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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Mary I. Armstrong, PhD, Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, Department of Child and Family Studies, University of South Florida, 13301 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Tampa, FL 33612, 813 974-4601, armstron@fmhi.usf.edu, Sheila A. Pires, MPA, Human Service Collaborative, 1728 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 2007, and Beth A. Stroul, MEd, Management and Training Innovations, 11197 Longwood Grove Drive, Suite 100, Reston, VA 20194.

There are critical implementation factors which support communities in their efforts to build effective systems of care to meet the needs of children and adolescents with serious emotional challenges and their families. One set of these factors is the financing structures and strategies that states and communities develop and implement. The purposes of this study are to: 1. Use a case study design to test whether our theory regarding the hypothesized set of financing structures and strategies is valid, and 2. Determine how these financing strategies operate separately and collectively, within a community and systemic context, to create effective financing policy.

This presentation will review the findings from the first 2 years of this longitudinal study. During Year 1, the study team convened a panel of national financing experts to review and finalize a list of critical financing strategies and study questions. During Year 2, the study visited 5 states/communities identified as having relatively high levels of implementation of effective financing structures; and conducted telephone interviews with up to 5 additional communities with promising financing approaches. Data collection and analysis included a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods.

In addition to reviewing the findings of the site visits, the presentation will describe several products developed by the study including a matrix of financing structures and strategies that support effective systems of care, and A Self-Assessment and Planning Guide that communities can use to develop a comprehensive financing plan to support an effective children's system of care.

Learning Objectives: