|
|
|
|
|
OLYMPIA -- Ron Jemelka, the No. 2 executive at the Washington State Mental Health Transformation Project (MHTP), has been asked to serve as the acting director for the project. His appointment is effective immediately.
Jemelka succeeds Ken Stark, who resigned as director in order to accept a Snohomish County position.
Gov. Chris Gregoire noted that Jemelka has been involved with the five-year project since it won federal funding in 2005 and that he was intimately familiar with its scope and goals.
"Ron knows where this project is headed, and we will not lose any ground as we press ahead," the governor said. "When it is complete, this project will be our guidepost to changes that will improve the entire mental health system at all levels of government."
Kari Burrell, the governor's mental health policy advisor and who works closely with the project, agreed.
"Ron's long, effective history with the Washington State Mental Health Transformation Project ensures a seamless transition and means no loss in momentum as we continue to move forward aggressively with our program of transformation efforts."
The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), which funds the Washington State MHTP, has pointed frequently to it as an example for other states and has described it as a clear leader in transformation efforts.
Mary Blake, public health advisor for SAMHSA, said, "Under the direction of Ken Stark, Washington state's SAMHSA-funded Mental Health Transformation State Incentive Grant program has provided tremendous leadership and innovation in its work to transform the way services are provided to persons diagnosed with mental illness. He will indeed be missed as project director for the MHT SIG grant. At the same time, we are confident that in the appointment of Ron Jemelka as the new acting director, Washington's MHT SIG project will continue providing steady leadership and continuity for the life cycle of the grant and beyond. Ron has been intimately involved in the grant from day one and his knowledge of the broad vision as well as the implementation details will enhance the project's leadership. We look forward to working with Ron going forward and wish Ken all the best in his new role of implementing transformation in Snohomish County."
For the remainder of the five-year grant, the MHTP intends to continue:
"In terms of our primary focus on families and consumers, we will continue for the next two years as we have for the past three," says Jemelka. "The Mental Health Transformation Project will maintain its broader efforts on communicating a vision of recovery and resilience to government agencies and the public, facilitating more effective strategies to address issues of mental health."
Dr. Jemelka received his doctorate University of Texas at Austin in 1983. He began his professional career as a psychologist with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in 1973, and served three years an administrator with the Austin-Travis County Regional Mental Health Authority before completing his doctorate. He joined the faculty of the University of Washington School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry in 1987, where he participated in the residency training programs, and established a nationally recognized program of research and consultation addressing access and quality of mental health services in correctional settings. He was appointed the research director for a Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHCO) contract to provide quality monitoring of Medicaid Managed Care programs in Texas in 1998. He returned to Washington in 2002, where he worked with the Mental Health Division of DSHS on a variety of research and quality monitoring projects. He was a lead member of the DSHS team that submitted the state's Transformation Grant application in 2005, and has served as the project's deputy director since its inception. Outside his professional life, Dr. Jemelka has a long history of advocacy and service to persons with disabilities, their families and youth, and a strong commitment to the belief that recovery is possible for everyone.
BACKGROUND: The Mental Health Transformation Project is a five-year project funded by a grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to support mental health infrastructure and service delivery improvement activities. A preventive approach has been identified as one of the critical components to that effort.
The grant is a direct result of the move toward recovery-oriented, consumer- and family-driven mental health priorities identified by the President's New Freedom Commission.
FOR ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND, CONTACT: Jim Stevenson, Communications Director, HRSA, DSHS, 360-902-7604 (Pager: 360-971-4067).
