How law enforcement and social services partnerships are improving mental health crisis response

Talking Through the Numbers

Guests discuss innovative new models in the Twin Cities East Metro area that pair mental health professionals with dedicated community resource officers to more effectively respond to calls from people experiencing a mental health crisis and connect them to the services they need. Guests • Roger Meyer, Project Director, East Metro Crisis Alliance • Emily Schug, Deputy Director, Dakota County Social Services • Brian Sturgeon, Chief of Police, City of West St. Paul • Melissa Serafin, Research Associate, Wilder Research Resources • East Metro Crisis Alliance https://www.eastmetrocrisisalliance.org/ The Alliance is an innovative public-private partnership comprised of counties, hospitals, health plans, consumer organizations, and the state, whose purpose is to measurably improve the crisis system in Ramsey, Dakota, and Washington counties. • Dakota County Mental Health Coordinated Response: https://www.co.dakota.mn.us/HealthFamily/MentalHealth/Response/Pages/default.aspx The Dakota County Coordinated Response model is a collaboration between Dakota County Social Services and some of our local law enforcement departments. The purpose is to provide outreach following a crisis and jointly assist with finding long-term solutions. • St. Paul, MN Community Outreach & Stabilization Unit (C.O.A.S.T.) https://www.stpaul.gov/departments/police/administration-office-chief/community-engagement-division/community-outreach The COAST Unit consists of the Mental Health Resource Team, the Recovery Access Program and the Police Homeless Outreach Program. The Unit enables the SPPD to connect people in crisis with the care they need, helping to significantly reduce mental-health-crisis-related arrests and repeat calls for service. • Law Enforcement Response to Mental Health Needs: How Do We Measure Improvement? How do we know collaborations between law enforcement and social services are successful in serving individuals with mental health and substance use needs? Wilder and East Metro Crisis Alliance teamed up to create an evaluation framework for similar initiatives to assess their effectiveness. https://www.wilder.org/articles/law-enforcement-response-mental-health-needs-how-do-we-measure-improvement