Our Community Broadcasting Network (OCBN)
Welcome to Our Community Broadcasting Network. Having been involved in public affairs broadcasting and community activism in the greater Denver area since 1999 (see About Us page), I became aware of the many issues impacting the families that make up the diverse metro Denver communities. In 2019, I decided to use my broadcasting experience to create OCBN, an online broadcasting network, to present Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) issues important to these many communities. Past podcasts showcased the DEI programs of the organizations that presented to the Diversity & Inclusion Council at the Aurora Chamber of Commerce. I served as Vice Chair of the D&I Council from 2018 to 2023. The past programs can be viewed on the DEI Podcasts page.
Mental health and substance use disorders have a major impact on communities throughout the country. Due to this ongoing crisis, I have redirected my focus to getting information to the public featuring innovative practices in delivering services and patient/family support programs that help mitigate mental health and substance use disorders and improve behavioral health outcomes. As defined by the American Medical Association (AMA), "Behavioral health generally refers to mental health and substance use disorders, life stressors and crises, and stress-related physical symptoms. Behavioral health care refers to the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of those conditions”.
As behavioral health disorders continue to be a problem that communities are struggling to address, it is vitally important to recognize the impact behavioral and biological health have on each other and how interrelated they are. With this in mind, I found that the delivery of health care for both behavioral and biological health are addressed most effectively within the practice of family medicine. As defined by the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), "Family medicine is the medical specialty that provides first contact as well as continuous, comprehensive health care for individuals, families and communities across their entire lifespan...This specialty is distinctive in its broad integration of biological, clinical, and behavioral sciences, ensuring a holistic approach to patient care. Family medicine engages in education and advocacy efforts to promote the health and well-being of all individuals while removing barriers to equitable care for all populations."
With the proven effectiveness of the broad and inclusive coordinated care approach in family medicine, I have decided to rebrand the Behavioral Health Best Practices Podcast, introduced earlier this year, to the Family Medicine Best Practices Podcast and expand the subject mater to include biological as well as behavioral health. The goal of this initiative is to get vital information out to the public about issues of health that impact peoples lives. I invite any health care professionals and health advocates to explore ways to contribute content as guest presenters and to offer resource information.
As a member of the Behavioral Health Planning and Advisory Council (BHPAC), I am pleased to announce a collaboration between OCBN and BHPAC to get information about behavioral health out to the community. Our goal is to inform the public about behavioral health issues utilizing the Family Medicine Best Practices Podcasts . Additionally, I am pleased to announce the appointment of Our Community Broadcasting Network as a Network Member of the National Library of Medicine (NLM). With this appointment, OCBN is charged with getting valuable information out to the community about health issues that impact their lives. Visit the Newsroom for more information about BHPAC and the National Library of Medicine.
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Below are the latest Family Medicine Best Practices Podcasts*. For earlier podcasts, go to the Family Medicine Podcasts page.
*Interviews are recorded on the Zoom platform and edited for time and content. The edited podcast is then reviewed by the interviewee(s) for accuracy prior to being finalized and posted for public viewing. For more information about the podcast process, contact me at DennisStretar@ocbn.online. All videos are hosted on the Vimeo platform and linked on this page. If any of the podcasts fail to load, refresh the page and that will re-load them properly.
As defined by the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development, "A System of Care is a spectrum of effective, community-based services and supports for children and youth with or at risk for mental health or other challenges and their families, that is organized into a coordinated network, builds meaningful partnerships with families and youth, and addresses their cultural and linguistic needs, in order to help them to function better at home, in school, in the community, and throughout life." This presentation by the Colorado Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health, provides information on the background and current System of Care as revised from earlier models.
Colorado State Senator Dafna Michaelson Jenet was first elected to the Colorado House of Representatives in 2016 and became a state senator in 2023. Her legislative work primarily focuses on foster youth, children's mental health, and health care access. The Senator ran for office because of her personal experiences with mental health issues with her young son. As a children's mental health advocate, she created iMatter, a program that allows any school-aged child to obtain six free sessions of therapy. The Senator is working with several states to help establish this program throughout the country.
CHOW (Culinary Hospitality Outreach and Wellness) was founded in 2018 by Denver pie maker John Hinman and food writer Alexandra Palmerton. After Alexandra interviewed John for an article on mental health challenges in the hospitality industry, the overwhelming response made it clear—people needed a space to share their stories. Seeing this need, John created CHOW as a protected, supportive community for those navigating pain, recovery, and mental well-being. On this podcast is the Chief Growth Officer, Jasmin Parks-Papadopoulos, to talk about the work that CHOW does for the food, beverage and hospitality industry.
The Behavioral Health Administration (BHA) is the state administration responsible for ensuring all people in Colorado have access to quality mental health and substance use disorder services, regardless of where they live, or ability to pay. As required by Colorado law, the BHA was to create a performance monitoring system to track capacity and performance of all behavioral health providers, including those that contract with managed care entities or behavioral health administrative services organizations, and inform of needed changes to the behavioral health system in the state. For more information about the BHA or to access the Performance Hub visit: https://bha.colorado.gov/ .
A YouTube channel has been created. To subscribe to the free podcasts and get notifications whenever a new podcast is posted, click on the YouTube logo and the link will take you to the Behavioral Health Best Practices channel.
