Success Story

At a critical time for youth, this team is making physical and mental health care more accessible to historically underserved communities

When the state Department of Health's Adolescent and Young Adult Health unit reached out to communities across our state to address health issues for youth, they opened a floodgate. Interest was strong, enthusiastic, and tapped pent-up frustration adolescents had been feeling. 

“This is new, eye opening work for this profession. This is changing the way clinics think about taking care of their patients"

A state report published found 60 percent of pregnancy-related deaths in Washington State were preventable. Now health professionals from across the state are using the Healthier Washington Collaboration Portal to respond to this issue and introducing a new way of thinking about care to address death by suicide and accidental opioid overdose during or shortly after pregnancy.