SAN FRANCISCO MENTAL HEALTH PLAN MISSION, SYSTEM GOAL, AND VALUES

Mission Statement

The mission of the San Francisco Mental Health Plan is to provide eligible residents of San Francisco with access to a high quality, effective, cost-efficient system of mental health care which is community based, culturally competent, and consumer-guided.

System Goal

The system goal is to promote recovery, positive functional outcomes, and reduction in the symptoms of mental illness for consumers. System goals will be defined by consumers themselves and their family members.

Values

• The San Francisco Mental Health Plan holds respect for individuals as its central value, including consumer choice, satisfaction, and confidentiality.
• The San Francisco Mental Health Plan is committed to developing and maintaining a system of care that is culturally competent and consumer guided. The following principles are the basis for process of improving cultural competency and age-appropriate services:
  1. Planning and design of services will be done in partnership with the diverse clients/consumers who utilize services.
  2. We recognize that the family, as defined by each culture, is a primary system of support, and therefore, should be incorporated into the service planning and design whenever possible, as desired by the client.
  3. We acknowledge and are committed to working in conjunction with the natural and informal networks of clients/consumers and their communities.
  4. We will provide language accessibility and cultural competence within the service system.
  5. We are committed to providing staff who are proficient and skilled in serving multi-cultural populations.
  6. We will provide effective outreach, education, prevention, and mental health promotion services to the diverse populations in San Francisco to the extent possible, within our resources.
  7. We are committed to providing a comprehensive range of age appropriate services for children, adults, and geriatric clients.
• Provision of cost-effective, quality services will be the overriding goal in the delivery of care and treatment to all consumers.
• The San Francisco Mental Health Plan is committed to providing timely and easy access to care.
• The San Francisco Mental Health Plan values prevention, education, and early intervention as strategies to promote wellness, avert crises and maintain clients' within their communities wherever possible.
• Providers will recognize and work with the consumer's own desired outcomes in the provision of care. Positive outcomes will be achieved in partnership with families and other caregivers (regardless of the age of the consumer), community- based programs, private organizations public agencies, and advisory groups.
• A multidisciplinary approach offering the combined expertise of nurses, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, marriage family child counselors, other mental health professionals, peer support and peer counselors is vital to the provision of comprehensive care.
• The San Francisco Mental Health Plan recognizes and respects the central relationship between provider and consumer which develops over time.
• Providers are each part of a larger system of care that represents many providers that work together to make case dispositions that seek to enhance the health and welfare of the client.
• Treatment and discharge planning should allow consumers to move to the least restrictive setting and most appropriate level of care, enhancing community linkages wherever possible.
• The San Francisco Mental Health Plan recognizes that safe environments are essential to the provision of care and that assessment and treatment needs to reflect sensitivity to consumers' prior contributing history including trauma and abuse.