Fresno County DBH launches three-month training calendar to boost behavioral health workforce

On December 31, 2025, the Fresno County Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) informed its contracted providers that a consolidated three-month Training Calendar for January, February and March 2026 has been posted for use across the county. The calendar displays training dates, includes links to flyers and enrollment details, and will be updated monthly to reflect additional opportunities and changes.

Among the highlighted offerings are a UCLA-led Medications for Addiction Treatment session and an in-person Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist certification scheduled for January. Both trainings target areas of urgent need in the county: evidence-based medication-supported care for substance use disorders and expansion of peer workforce capacity that can bill Medi-Cal and provide lived-experience support to clients navigating recovery and behavioral health services.

DBH directed providers to register and obtain further materials via the department’s Notifications & Associated Documents page and through program contacts listed with each posting. The centralized calendar is intended to streamline access to continuing education, credentialing and evidence-based practice training for clinics, community organizations and individual providers who serve Fresno County’s diverse and often underserved populations.

Public health implications are immediate. Expanding MAT training can increase the number of providers able to prescribe or support medications that reduce overdose risk and improve substance use disorder outcomes. Certifying Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialists can broaden the county’s capacity to offer culturally responsive, recovery-oriented services to Medi-Cal beneficiaries, who make up a substantial portion of behavioral health clients in Fresno County.

The calendar also touches on broader equity and workforce issues. Fresno County faces ongoing shortages in behavioral health clinicians and peer workers, and transportation, childcare and digital access remain barriers for some providers and community-based organizations seeking training. Monthly updates to the calendar aim to make scheduling more predictable, but access will depend on local agencies’ ability to release staff, secure travel funds for in-person sessions and identify language and cultural accommodations.

For contracted providers, the immediate step is to consult the department’s Notifications & Associated Documents page and the program contacts listed on postings to register and obtain enrollment materials. For residents, an expanded, better-trained workforce promises improved access to evidence-based addiction treatment and peer-led services, a critical component of county efforts to address overdose, mental health crises and inequitable access to care. DBH’s training initiative is one part of an ongoing push to strengthen the local behavioral health system and reduce barriers for communities that have long faced disparities in care.