A History of Community Mental Health in Cuyahoga County

H. Bernard Smith, the first Director of the Cuyahoga County Community Mental Health and Retardation Board in 1968, and a true friend of the Cuyahoga County mental health and addiction community, authored two documents that highlight the history of community mental health in Cuyahoga County.

The documents are excellent and recommended reading for anyone looking to learn about the history of community mental health in Cuyahoga County.

To download a PDF copy of the documents, click on the links below.

1. Community Mental Health in Cuyahoga County: In the Beginning: Federal & State Actions that Culminated in the Development of the Cuyahoga County Community Mental Health and Retardation Board (12 pages)

2. Forty Four Years of Progress: History, Achievements & Evolution of the CCCMHRB into the Alcohol, Drug Addiction & Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board of Cuyahoga County (16 pages with appendices)

Consolidation Archive

The Cuyahoga County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) charged the Cuyahoga County Community Mental Health Board (CCCMHB) and the Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services Board (ADASB) of Cuyahoga County to consolidate and enhance provisions of behavioral healthcare, and to submit the plan for consolidation on December 6, 2007. Over the next eighteen months, this plan guided the efforts of the two organizations in creating the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board of Cuyahoga County, which opened July 1, 2009.

To view a PDF version of A Plan for Consolidation that was submitted to the BOCC and its attachments, click the links below.

• A Plan for Consolidation
• Attachment 1: Executive Committee Meeting Agendas
• Attachment 2: Team Charges and Members
• Attachment 3: CCCMHG Survey Results
• Attachment 4: ADASB Survey Results
• Attachment 5: Public Meeting Agendas & Summaries
• Attachment 6: Team Status Reports

This positive step toward government reform had three goals:

1. To benefit consumers of mental health and alcohol and other drug addiction services by bringing two successful organizations together.
2. To provide greater efficiency and effectiveness in the behavioral health system with reduced cost.
3. To form a new government entity that would build on the strengths of both organizations and advance a best‐fit service delivery system for all residents of Cuyahoga County.

Read more about the history of the consolidation.

Consolidation Updates

• April 23, 2009
• December 22, 2008
• October 2, 2008
• August 27, 2008
• April 23, 2008
• March 17, 2008
• January 25, 2008
• December 10, 2007
• November 9, 2007
• November 2, 2007
• October 26, 2007
• October 2007

Consolidation Blueprints

• Final Consolidation Blueprint Update

Board Minutes