Charles Spurr

The Call for Presentations for the 2023 WA Behavioral Healthcare Conference, Reconnect & Recharge, is now available! More information on the submission process and topics in which we're interested can be found HERE. We hope you'll join us in presenting innovative sessions in June when we reconvene in Kennewick, WA! The Washington Council for Behavioral Health is grateful for funding from the Health Care Authority and the Department of Corrections.

A career in behavioral health is a great way to help people in your community, and change lives! Lots of opportunities are available now, and you can learn more at startyourpath.org. There are many benefits to a behavioral health career, including: Variety: Pursue career opportunities within a wide range of occupations, populations, and professional settings Growth: Continue to build your skills and experience through a variety of educational pathways and career choices Community: Help your community thrive, while joining a…

Updated information for the 32nd annual WBHC, Surviving & Thriving in a Changing World, is now available! Although we've made a lot of progress in the fight against COVID-19, the situation remains unpredictable and complicated. As a result, we've made the difficult decision to hold the 2022 WBHC as a virtual event, to ensure the safety of attendees, speakers, and staff. Although we won't be back in Kennewick until 2023, we hope you'll join us! More information on tracks and...

The Washington Council for Behavioral Health has been working hard throughout 2020 and 2021 to ensure that our essential safety-net providers remain able to serve people living with serious mental illness and/or substance use disorder in the face of COVID-19. A recent survey of our members provided startling data on the impacts of the pandemic; a summary of that data can be found HERE. Chronically low Medicaid rates exacerbated by COVID pandemic costs and lost revenue have left community behavioral...

In recent months, the Washington Council for Behavioral Health has been working with the UW AIMS Center to develop more in-depth content expertise related to integrating primary care into behavioral health settings.  As a result of that collaboration, we are happy to announce the development of a Training & TA package that could be built into Project 2A Bidirectional Integration project proposals that are submitted via the Accountable Communities of Health under the Medicaid Transformation Demonstration. The training is also...

The Value-Based Payment Practice Transformation Academy, a partnership between the Healthier Washington Practice Transformation Support Hub, the National Council for Behavioral Health and the Washington Council for Behavioral Health, held its in-person kick-off meeting on October 20th, 2017. Representatives from the 20 participating agencies had an opportunity to actively participate in learning activities with Hub and National Council coaches as well as interact and share ideas with each other. The Academy will continue through January, 2018 with monthly webinars for…

A record crowd of more than 700 attendees gathered in Vancouver, Washington beginning June 14th for this year’s Washington Behavioral Health Conference (WBHC). The three-day event featured keynote speakers including Kevin Briggs, a former California Highway Patrol sergeant responsible for the Golden Gate Bridge; Hank Steadman, PhD, a sociologist and expert in jail diversion programs; and Victoria Maxwell, an actress and mental health advocate. This year’s conference included a new track: Cultural Awareness & Diversity, with topics such as “Engaging…