Our speaker today was Lori Shibinette, CEO West Central Behavioral Health (WCBH)
Lori Shibinette
Picture from her LinkIn Page
John Yacavone introduced Lori who was formerly the head of NH Hospital and also served as Commissioner of NH Dept Health and Human Services.
Lori lives in the Lakes Region from where she commutes every day to the Upper Valley, though winter driving is a little tougher than the summer. She said it’s been a joy to see the high level of community support for Non Profit Organizations and local services here in the in the UV.
Lori’s been at WCBH for about a year. She is a nurse (R.N) by training. She worked at Merrimack Nursing home for 30 years and served as NHDHHS commissioner during Covid, which started about 3 weeks after she began work and which required a quick pivot from mental health to managing a pandemic.
WCBH and community Mental Health system
NH Hospital is the psychiatric hospital on Pleasant Street in Concord, comprising about a dozen buildings. When Lori arrived in NH from Canada (One can still hear the shadow of an accent in her pronunciation of the syllable “out”.) in 1995, she worked there for her first nursing job. At the time, about 3,000 persons were living there. Lori always remembers one woman who, having been admitted for post-partum depression when in her 20s, was still there 70 years later in her 90s.
In 1980s/90s the country moved toward creation of a community mental health system. WCBH is coming up on 50th anniversary in 2027. The movement began with “deinstitutionalization” – the process of returning individuals from hospitalization to their community of origin. Today, there are only 168 people living at NH Hospital.
West Central’s role is to be the place where persons suffering from mental illness (MI) or suffering a mental health (MH) crisis can get help regardless of ability to pay. They have offices in Claremont, Newport and Lebanon, and serve persons from infancy through elder care.
Main programs
- Children – middle and high school age. Hundreds of kids. Partnerships with most schools. Family and parent counseling included. From trauma to identity struggles.
- Adults – persons with MI, mostly severe and persistent such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and other long-term, chronic diseases.
- Mobile crisis team – If MI crisis at home, call 988 and we dispatch a team to you. Lori spent a day with the team when they responded to a school. Also provide service where needed. “We do a lot of deployments,” Lori said.
- Substance abuse disorder
- ACT – Assertive Community Treatment – Deliver meds daily; 60 persons in this program, daily interaction to keep them stable.
Other programs:
- “In-Shape” – focus on nutrition and health. Many of our folks are socially isolated. Coach will take person out of the home to connect with others.
- “Passion Projects” – Focus is on health care. Many folks with MI may start identifying as their illness rather than who they are. This program supplies the means for folks to pursue a passion that gives them joy in their life. We have 10 applications. One example: Child asked for a scholarship to take karate, after being subjected to for domestic violence in order to gain a feeling of some control. Karate Studio reduced price and we paid for 6 months of lessons.
What has changed in the last year:
- We became certified as a community MH center, not just for the most vulnerable populations, but for persons who struggle with MH no matter who they are. We want to provide prevention.
- Hired more staff.
- Bought a property to build a new clinical space in Claremont.
- Partnering with businesses doing education and training for employees.
Changes in Medicaid could have a massive effect on our services:
WCBH is one of 10 community mental health centers in NH. 90% of our patients are on Medicaid. We will continue to provide care whether the funding comes in or not.
Last year, we provided $611,000 in non-compensated care. We expect that to go up with new Medicaid work requirements and other possible changes.
Lori thanked Lebanon Rotary for replacing the children’s toys, games and equipment needed after the flood in Newport.
Recent Comments