Douglas County Commissioner Shannon Reid is joining a select group of local officials as the inaugural cohort of the National Association of Counties’ Familiar Faces Leadership Network for their commitment to improving life outcomes for high-needs residents with complex behavioral health conditions.

The Familiar Faces Initiative (FFI): Improving Outcomes through Coordinated Health and Justice Systems was launched in May of this year by the National Association of Counties to support and empower communities to share data between health and justice systems and coordinate care options for individuals with complex health and behavioral health conditions who frequently cycle through jails, homeless shelters, emergency departments and other crisis services. 

Commissioner Reid has led Douglas County in efforts to improve life outcomes for residents who have become familiar faces to county services and providers and has joined this Network to strengthen and expand the county’s ability to share cross-system data to identify familiar faces and align systems to improve outcomes for the highest-need residents.

“The Leadership Network will allow us to continue connecting the dots for individuals who have crossed a threshold of risk due to complex care needs and first-hand experience being failed by the system. Our goal in Douglas County is to build a truly integrated system of care that serves the whole person, their whole life, so they can realize their full potential,” Reid said.

As a participant of the Familiar Faces Leadership Network, Commissioner Reid will engage with fellow elected officials from across the country who are building similar efforts in their jurisdictions. They will participate in peer site visits to communities with model data-sharing practices and receive technical assistance from FFI Advisory Board members.

Commissioner Reid also will work with Douglas County staff, including Director of Behavioral Health Projects Bob Tryanski and Senior Data Analyst Matt Cravens, as well as community partners.

Local leaders participating in the network represent jurisdictions ranging in size and geographic location from the City of Issaquah, Wash., which has a population of 38,000, to Contra Costa County, Calif., with a population of 1.2 million. Others from the Midwest include Boone County, Missouri; McLean County, Illinois; and Dane County, Wisconsin. To see a full list of the 13 local officials participating in the Leadership Network and find out more about the Familiar Faces Initiative, visit familiarfaces.naco.org.

ABOUT THE FAMILIAR FACES INITIATIVE

Led by the National Association of Counties and funded by Arnold Ventures, the Familiar Faces Initiative supports communities in building and share data and integrate care options between health and justice systems so they can intervene earlier, improve outcomes and reduce incarceration and hospitalization rates. Data-sharing allows communities to identify people who need help and connect them with the right services to address behavioral health needs and, ultimately, break the cycle of justice system involvement and hospital usage. For more information visit https://familiarfaces.naco.org.