Chautauqua County recently concluded a multi-session System of Care Action Planning Series bringing together cross-system leaders to collaboratively strengthen services and supports for children, youth, and families.

Facilitated in partnership with the state Office of Mental Health and Chautauqua Tapestry, the series focused on identifying shared priorities, strengthening collaboration, and laying the groundwork for system improvements.

Throughout the series, participants demonstrated strong engagement and a clear sense of community. Jessica Stanis from the state Office of Mental Health facilitated the workshops and noted the high level of participation, shared commitment and collaboration across systems.

As a result of the action planning process, stakeholders identified access to services as the top priority, with three key focus areas emerging: workforce, access and awareness of services, and transportation. Participants emphasized the importance of ensuring families know how to access support, strengthening workforce recruitment and retention, and improving transportation options so services are reachable for those who need them.

The series also produced a shared action plan, including expanding awareness and use of service navigation tools such as United Way 211 and FindHelp, increasing understanding and availability of CHQ Transit, and improving onboarding and retention strategies across the behavioral health workforce. These priorities reflect a cross-system consensus on where targeted efforts can have the greatest impact.

To support those priorities in action, Chautauqua Tapestry will spotlight community resources in its quarterly newsletter series, featuring 211WNY this spring, CARTS in the summer edition, and NY Connects in the fall to increase awareness and help families and providers better connect to services.

Moving forward, Chautauqua County will continue to refine and implement the action plan by strengthening partnerships, inviting additional stakeholders to the table, aligning efforts with existing cross-system initiatives, and finalizing a shared vision statement to guide the work beyond the System of Care grant period.

For more information about Chautauqua Tapestry and the county’s system of care efforts, email Rachel Ludwig, grant director, at mesmerr@chqgov.com or visit TapestryCHQ.com.