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ABOUT US

Collaborative Bridges is a partnership of historic West Side Chicago safety net hospitals and community mental health agencies designed to ensure that the care needs of people experiencing mental health and substance abuse are supported in their community, especially after a hospital admission. We are here to improve the health equity of West Side communities and reduce the gaps in care among disjointed islands of service. To do this, we are creating a continuity of care between hospitals and communities to put resources closer to those who need it, when they need it.

Funded by the Healthcare Transformation Collaborative of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services.

Participating
Agencies

In addition to the agencies named here, our program has the endorsement of more than 20 organizations that include social services agencies, hospitals, law enforcement and elected officials.

MISSION & VISION

Helping change the way behavioral health services are delivered for Chicago West Side residents, through a provision of community-based and comprehensive service delivery immediately upon discharge from hospital settings.

By focusing service delivery on people where they live as they are recovering from a crisis event, the partnership between historic West Side Chicago community mental health centers and our vital West Side safety net hospitals will ensure behavioral health patients of these hospitals have a seamless transition back to their communities to continue their healing journeys. Our partnership seeks to improve health outcomes, reduce health care costs, close gaps in service delivery, and improve the lives of all residents that live on the West Side of Chicago.

The Collaborative Bridges Team operates with the foundation that reaching someone as they experience adverse stress is critical to avoiding their developing deeper trauma and chronic mental illness. It recognizes that low rates of follow-up care after hospitalizations, coupled with high rates of rehospitalization immediately after psychiatric hospitalization, indicate a need for more robust and comprehensive post-hospitalization care.
 
Collaborative Bridges believes that treatment is a partnership between the client, staff, and a network of family and friends within the community and that is where strength is found. We believe that enabling healing in a safe, trusted environment is critical for the well-being of those we serve.  
 
The Collaborative Bridges model is a “proof of concept” that is meant to be scalable. As we learn and adapt, we envision this model becoming a template that can be replicated in many other communities.