Illinois Department of Human Services Google Public Sector also plans to launch a new online portal by July 3 to streamline families' access to youth behavioral and mental health resources.
According to a report released last year, the state created behavioral health care and a continuous navigation portal as one of 12 strategies to address youth mental health. Through the Illinois Child Behavioral Health Transformation Initiative, created in 2022 by Gov. JB Pritzker.
Through BEACON, families can upload required documents for their child and learn about the resources their child is eligible for. Families can also request a resource navigator to help them find appropriate resources for their children.
The state's human services, health and family services, child and family services, juvenile justice, and public health departments will all be connected to BEACON. So is the Illinois State Board of Education.
“The new BEACON system will help (the Department of Juvenile Justice) coordinate services with other state agencies for the children in our care and ensure they have access to the behavioral health services they need. It will be expedited,” DJJ Interim Director Rob Vickery said in an email. every day.
BEACON is based on a rudimentary portal launched in June 2022 to allow six state agencies responsible for child services to securely communicate with each other and quickly access services, all with family consent. That's what I mean.
CBHTI Chief Executive Dana Weiner said the new portal will facilitate more equitable access to these services.
“The development of the BEACON tool is based on the diverse perspectives of people with real-world experience,” Weiner said. “The blueprint itself outlines strategies that involve redistributing resources and community-based services to areas that need them most.”
The initiative's report will also improve the coordination and oversight of these services, align facility and program capacity, and improve the effectiveness of behavioral or mental health issues, such as universal mental health screening in schools and pediatric offices. We recommend promoting early intervention.
Illinois also plans to develop “resource referral technology” that more directly connects families with service providers. Weiner said the technology will be developed within the next 12 to 18 months and will eventually be connected to BEACON.
Google Public Sector says all information transmitted through BEACON is encrypted and “protects privacy by making it accessible only to relevant state officials, so they can make informed decisions.” and be held accountable for the results,” said Chris Hein, Director of Public Sector Engineering. said in an email to the Daily.
BEACON leverages Google Cloud's artificial intelligence and cloud computing technology. The tool uses AI algorithms to more efficiently match people to relevant services, but Weiner added that AI does not replace interpersonal interactions involving health care providers and other employees.
“Right now, all of these people are spending a lot of time trying to figure out all of the searching and complex eligibility criteria to connect families with services,” she says. “If we can do that with technology, people can spend their time helping others.”
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