MDT and Elberta Eriksson
About the Southern Marin Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) & Elberta Erkisson
Vision
We envision a Southern Marin community that experiences a high level of well-being, including mental, social, and physical health. This success is made possible by the high level of coordination among social service providers who offer wraparound, culturally appropriate support to individuals and families. We actively engage the collective impact model to continuously improve this integrated, local social services support system.
About
The Southern Marin Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) serves low income community members in need of wraparound social services. (See below for more information about "wraparound.") We bring community service providers together to discuss the development of resources, and appropriate case management. The MDT utilizes community outreach, engagement, and culturally appropriate assessment tools.
Elberta Erikson, BCD, LCSW, LMFT, facilitator of the MDT, also heads the Southern Marin Community Connectors Internship Program, and is creator of the Family Functioning Scale. The Internship Program is one of multiple service providers coordinating efforts through the MDT.
The MDT takes wrap-around service and the traditional case management approach to the next level. Our clients are engaged in multiple social service systems. Programs, services, and methodologies (wraparound services) are tailored to the values and culture of the underserved, diverse populations of Southern Marin.
Issues Addressed
- The following is a list of issues that have been identified through the input of many projects, organizations, and professionals who work in Southern Marin:
- The disparities within health care, mental health services, and education;
- The inconsistency of coordination, collaboration, and team building from within the community and from without the community;
- The need for clear roles, boundaries, education, and communication regarding the responsibilities and accountability of service providers;
- The need to establish an information base that describes existing resources, identifies the service providers, and describes the services that are provided;
- The need for “authentic” community participation;
- The need for strong, “culturally competent” coordinated services.
Since its inception, MDT has worked to keep these insights foremost, and to alleviate the conditions that lead to disparities.
To contact Elberta Erkisson and MDT, email smipinterns (at) gmail (dot) com. (Please be patient as this inbox is attended to by volunteers.)
Southern Marin Community Connectors
About the "Wraparound" Approach to Social Service Delivery
The former Operation Give A Damn (OGAD) project in Marin City embodied many aspects of what Mrs. Erkisson is advocating for in present-day Marin City and surrounding communities. (See this blog about OGAD written by Felicia Chavez at Systems Thinking Marin.)
We use the term "wraparound" in three ways.
- Generally, as close as possible providing an individual or family with robust support within the confines of the existing resources and system available.
- Specifically, referencing the National Wraparound Initiative's vision and high standard for support to "children and youth with the highest mental health needs."
- Vision-based, meaning referencing Mrs. Eriksson's vision for "a comprehensive social services delivery system" that is team-based, serves the whole family (and community), culturally competent, and genuinely co-created and ultimately led by the people being served.
With regard to #3 above, please see the work of Hilary Cottam; video link and book link below.
