Dr. Rebecca Hubbard is now the City’s first Chief Mental Health Officer. This new position will be responsible for applying a mental health lens to the City’s work and increasing collaboration among mental health programs, crisis response systems, and related services. The new role was the result of a recommendation from the Housing, Homelessness and Mental Health Task Force and was funded in the FY 23-24 budget.

The position will also include building the inventory of services and recommendations from the Children’s Mental Health and Family Resilience Commission, developing a community engagement strategy to increase public awareness about mental health, establishing agreements to execute the crisis system protocol with public safety departments and organizations, and more. The position will also serve as the Deputy Chief Resilience Officer.

Hubbard has a Ph. D in Human Sciences with a focus in Human Development and Family Science from Oklahoma State University. She also holds a Master of Science in Professional Counseling and a Bachelor of Arts in psychology.

With over 30 years of experience in various roles related to psychology and mental health, Hubbard brings a wide variety of skills and knowledge to the Mental Health Coordinator position. She served as the Director of Outreach, Prevention and Education at the Mental Health Association Oklahoma and most recently worked as the Program Director for Oklahoma Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health Access Program (OKCAMAP) through the OSU Center for Health Sciences. Hubbard also served as an adjunct assistant professor and instructor of record at two local universities teaching several classes including Addiction in the Family, Adolescent Development, Vocational and Occupational Guidance, and Human Growth and Development.

Hubbard facilitates the Oklahoma Children’s Mental Health and Resilience Coalition, is a Tulsa National Alliance on Mental Illness board member and served as the co-chair for the Youth Mental Health and Family Resilience Commission.

The Mayor’s Office of Resilience and Equity and the Mental Health Association of Oklahoma convened the Children’s Mental Health and Family Resilience Coalition in February of 2020. The coalition is made up of representatives from the medical, educational, higher education/research, justice, faith based, and community-based systems. Over the course of 2020, the coalition met regularly to discuss experiences with families and children with mental health disorders and to investigate solutions they have considered or seen to be effective in other locations. The Children’s Mental Health and Resilience Coalition continues to meet and has expanded to have a statewide focus.

Background
Tulsa’s resilience strategy calls for the City to invest in children’s mental health by bringing various partners together to strengthen collaboration and seek ways to increase the availability of services and supports that are comprehensive as well as preventive.

To make progress on this resilience action, the Mayor’s Office of Resilience and Equity and the Mental Health Association of Oklahoma convened the Children’s Mental Health and Family Resilience Coalition in February of 2020. The coalition is made up of representatives from the medical, educational, higher education/research, justice, faith based, and community-based systems. Over the course of 2020, the coalition met regularly to discuss experiences with families and children with mental health disorders and to investigate solutions they have considered or seen to be effective in other locations. The Children’s Mental Health and Resilience Coalition continues to meet and has expanded to have a statewide focus.

One of the key recommendations from this coalition was to establish a youth mental health and family resilience commission and charge it with developing a set of recommendations for the City of Tulsa.

 2021-2022 Inventory Report

Rationale

• Mental health is a key component in child and adolescent development, a family’s stability and a community’s resilience.
• Promoting mental health through schools, health care agencies, community programs, and innovative partnerships can improve child and adolescent mental health.
• The high utilization of emergency rooms and inpatient care for child and adolescent mental health care, barriers to family, child and adolescent engagement, and lack of a comprehensive continuum of services adversely impact mental health and family resilience.
• An increase in awareness of mental health concerns and suicidality in children and adolescents can help to increase early detection of mental illness, to promote protective factors, to decrease risk factors, and thereby help to reduce the increasing rate of child and adolescent suicide in Oklahoma.
• Data and need
• 1 in 5 students experience a diagnosable mental health disorder every year, about half of these students experience onset of symptoms by 14.
• A 2019 survey found that about 1 in 3 high school students reported feeling sad or hopeless almost daily, of these students almost 1 in 5 reported seriously considering suicide, and nearly 1 in 10 attempted suicide.
• The impact of COVID-19 is more pronounced in young people ages 11 to 17 years. Roughly 9 out of 10 young people who completed the Mental Health America screening showed moderate-to-severe depression, and 8 out of 10 showed moderate-to-severe anxiety
• Suicide accounts for 15 percent of the deaths among youth and young adults ages 10 to 24 years and is the second leading cause of death for this same age group. It is the third leading cause of death among youth ages 15 to 19 years.

Purpose of the Commission
The Tulsa Commission on Youth Mental Health and Family Resilience is created for the purposes of advising youth-engaging organizations with regard to the improvement of mental health of children and adolescents in Tulsa. The Commission will work to identify and address local issues of concern in the Tulsa area through problem-solving and collaborative creation of solutions. Activities will include, but are not limited to the following: data collection, research , and the development of innovative approaches to address community concerns regarding child and adolescent mental health.

The Commission will produce a report and action plan to further facilitate collaboration among child-engaging systems to improve child and adolescent mental health in the City of Tulsa. The commission’s recommendations will be co-created with invested representatives and focus on strategies to:

• Increase services and supports to fill the gap between community behavioral health services and high-volume ER/inpatient visits for child and adolescent mental health care
• Increase family engagement and youth engagement
• Increase mental health awareness and understanding
• Decrease mental illness stigma
• Address the lack of sustained recovery post inpatient discharge
• Decrease youth suicide ideation and attempts across the City of Tulsa

Meetings
Meetings will be held during the following dates on the 10^th floor of City Hall at 5 p.m.

2022
January 24
February 21
March 21
April 18
May 16
June 20

2021
June
No meeting in July
August
September
October
November
No meeting in December

Commission Members
The Commission is composed of 14 members and includes representation from the following sectors: behavioral health, medicine, education, higher education or research, justice, community-based, faith-based, mental health advocacy, individuals with lived experience in the child and adolescent mental health system, family members with lived experience with the child and adolescent mental health system, and a state legislator.

• Kristi Baker, MSJ, LSSBB
• Chloe Beachy, LMSW, LCSW U/S
• Jana Bingman, MD
• Jeff Boatman, MA
• Tessa Chesher, DO
• Brittany Hayes, JD
• Rebecca Hubbard, PhD
• Rob Mouser, LPC, LADC
• Marshan Oliver-Marick, PhD, MPH
• Angelica Reina, MS, PhD
• Joi Michelle Rhodes, BSW
• Christy Spears, LPC
• Mike Stout, PhD
• Amy Tate, PhD

Tulsa Sobering Center is a jail diversion program designed to offer an alternative for adult men and women detained for public intoxication. In collaboration with the Tulsa Police Department, the Tulsa Sobering Center is operated by Grand Addition Recovery Center, a leader in addiction treatment and recovery. Upon entry into the center, Grand Addiction Recovery Center connects adults who suffer with alcoholism or other addictions to opportunities to access its long-term counseling and rehabilitation programs for substance abuse treatment. Learn more. 

Tulsa Municipal Court, Mental Health Association Oklahoma, and other service providers have teamed up to create the Special Services Docket - a jail diversion program offered at Tulsa Municipal Court for those who have committed low-level offenses. The docket allows those affected by mental illness, substance use, and homelessness who have committed low-level municipal offenses to be paired with a case manager in lieu of serving jail time and the usual fines and fees associated with those offenses.

More information can be found online. 

Several agency partners have worked together since January 2017 to provide a more efficient and effective response to individuals in emergent mental health crisis by providing safety and stabilization. CRT operates five days a week, Monday through Friday, and provides a rapid response team that works to de-escalate individuals in mental health crisis and divert them when appropriate from costly jail, hospital emergency room, and inpatient behavioral health hospital stays. CRT creates a more efficient utilization of fire, emergency medical services, and police services.

CRT, which is partially funded through the Tulsa Area United Way, operates as a three-person team including an officer from the Tulsa Police Department, a paramedic from the Tulsa Fire Department, and a mental health professional from Family and Children’s Services. These first responders undergo Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) to respond to emergencies and mental calls via a partnership with Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. The mental health professional completes specialized training for best practice in Mobile Crises Response and Crises Intervention through Family and Children’s Services.

Tulsa Fire Department started the CARES pilot program in 2016 to reduce high-utilizers’ calls. High utilizers are those who call 911 more than 15 times a year, often for non-emergencies. CARES connects high-utilizers with healthcare and social service providers such as Mental Health Association Oklahoma, Family & Children Services, and St. John’s Health System. From January to March of 2017, CARES reduced calls from the top ten high-utilizers by 70 percent. 

OSU Center for Health Sciences, members of the Tulsa Police and Fire Departments, and local medical professionals have teamed up to provide a Tulsa area medical clearance protocol for acute-psychiatric patients. Many patients who are taken to hospitals either don't need to be there and need prompt mental health treatment, or need a next-step path from the hospital to mental health treatment. This protocol is meant to be adopted across Tulsa's hospitals and medical facilities and used to direct emergency personnel as to what the most appropriate treatment is for those struggling with mental health issues.

211 Eastern Oklahoma
211 is Oklahoma’s Help Hotline and online resource. Get assistance with food, rent, utilities and more by texting 2110K to 898211 or by calling 211. 211 offers mental health and addiction assistance, employment and income help, and much more. Legal assistance and law enforcement services include Juvenile Delinquency Diversion Counseling and a Criminal Correctional System for offender and ex-offender issues. Case care management is also available for ex-offenders.

Visit their website to see a full list of available services.

COPES
COPES is a Family and Children's Services 24/7 mobile crises program dedicated to serving adults and children in psychiatric crises, helping prevent suicide with less-restrictive levels of care. COPES uses a sophisticated phone system and staffing patterns to respond effectively to crises. Contact COPES at (918) 744-4800. Read more about COPES. 

Grand Addiction Recovery Center
Grand Addiction Recovery Center serves as a comprehensive community addiction adult recovery center. Grand Addiction Recovery Center is Oklahoma’s largest Comprehensive Community Addiction Recovery Center, offering adults suffering from the brain disease of addiction/co-existing mental health and substance use disorders life-saving recovery tools and programs. Grand Addiction Recovery Center partners with the Tulsa Police Department to operate the Tulsa Sobering Center. (Formerly 12 & 12)

Mental Health Association Oklahoma
Mental Health Association Oklahoma promotes mental health, working to prevent mental disorders and conquer mental illness through advocacy, research, service, housing and education. Mental Health Association Oklahoma is a partner in the CARES program, the Community Response Team (CRT) and A Better Way. 

Mental Health Assistance Center
The assistance center from Mental Health Association Oklahoma is a free resource referral line that provides one-on-one customer assistance to help find the best referral option for those in need. Read more.

Morton Comprehensive Health Services
Morton provides comprehensive health and family-based services to all without regard to finances. In relation to mental health, Morton has a division called The Behavioral Health Department, comprised of licensed professional counselors and social workers, concerned with addressing mental health issues. Depression, stress, PTSD, and substance abuse services are available.

Contact Morton at (918) 587-2171 or visit their website.

Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services (DRS)
The Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services offers vocational rehabilitation, helping individuals with disabilities prepare for work and become gainfully employed. These services include mental restoration. See the full list of services on their website.

Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS)

DHS works to improve the quality of life for venerable Oklahomans, helping them lead safer, independent and more productive lives.

Community Integrated Employment (CIE)
CIE is a program under developmental disabilities services and promotes independence through paid work and training activities in the community. Visit DHS online to learn more.

Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs (ODVA)
ODVA is committed to helping Oklahoma veterans through various programs and care. ODVA works with the National Center for PTSD to know the latest research and get education on trauma and PTSD.

To contact ODVA, you can reach their Veterans Crisis Line at 1-800-273-8255 or visit ODVA online.

Urban Institute
After seeing Tulsans who suffered from mental illness lived an average of 27 years less than others, Urban Institute created the 2018 Mental Health and Wellness 10-Year Plan, designed to improve mental health and the health care system. Action 16 in Resilient Tulsa focuses on investing in the mental health of Tulsa's youth as outlined by the plan. A 17-member steering committee of community leaders has been formed to help outline deficiencies and gaps in Tulsa's current healthcare system. Experts from various City departments were interviewed to help provide insight into the problems facing Tulsans. Read the plan. 

The City of Tulsa, in partnership with Impact Tulsa's My Brother’s Keeper initiative, is working to implement a community-led response to violence intervention and prevention to address rising gun violence and homicides, and facilitate community healing and resilience in Tulsa.

The initiative is funded by a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice and will be driven by the strong community partnerships that exist in Tulsa.

TCVI aims to address root causes of violence by including the development of positive social and physical conditions, community resources, and economic opportunities. TCVI will include neighborhood representation in community engagement, survivors of violence and victims, and data-driven community collaboration efforts.

The primary target audience includes individuals ages 12-34 at high-risk of involvement in violent crime. 

What is Community Violence Intervention (CVI)?

Community Violence Intervention (CVI) uses evidence-based strategies to reduce violence through community-centered initiatives. These approaches engage individuals and groups to disrupt cycles of violence, foster relationships with community assets, and provide services that save lives, address trauma, and improve social and economic conditions.

Guiding Principles

• Community-Centered: CVI strategies are tailored to the community’s needs, with residents, social service partners, and law enforcement collaborating to reduce violence and strengthen communities.
• Evidence-Informed: CVI programs rely on research, evaluation, and lessons learned while contributing to the growing evidence of effective practices.
• Equitable and Inclusive: Efforts prioritize including and benefiting those most impacted and disenfranchised.
• Effective and Sustainable: Programs must show measurable results and secure resources for long-term success.

Target Areas 

Focus areas will be identified through zip code analysis where significantly higher homicide rates exist —up to eight times the national average.

Taking a Holistic Approach

TCVI takes a bold, public health approach to violence prevention. By combining real-time data analysis, proven intervention models, and the dedication of local organizations, the initiative focuses on those most impacted by violence, connecting them with critical resources like:

• Job Training
• Conflict Resolution Counseling
• Mental Health Services
• Educational Opportunities