Community Crisis Response – Part 1

The challenge and complexity of mental health issues in our community is growing and – since the onset of the COVID pandemic – has now reached a critical stage. How do we as a community respond to and provide help to people in the middle of a crisis?

The Appleton Police Department and Outagamie County Health and Human Services recently launched a new two-year pilot program that is taking a unique look at mental health situations and how to help respond when people are experiencing a mental health crisis. A few weeks ago the program embedded a clinical therapist into the police department to respond to calls.

This pilot program has been two years in the making, and the planning took the expertise, collaboration, and support from a lot of people convened around the table, now the Community Crisis Response Team. Their goal is to help community members access the appropriate level of care by providing on-site clinical evaluations and risk assessments for those experiencing a mental health crisis. We had a chance to gather some members of that team for a conversation about how this pilot came to be, what we’ve learned so far, and the difference it’s already making in just a few weeks.