As mobile mental health teams work to de-escalate crises, some warn their models still rely on police partnerships

As mobile mental health teams work to de-escalate crises, some warn their models still rely on police partnerships

Posted on July 29, 2020

In the wake of nationwide demonstrations against police brutality, there has been a surge in interest in making sure mental health providers, not law enforcement, are the ones to respond to a psychiatric crisis. Dozens of cities across the country have what are known as mobile crisis units, which deploy trained professionals to respond to people experiencing a mental health crisis with compassion and clinical expertise. Now, with their work thrust into the spotlight, mobile crisis teams have been flooded with calls from other communities hoping to replicate their models. “I think the timing, the mood of the country is right to take some significant steps,” said Angela Kimball, the national director of advocacy and public policy at NAMI. There’s a need to build an infrastructure that can respond to people in crisis and get them the help that might be needed.