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Strategic Plan Score Card - Health & Human Services
Health & Human Services
Improve the health and well-being of all people in our community.
Overview
King County is committed to improving the health and well-being of all people in our community. Specifically, we seek to provide equitable opportunities for all children to progress through childhood safe and healthy, with academic and life skills to thrive in their community and to reduce disparities and improve overall health and personal well-being to create thriving communities.
Best Starts for Kids wants every child and family in King County to be happy, healthy, safe and thriving.
A voter-approved initiative led by Executive Constantine, Best Starts invests in prevention and early intervention strategies that promote healthier, more resilient children, youth, families and communities. Best Starts for Kids supports more than 400 programs across King County starting with prenatal support, sustaining the gain through teenage years, and investing in safe, healthy communities that reinforce progress.
Best Starts for Kids Basic Needs investments strengthen the capacity of organizations who provide basic needs resources on a large scale. Basic needs are the things that young children and their families need to support healthy growth and development such as diapers, cribs, car seats, formula, clothing, etc. Meeting basic needs can improve both family and child outcomes, for many reasons, including reducing stress. In 2018, the families of more than 16,700 children accessed basic necessities, including diapers, clothes, and fresh fruits and vegetables, from King County agencies funded through Best Starts for Kids.
How much are we doing?
The Good Food Bags program is an innovative weekly produce subscription that improves access to fresh produce for families in Seattle and South King County with limited financial resources or inadequate access to fresh food. We work with specific partners to provide bags of fresh fruits and vegetables, food that is grown using organic practices for a very affordable price.
From July 2018-December 2018, 2,216 families received 19,364 Good Food Bags. Approximately 42 sites in the Seattle region participated in this program, with 76% of the sites being preschools and 24% of the sites being community centers. The Good Food Bag program will expand to sites in South King County in 2019.
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How well are we doing?
According to a survey conducted by the program, 65% of survey respondents from June 2018-December 2018 rate their overall experience with Good Bags as excellent. Approximately 86% of survey respondents report using all fruits and vegetables in their Good Food bags. And finally, 99% of survey respondents report that the program is a good way to increase healthy food access.
According to the data collected, the demographic distribution indicates specific outreach to people of color. Approximately, 88% of the Good Food Bags recipients who responded to the survey are people of color, in line with King County’s Equity and Social Justice Strategic Plan.
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Is anyone better off?
From July 2018-December 2018, 92.6% of survey respondents reported eating more fruits and vegetables because of the program. Approximately 29% of survey respondents reported food security in the past 12 months. And finally, 95% of survey respondents reported positive effects of Good Bags for their children. Good nutrition supports healthy brain development and academic performance in school.
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Additional resources
Back to topOverview
King County is committed to improving the health and well-being of all people in our community.
We recognize that compassionate and innovative solutions are needed to improve health and the experience of care for low-income people with behavioral health conditions. By focusing on prevention and recovery, we aim to improve outcomes while lowering the cost of care in King County.
King County, through an innovative partnership with the Ballmer Group and Third Sector Capital Partners, launched a “pay for success” model that allocates incentive payments to mental health and substance use treatment agencies that provide rapid access to outpatient care. King County is moving toward this type of “outpatient treatment on demand (OTOD)” throughout the behavioral health treatment system, and developing this model for outpatient care is a significant first step. If treatment is available when needed, it is expected that crises are less likely to occur, which will benefit the individual, their family and the whole community.
How much are we doing?
The demand for behavioral health treatment has been growing, and behavioral healthcare systems must adapt to meet this increased demand. As with medical conditions, early assessment and treatment of behavioral health concerns is considered critical and starts with access to care. In 2017, there were 21,070 new requests for outpatient care and in 2018 there were 22,549. These requests reflect the racial distribution of King County.
How well are we doing?
To improve the quality of care, avoiding waitlists and improving efficiency through timely provision of care is critical. Providers must be able to offer appointments when needed. Research shows that 90% of same-day appointments are kept, while up to 50% of appointments scheduled for later dates have been reported as no-shows or cancelled.
Treatment On Demand goals include the following:
- Business days between request for service and first offered intake: 0 or 1 day.
- Business days between request for service and first actual intake: 4 days.
- Business days between first actual intake and first routine service: 7 days.
All new requests for outpatient behavioral health treatment were assessed for timeliness of care received. Agencies have been improving in meeting these targets. In 2017 (before the start of OTOD), 62% of outpatient clients were offered a treatment intake within one day and 54% had an actual intake appointment within four days. Nearly half (46%) had subsequent routine care after their intake within seven days. In 2018 these rates improved: 76% of clients were offered a treatment intake within one day, 66% had an actual intake within four days, and 51% had routine service within seven days of their intake.
Is anyone better off?
A comprehensive evaluation is underway to see whether clients are experiencing positive impacts from addressing behavioral health needs more quickly, including sustained engagement with treatment.
The preliminary evaluation suggests that patients who are seen sooner for their first routine treatment are more likely to have a second routine treatment appointment within a month.
Additional resources
- King County partners with Ballmer Group to expand access to outpatient mental health and addiction treatment
- King County Outpatient Treatment on Demand