Grants for 911 dispatch centers 20218/11/2023 ![]() They asked, “What would happen if a mental health counselor sat at 911 dispatch?” To answer this question and develop a plan to move forward, they convened a group of stakeholders representing the police department and the center. The center reached out to their law enforcement partners, and together they landed on the 911 space. The idea for the crisis call diversion program began in 2015 as the Harris Center was considering ways to reduce the unnecessary burden on law enforcement responding to mental health crises and provide more appropriate, proactive care to people in need. Initial concept of the diversion program and history of crisis services in Harris County By having crisis responders sitting in the Harris County 911 call center, and working on the same technology platform, they can rapidly respond to people’s needs, resulting in faster response times. The diversion program is a partnership between the Houston Police Department, the Houston Fire Department, the Houston Emergency Center, and the Harris Center for Mental Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, one of the original members of the Lifeline network. Innovative programs and partnerships like the diversion program in Harris County offer valuable lessons and insight as other crisis programs around the nation enhance their services in anticipation of the July 2022 launch of 988, the new three-digit number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline that Vibrant Emotional Health administers. The first of its kind in the nation, the Harris County 911 Crisis Call Diversion program embeds behavioral health specialists in the 911 call center to decrease reli ance on preventable emergency and hospital services for people experiencing a mental health crisis. Between the hours of 6 am and 10 pm, seven days a week, behavioral health call takers sit alongside 911 call takers at the Houston Office of Emergency Management, ready to meet the mental health crisis needs of Harris County’s 4.1 million people. ![]()
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