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When Andy was 20 years old he had his head bashed into the cement during an unprovoked attack. Severely beaten, his mother thought he was gone, but Andy survived. A month later, he started hearing unexplained voices. Andy’s symptoms worsened during the next few months, and his mother, Kathryn, took him to San Jose Medical...
Santa Clara County expands mental health navigator program
One of Santa Clara County’s newest mental health programs is expanding due to high demand. The Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Navigator Program launched last July in San Jose and Gilroy, connecting residents to county-contracted mental health services. Part of the program’s plan has been to increase its field services. As demand increased, the Santa...
San Jose mayor supports state mental health reforms
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan is voicing support for reforms to the state’s Mental Health Services Act, which targets those with severe mental illness and are homeless. The plan—first announced by Gov. Gavin Newsom in March—includes putting a new $4.68 billion bond measure on the 2024 ballot to fund more behavioral health beds and carve out...
Santa Clara County to open mental health residential facility
In less than a month, Santa Clara Valley Medical Center will have a psychiatric resource to help fill the treatment gap between acute care and long-term stability. A new 28-bed adult residential treatment center at 650 S. Bascom Ave. in San Jose is slated to open this fall once it receives the necessary licenses. A...
San Jose hospital to cut acute psychiatric care
The pending closure of an inpatient psychiatric facility has the potential to worsen an ongoing mental health crisis in Santa Clara County, which has a severe shortage of behavioral health beds and services. Good Samaritan Hospital plans to close it’s 18-bed inpatient psychiatric facility at its Mission Oaks Hospital location in Los Gatos. It’s parent...
Santa Clara County gets windfall from opioid settlement
Santa Clara County is flush with millions of dollars from a nationwide opioid settlement. But how to spend it is still up for debate. Local health officials received $5.8 million from the first installment, with the potential for up to $48 million over the next 18 years. The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors wants to...
Santa Clara County’s controversial mental health program in high demand
A Santa Clara County program to help the severely mentally ill receive treatment has outpaced expectations in its first year of implementation, after a hard fought battle to get it approved. The Assisted Outpatient Treatment program (AOT) also known as Laura’s Law, allows different authorities and family members to refer people diagnosed with a severe mental illness—schizophrenia...
Santa Clara County schools score millions for mental health support
The Santa Clara County Office of Education is set to receive nearly $1 million in federal funding to help train and hire more mental health professionals across high-need schools. The influx of cash, which comes from a national grant program through the U.S. Department of Education, marks the second time the office has received grant money this...
Silicon Valley transit promotes mental health hotline
Next time riders takes a VTA bus or light rail train, they will be greeted by a huge mental health awareness campaign. The national 988 hotline launched last summer and aims to redirect suicide crisis and mental health distress calls to trained counselors rather than police officers. Santa Clara County is one of two counties in...
Santa Clara County health care workers must stay masked
Santa Clara County is requiring masks to be worn in hospitals and other high-risk settings, days after the state relaxed COVID-19 restrictions. County Executive Jeff Smith sent an email to staff Tuesday evening informing them that workers and visitors must continue to wear masks at county facilities including hospitals, clinics, long-term care homes, jails and...