Expand Behavioral Health
Families across Coös County are facing growing behavioral health needs—especially those with young children. The Behavioral Health Tactical Team (BHTT) was launched to understand these needs, elevate family voice, and build community-driven, non-clinical supports that help children and caregivers thrive before needs escalate.
Our work focuses on strengthening the places families already turn for help: child care centers, schools, Family Resource Centers, health partners, and community programs.
Our work focuses on strengthening the places families already turn for help: child care centers, schools, Family Resource Centers, health partners, and community programs.
Our Approach
The Behavioral Health strategy centers on early intervention, strong relationships, and community-rooted solutions, aligned with national best practices and local priorities.
⭐ Listen to Families & Providers⭐
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⭐ Create Non-Clinical Behavioral Health Supports⭐Based on data and community voice, the BHTT is designing supports that trusted partners can deliver—not just clinicians—including:
Navigation and resource support Relationship-based help for families experiencing stress Strategies for child care and school staff to respond to challenging behaviors Connections to behavioral health services when needed This is reinforced by the recent AmeriHealth Caritas and Endowment for Health awards, which explicitly fund non-clinical, community-rooted solutions. 
⭐ Build a County-Wide Behavioral Health Action Plan⭐The October 14 convening brought together over 90 partners to review data and co-design a shared path forward.
Key themes from the day include: The need for upstream support Strengthening family-centered navigation Coordinated provider networks A clearer system for “what to do when” challenges arise A complete summary is forthcoming and will guide the next phase of implementation. |
Raising Strong Families: A Cornerstone of Behavioral Health Support
Raising Strong Families (RSF) is one of the Coalition’s most powerful tools for supporting children and caregivers who are facing complex behavioral, social-emotional, and family stressors. RSF is a relationship-based wraparound model that connects families with a trusted partner who walks alongside them, helps navigate challenging moments, and builds stability through strengths, not labels.
Recent investments from the AmeriHealth Caritas Foundation and the Endowment for Health allow us to expand RSF so that more families can access this personalized support early, well before challenges escalate.
For many families, RSF is the bridge between feeling overwhelmed and feeling supported. It creates warmth, connection, and stability — grounding elements that improve a child’s behavioral health long before a clinical response is needed.
Recent investments from the AmeriHealth Caritas Foundation and the Endowment for Health allow us to expand RSF so that more families can access this personalized support early, well before challenges escalate.
For many families, RSF is the bridge between feeling overwhelmed and feeling supported. It creates warmth, connection, and stability — grounding elements that improve a child’s behavioral health long before a clinical response is needed.
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How RSF Supports Behavioral Health
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Expanding RSF Across Coös County
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RSF strengthens emotional well-being by helping families:
Build strong, supportive, trusting relationships Reduce stress and increase stability at home Navigate services and connect with the proper supports Strengthen protective factors connected to mental and emotional health Receive intensive, non-clinical care coordination tailored to their needs This approach complements and reinforces the Behavioral Health Tactical Team’s priorities, especially the Individualized Wraparound solution area identified at the October convening. |
The Coalition’s goal is to scale RSF to additional high-need communities, increase the number of families served, and ensure the model remains strong and sustainable across the region. Current investments support:
A full-time care coordinator serving the Androscoggin Valley Expansion of RSF into new partner sites, including child care and family support settings Continued development of a sustainable funding model, including Medicaid pathways Deeper integration of RSF within the broader Behavioral Health solutions framework |
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What's happening now |
Future work includes building a coordinated early-response system, strengthening navigation, and scaling strategies across communities. |
Together, we are working toward a North Country where every child and caregiver can find the right kind of help, at the right time, in the right place. |
