Child & Family Services Names Chanda Coutinho as New COO

Child & Family Services, Inc (CFS) is proud to announce Chanda Coutinho as their new Chief Operations Officer (COO). Chanda succeeds Paula Borges, who spent 40 years at CFS, fourteen of those as the COO.

Chanda has been with Child & Family Services for the past 21 years with her roots in clinical outpatient therapy. She joined CFS with a passion for working with children and improving the mental wellness of our community. Chanda is bilingual and fluent in Portuguese and offering culturally sensitive and diverse services at all our locations is a top priority for her. “I look forward to continuing to ensure CFS is providing the best equitable and evidence-based services to our community,” stated Mrs. Coutinho.

Chanda received her BSW from Bridgewater State University and her MSW from Simmons College in 2002 and has been a licensed clinical social worker since 2004. Her areas of focus and training while a practicing clinician and supervisor have been trauma focused cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing and family therapy and a recent certification in recovery coach supervision.

Before her recent transition to COO, Chanda was directly overseeing the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC), which is a SAMHSA contract that has a focus on increasing access to care for our community, and the Community Behavioral Health Centers (CBHC), which is a contract that is part of the state's road map to improve access to behavioral health services in the state.

In addition to overseeing these, Chanda also managed the Psychiatry services for the agency along with overseeing several DPH, and BSAS (Bureau of Substance Addiction Services) funded programs and contracts. Part of her journey with CFS has been working to bring new contracts and programming to CFS, and she looks forward to continuing this work on a larger scale as COO. “I am passionate about improving youth services and growing our substance use disorder service options,” said Mrs. Coutinho. “Integrating a comprehensive approach to treatment and respecting every individual's path to wellness is one of my top priorities.”

When she is not working, Chanda enjoys vacationing. “I love to try and experience new things and traveling to other places feeds that passion. I am a frequent visitor of the Acores, but also enjoy traveling throughout the US. Some of my top destinations have been Hawaii, Arizona, Aruba, and off course Portugal!”