
Summary
Spokane County’s REACH (Resource Engagement for Adolescents and Children) program reported 33 referrals in its first year, described its three-part care model and steering committee structure, and said it plans to roll the program out to rural counties in the region.
Jeanette Haynes, REACH program coordinator for Spokane County, told the Behavioral Health Advisory Board that REACH—‘‘Resource Engagement for Adolescents and Children’’—served 33 referrals in its first year and aims to expand into surrounding rural counties.
Haynes, who introduced herself as the program coordinator and a member of a four-person REACH team, said the program prioritizes youth with complex behavioral-health needs who are in emergency departments or inpatient settings but no longer need hospital-level care. ‘‘We take referrals from anywhere in, right now, Spokane County, but our target population, our priority population is youth with complex behavioral health needs, currently residing in emergency departments or community inpatient settings and no longer requiring that level of care,’’ she said.
REACH provides three core services: care coordination, resource navigation and connection with community supports, and multisystem team meetings that convene the youth’s family and relevant community partners. Jessica (REACH supervisor) described the team as three frontline staff plus a supervisor, with a care coordinator, another care coordinator role and a peer-support specialist working together. ‘‘We also are unique in that we have multisystem team meetings,’’ Haynes said, describing the meetings as a forum to gather therapists, DDA staff, school-based teams and other partners to plan community-based next steps.
The program’s initial public metrics, Haynes said, covered the rollout period. For the REACH website from October through December 2024 the team recorded 401 site visits, 534 page views, 304 unique visitors and 78 returning visitors. For calendar year January–December 2024 the team held three multisystem team meetings and recorded 33 referrals.
Board chair Kim (Behavioral Health Advisory Board chair) thanked Haynes and noted program leaders plan to stabilize operations in Spokane County before regional expansion. Jessica said the program does not require insurance for participation and is voluntary: families and youth must agree to take part and youth older than 13 must assent. Referral sources the team described included the Department of Children, Youth and Families, hospitals, juvenile justice, community behavioral-health providers, self-referrals, payers and the Developmental Disabilities Administration.
Haynes and Jessica said the youth served have ranged in age from 4 to 18, with the largest share so far in the adolescent range (about 13–17), but they cautioned it is too early to say whether that will become a clear pattern.
The REACH team described its immediate priorities as maintaining outreach within Spokane County—making hospitals, schools and community partners aware of the service—and preparing for outreach into rural counties in the regional service network. Haynes said the program’s steering committee and multisystem-team meetings have been important to early development and community buy-in.
The presentation closed with an invitation to the board to submit questions as the team expands its data collection and regional outreach.
