People of all ages and backgrounds in Nevada County facing a behavioral health or emotional crisis can now access professional services from anywhere, day or night.
After months of preparation, Nevada County has announced a new staffing of crisis professionals in response to California mandates and a growing national movement calling for a compassionate, dignified, and effective approach to behavioral crises. A mobile crisis team was established 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Any county resident can seek help for emotional struggles or substance abuse by calling (530) 265-5811. The line has been open since the service began on December 31st.
“We want people to know that they can receive crisis support right where they are, directly from people specially trained to provide crisis assistance,” Nevada County Behavioral Health Department Adult Care said Kari Yardley, the system’s program manager. NCBH).
The new team launched by NCBH will be independent of and complementary to the existing Law Enforcement Mobile Crisis Team established in 2020 and established by the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office. The addition of a new behavioral health team will help fill the gap, provide his 24-hour services to those in crisis and provide an option other than law enforcement.
With the addition of a new 24/7 mobile crisis response team available countywide, the goal is to help more people get the crisis support they need for stabilization and long-term health. .
“We will continue our partnership with Behavioral Health in 2024 as Behavioral Health deploys a new independent Behavioral Health Mobile Crisis Team. I’ve seen firsthand how having both parties respond to services together helps reduce arrests, de-escalate situations, and increase access to recovery services and preventive supports.” said Shanann.・Sheriff Moon stated that the unique Joint Response Mobile Crisis Team remains in effect.
The California Department of Health Services requires all 58 California counties and their behavioral health systems to expand crisis services and provide community-based mobile crisis intervention services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Did.
These services are currently offered as a Medi-Cal benefit. These services are currently funded by Medi-Cal, but are available to anyone in Nevada County, regardless of Medi-Cal eligibility.
“This was a huge project for our county. Sierra Mental Wellness Group and Nevada County Behavioral Health worked incredibly hard to make this happen,” Yardley said. Told.
How to use
California offers Medi-Cal Mobile Crisis Services benefits to provide de-escalation and relief to individuals experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis wherever they are: at home, at work, at school, on the street, etc. We are implementing it.
The new mobile crisis team is staffed by two behavioral health professionals trained to respond to callers who may be struggling with mental health or substance abuse. Calls are routed through the crisis triage line at (530) 265-5811.
Although the dispatch process is independent of 911 dispatch, steps are taken to request law enforcement assistance when necessary.
Through safety planning and follow-up communications, the team provides immediate support and connection to stabilization services as needed. The Mobile Crisis Team is free and available to all individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis within Nevada County.
“There is a stigma around mental health that prevents people from seeking help when they need it,” said Yardley. “The Mobile Crisis Team provides support to connect people with reliable services.”
If people are experiencing a behavioral health crisis that is not an immediate threat to the safety of themselves or the public, or if they are unable to access or utilize food, clothing, or shelter due to severe or debilitating mental illness, or are unable to participate in their own or In developing a plan to keep others safe, the Mobile Crisis Team will assess whether additional psychiatric treatment is needed.
“We want to be able to provide services in the best and safest way,” said Todd Arvidson, general manager of crisis services at Sierra Mental Wellness Group.
The Nevada County Behavioral Health Department contracts with Sierra Mental Wellness Group (SMWG) to provide crisis response services within the county. SMWG has been providing crisis services in Nevada County for over 10 years and runs a crisis stabilization unit at a hospital. Since 2020, SMWG has partnered with the Sheriff’s Office and Nevada County to develop and provide crisis professionals to the Sheriff’s Office Crisis Response Team.
Build on success
“Nevada County Behavioral Health has been a great partner to the Sheriff’s Office and helped us contract with Sierra Wellness Group for Clinicians, which has led to the joint success of our Mobile Crisis Team. ” said Sheriff Shanann Moon.
In 2020, Sheriff Moon launched the first Mobile Crisis Response Team in Nevada County after touring other agencies across the state. The Sheriff’s Office has two mobile crisis response teams, one sheriff’s deputy and one behavioral health physician per team, available 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to provide mental health assistance 24/7. We respond to calls and are proud of our success rate.
After 7 p.m., on-duty sheriff’s deputies will continue to respond to all calls for help, including crisis and mental health calls. The majority of mental health-related calls are resolved on-site and do not require immediate medical or clinical support.
However, if emergency mental health services are needed, individuals are transported to a hospital or behavioral health crisis stabilization unit (CSU) for services.
According to Sheriff’s Office statistics, the overwhelming majority of all calls in 2023 were resolved at the scene (313, or 68% of calls), with only 10 calls ending in transfer to jail. was.
In calendar year 2023, the Sheriff’s Mobile Crisis Team responded to 460 calls for service, the most common of which were welfare checks (46.4% of calls), followed by de-escalation (27.8% of calls). was. A total of 385 unique individuals were served, with 530 services provided and 346 treatment referrals.
The Sheriff’s Office remains committed to providing a mobile crisis team in conjunction with behavioral health mobile crisis teams that will continue to respond to 911 calls, resolve incidents in the field, and direct people to appropriate services. transportation or referral to community resources.
With the addition of a new 24/7 mobile crisis response team available countywide, the goal is to help more people get the crisis support they need for stabilization and long-term health. .
“Our goal is to provide effective and compassionate crisis response services to Nevada County residents,” Yardley said. “There’s no shame in needing help. You don’t have to suffer alone.”
Freelance writer Laura Petersen contributed to this report as part of a series of articles written on behalf of Nevada County. You can contact her at: laurapetersenmedia@gmail.com.
