by Ken Quintanilla

Guam - Recent tragic events both nationally and locally have shed a light on the challenges people are facing and the behavioral needs of our community. And several government agencies and families joined together this morning to announce an expansion of the Guam Systems of Care Strategic Plan.

"This is bring awareness to the community, that we have needs in the community and children shouldn't be forgotten," stated I-Famagu'on-Ta administrator Annie Unpingco. She says with recent tragic events, it's important to bring all the government child-serving agencies together to aid in the multiple and changing needs of children and their families. Today with several government agencies announced the expansion of the strategic four-year plan of the Guam Systems of Care. "It's bringing all the agencies together and wrapping services around the child and the family," she added.

The plan involves five major strategies including implementing regulatory changes and system-wide care standards and protocols, developing and supporting a home and community-based system of care, attaining sustainable funding, providing training and promoting workforce development and implementing an anti-stigma social marketing campaign.

Lieutenant Governor Ray Tenorio stated ultimately the goal is to help people at a young age and help them progress in life while they confront it. "To be able to guide their frustration, their anger, their shortcomings or just the state of their physical or mental faculties in a way that doesn't destroy other people's lives, and that's what we're here trying to accomplish," he said.

And with that, Tenorio swore-in four members into the Guam Systems of Care Council, including Committee on Health chair Senator Dennis Rodriguez, Jr., who said especially in light of recent tragedies on island, looks forward to helping put together a comprehensive plan of action to deal with the behavioral needs of our people, especially our children.

"So I guess for my part in the Legislature is to listen to these professionals and see what needs to be done on the legislative side to implement the plan of action that they presented today," he said.

Unpingco added that 51 family members and 49 agencies make of Guam's System of Care including Guam Police Department, Public Health, Department of Education, Judiciary of Guam, DISID and Mental Health, all of whom were present today and committed to support the vision of opportunities for all children from birth to 21 with mental health challenges.

Mental Health's director, Rey Vega, was selected as the executive committee for systems of care chairperson. Unpingco hopes to hold its first meeting in March and work collaboratively and ultimately break the stigma of mental illness. "Everyone has emotions," he explained. "Mental Health should be like any health, and if you get help for having a toothache and a stomach pain why not a heartache."

Unpingco hopes to hold quarterly meetings with the first possibly in March.