By Yanet Luna, Vitals contributor

Nearly one in seven California adults experiences a mental health condition.  Yet close to two-thirds of those individuals do not receive the needed care, according to a 2022 report by the California Health Care Foundation.

Clinical teams, community organizations and mental health advocates across the country understand the importance of creative approaches to this challenge. In California, not-for-profit Sutter Health is expanding access to behavioral health services in new ways. Through new care models, strategic investments and a more integrated approach, it is bringing mental healthcare more seamlessly into everyday care. These efforts help patients can access timely, high-quality support when and where they need it most.

Extending Care Beyond Clinical Walls

For many individuals, especially those facing the greatest barriers to services, care doesn’t always begin in a clinical setting. That’s why Sutter Health continues to expand its community health investments across the lifespan. It teams up with community-based organizations to meet people where they are. These efforts include school-based mental health programs that build early awareness and resilience, transition age youth centers that provide developmentally appropriate support and collaborations with youth development organizations that foster connection and prevention. Sutter is also investing in services for older adults experiencing social isolation, as well as mobile and street-based care models that reach individuals experiencing homelessness. Together, these strategic priority areas reflect a growing commitment to advancing access to mental healthcare and creating services that are responsive to the wide-ranging needs of the communities Sutter serves.

Teamwork in Action

For young people, that support can make a lasting difference. Through Sutter Health’s work with PRO Youth & Families, the MindOneSix Youth Mental Wellness Initiative equips youth ages 12 to 24 with tools to understand and care for their mental health. It builds emotional awareness, resilience and coping skills through peer-centered education. Reaching more than 200 youth each year, the program helps youth strengthen their mental health knowledge, build confidence in seeking help and foster supportive peer connections. By also training youth leaders and adults to recognize early warning signs and lead mental wellness conversations, the initiative expands community awareness—helping prevent mental health concerns from escalating.

“Community-based organizations are often the first place young people and families turn when they need support, which makes partnerships with health systems like Sutter Health so critical. By working together, we can expand access to mental healthcare, meet people where they are and create safe spaces where young people can build awareness, reduce stigma and feel empowered to advocate for their own well-being,” said Staci Anderson, CEO of Pro Youth.

In other communities, meeting people where they are means making care accessible outside the walls of care centers. Through a $2 million investment in street medicine programs across Sacramento, the Central Valley and San Francisco, Sutter Health is expanding access for individuals experiencing homelessness — many of whom face significant behavioral health and substance use challenges.

HealthRIGHT 360 and Sutter Health launched a mobile and street medicine program to expand access to care for San Francisco’s most vulnerable residents.

With support from Sutter Health, HealthRIGHT 360’s Mobile and Street Medicine Program in San Francisco provides urgent and primary care, behavioral health and substance use support, preventative screenings, wound care, vaccinations, lab work and case management support. Reaching approximately 350 individuals each year, this model improves health outcomes while restoring dignity, building trust and reducing reliance on emergency care.

These efforts are part of Sutter Health’s broader goals to expand access through community-based care, integrated services and strategic community health investments across Northern California.

“By working alongside trusted community partners, Sutter Health is helping remove barriers to care. We are expanding access to mental health services for individuals who might otherwise go without support,” said Jodi Nerell, community health director at Sutter Health. “When access to mental health care services is within reach, it does more than support individuals. It strengthens families, neighborhoods and entire communities.”