Who
- Sonoma County hospital leaders
- Nolan Sullivan, director, Sonoma County Department of Health Services (SC-DHS)
What
Late last month, Sonoma County hospital leaders met with newly appointed SC-DHS Director Nolan Sullivan for an introductory and earnest dialogue on shared priorities and challenges.
Sullivan reported that his initial focus would be on stabilizing internal operations given the county’s well-documented budget and staffing challenges. He praised his senior leadership team while simultaneously recognizing the strain placed on hospitals and the community when the county’s crisis stabilization unit (CSU) closed unexpectedly and remained shuttered for six months. He acknowledged that the tenuous CSU operations persist due to operational challenges.
Hospital leaders appreciated Sullivan’s honesty and shared a collective interest in working to re-establish trust and momentum — particularly in light of the collaborative effort to revive behavioral health and substance use crisis services as a priority.
Takeaway/Next Steps
Hospital leaders expressed strong support for rebuilding a productive relationship with SC-DHS under Sullivan’s leadership and are optimistic about renewed collaboration. Future conversations will focus on strengthening behavioral health services, re-energizing the cross-sector behavioral health collaborative, and maintaining open channels for operational problem solving.
Contact
RVP Meghan Hardin at mhardin@hospitalcouncil.org