Street Roots • July 15-21, 2016
TASK FORCE, fro m page 4
Wisconsin, have.
In May, Andrew Nanton, a doctor with
governor’s staff on April 7 to request the
Oregon Youth Authority, authored a
formation of a Children’s Cabinet This
response to the task force’s findings and
Cabinet is one of the task force’s key
recommendations. It was his opinion that
recommendations, and it would bring
Oregon should increase access to
together representatives from all three
Multisystemic Therapy, an intensive
branches of state government - and
treatment program that involves everyone
consolidate the various work groups and
in a child’s environment, from family to
task forces assigned to issues
community, friends and
facing children in state
teachers.
custody - to address ongoing
“It is my
reforms to juvenile
understanding that this
delinquency programs.
modality was previously
Hockaday said Brown is in
" I f yo« compare the available in Oregon, but
the process of “re-envisioning
size of the system
no longer formally in
what a 21st-century behavioral
in the 1990s to the effect,” he wrote. “It is
health system in Oregon
an effective intervention
popula tion of kids
looks like.”
for
Conduct Disorder and
we were serving
But that kind of system
would
be a useful tool for
overhaul doesn’t happen
then, and com«
community interventions
overnight, and there is an
pare the size of the
to avoid progression to
immediate need for
system now to the
placements.
foster care, detention and
“We’re working very closely pop ula tion of kid s
hospitalization.”
we're serving now,
with our agencies to figure
In addition to meeting
out what we can do to
there's a d e fic it of
with the governor’s
prioritize the limited
office, task force
services."
resources to better meet the
members have been
immediate needs and the
PAULA BAUER, working with the Juvenile
TR E A T M ENT SERVICES
immediate challenges that we
PROGRAM M A N A G E R A t
Department Directors
OREGON YO U TH
are facing, and at the same
A U T H O R IT Y Association to adopt
time we work to do this
uniform mental health
overhaul, systemwide so that
screening across the
long term, we’re seeing better
state’s 11 county juvenile
outcomes,” Hockaday said.
detention facilities; they
He said it’s too early to
are working to develop a
know how these issues might materialize
legislative
concept
to expand the legal
in the governor’s budget.
protections for juveniles taking
McKechnie said the state should look
psychotropic drugs within Oregon Youth
to incorporating “treatment foster care”
Authority facilities; Oregon Health
into its system. It serves as an alternative
Authority has begun a mapping project to
to state hospital-level care and has been
collect data on juvenile mental health
shown to be effective with children
needs in different regions; and Waller
exhibiting challenging behavioral issues.
It involves a higher level of home care and plans to present to judges across the state
the task force’s plan and coach them on
outside resources available to foster
what to do when there are gaps in
parents when they need to call for
assistance. He said while the model was
service, according to the task force’s
developed in Oregon, the state has not
implementation plan.
figured out a way to fund and sustain such
emily@streetroots. org
a program as other states, such as
News
Page 5
Conditioned Friend
by Slow Coyote
Conditioned friend,
I’ll love you
I’ll represent you
fight for you.
You move from
hopeless occupation
to other
predictable outcomes
home is repetitiveness
for you
the world consists of
routine commutes
asking,
where did all that time go?
your health has suffered
from all those
speedy meals
the meals are a chore
and your free time is just
glue that binds the workdays
together.
Oh, conditioned friend.
I can spark your energy
For traveling
With a motivational
Phone call
You get excited, inspired
Then,
when the phone is placed
On the hanger
Your fear of the unknown
and enslaving
friends and family
continue to
knock some good old
Common sense into you
Conditioned friend!
You must serve!
Your health can wait,
your self-discovery
can happen secondarily
Your fun having
can get you high
while the alcohol
can numb
your true calling
for gratification
Oh yes, conditioned friend
You will be taken care of.
relinquish all those silly
internal urges of that
strange soul you have
because REALITY
is waiting for you to serve
Everyone in this REALITY
all around you is
serving just the same
and they will help you
get through the inconsistent
unhappy portions
You will inevitably experience
deep in that strange soul
of yours,
Conditioned friend.
Oregon Judicial Department.