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RAYLAND -- OhioRISE welcomed some familiar friends and made new contacts during the Jefferson County Fair's Inclusion Night Aug. 19. They joined other agencies on the midway to greet fairgoer families and share information.
Jefferson County Educational Service Center OhioRISE is a Medicaid managed care program for children and youth with complex behavioral health and multisystem needs in Jefferson, Belmont, Carroll, Columbiana, Harrison, Monroe, Stark and Tuscarawas counties. It is operated by the Jefferson County Educational Service Center. OhioRISE was formed to coordinate resources and put families in touch with what is available.
Linda Trushel, director of the Family and Children First Council and a former OhioRISE director, helped coordinate the event and sponsor free admission for families. She knows OhioRISE's merit and made a point to invite the program.
Trushel said OhioRISE is making a difference.
"It's brought a lot of resources and services to children in Jefferson County that we couldn't do. Every agency that works together, we can help more kids, so OhioRISE has been very beneficial to come and help a lot of families that we had never identified before."
OhioRISE care coordinator Anita Keenan took a turn at one of the gates and was among the first friendly faces fairgoers saw.
"OhioRISE is here to support our members on inclusion day," she said. "It's been wonderful to see our members outside of our usual meeting place, to see them out in the community."
Keenan reflected on OhioRISE's progress since its inception in 2022. Beginning with only a small number of care coordinators, now more than 100 are active in helping families meet their children's unique needs.
She added that a good partnership with area schools has been key to OhioRISE's effectiveness.
"We are extremely appreciative that most schools have open-door policies for OhioRISE to come in. They allow us to meet with our members inside the school and collaborate with teaching staff and administration. To work collaboratively to try to give our members much-needed support and more positive experiences to decrease behavioral incidences and overall mental health conditions," she said.
"We continue to try to build up our respite services. We now have a couple facilities, the Village Network and Stanton Homes, that provide respite in Jefferson County," she said. "That's been continually forming and growing as needs increase. All of our kids usually have severe emotional disturbances or behavioral health needs, so we are constantly trying to gather resources."
Abby Corder, community marketing representative with CareSource, spoke highly of OhioRISE.
"We do work very closely with OhioRISE and there have been stories and situations where there was something that Medicaid had not been able to provide such as respite care or something in the past, but once OhioRISE was established a few years ago, that gap was filled, and that was a big reason why they established OhioRISE," she said.
"In Jefferson County, OhioRISE in this part of the state is absolutely phenomenal. We've worked very closely with all these agencies here," Corder said. She added this is another example of the excellent teamwork among Jefferson County agencies, and the rapport care providers have with families is heartening.
"It's just one big family over here and I love coming to Jefferson County."
CEO Erica Spencer of Ever Well Community Health said OhioRISE is a valuable partner in breaking down barriers and connecting people with services.
"OhioRISE across the state does a really good job of referring to providers who might need other services."
Alycia Clark, a member of the organization Special Connections, which hosts free events for children, said its relationship with OhioRISE has been a boon for families.
"A lot of the people who attend our events are from OhioRISE," she said.
"There have been a lot of times at our different events where people come and ask questions about where they can find different services and different resources, so we send them right to OhioRISE," Clark said. "At all of our events we do have resource tables where we have the OhioRISE information so that way everybody always has access to that information if they need it."
An area day care provider also is impressed by OhioRISE when its representatives visit and work with children in her care.
"They've connected them with speech therapy and physical therapy and intervention has come in and really worked with them. I've seen the improvements. Some of them have learned sign language because they're non-verbal. That's helped them communicate and live their daily life," she said. "I just think it's a great program and I've seen a lot of improvements."
OhioRISE families also stopped by. One mother talked about her family's experiences.
"There's been a lot of progress and improvements. I've been getting my kids into doctors' appointments quicker, I’ve been getting resources, I’ve been getting into housing," she said.
"I've been with OhioRISE for about four months now. I heard about the program through my doctor. He told me to reach out to them for certain things that I was needing," she said.
She added that the care coordinators have helped with essential supplies and assisted in setting up appointments and supports for her child, who has autism.
"They also have pointed me to places for my kids who need help. I've been trying to get answers for years," she said.
She was impressed by everything her care coordinator has accomplished.
"She's done a lot for me. She's one of the best people that I would definitely recommend for anybody."
Another mother spoke about how much OhioRISE has helped her child after two years. Care coordinators were able to obtain sensory equipment and other tools.
"He self-regulates a lot better now, and especially with the devices that they help get," she said. "If anybody has trouble with their children, getting certain items or just having information in general, it'd be a good idea to talk to somebody from OhioRISE."
To learn more about OhioRISE, call 740-792-4011, email ohiorise.info@jcesc.org or visit OhioRISE online.