INDIANAPOLIS — A new group of mental health professionals will soon be responding to 911 calls in Indianapolis.
The pilot program was announced Monday by the Office of Public Health and Safety after a budget of $2 million was approved by the City-County Council last October.
The Clinician-Led Community Response Program will not include any law enforcement and the teams will only respond to nonviolent mental health calls.
City leaders say this program was first announced last March.
A month later, Herman Whitfield III died in police custody during a mental health crisis. This renewed the call for more mental health resources.
“We are honored to add the new Clinician-Led Community Response team to our Behavioral Health Division, as it will allow us to provide residents specialized care and support that is essential to their well-being, fitting directly into our mission at OPHS.” said Romy Berard-Tucker, director of the Office of Public Health and Safety.
This program is part of a three-pronged approach that also includes the city’s Mobile Crisis Assistance Team led by IMPD and the Assessment and Intervention Center.
Stepping Stone Therapy Center is responsible for hiring and managing the response teams, with the help of the Phoenix Nicolas Center and OPHS.
“Having a system that my clients can access without police intervention that could end up irreversibly altering their lives, it’s not only a need, it’s a priority,” said Bianca Harris with the Phoenix Nicolas Center.
The teams will operate out of the City-County Building and 911 dispatchers will determine when and where they go.
“As long as it’s not an imminent threat to that person or community, it’s not a safety concern, no weapons involved, the clinicians are going to be the ones leading it,” Berard-Tucker said.
The first phase of the program will include four teams, comprised of a clinical supervisor, a licensed clinical social worker and a peer specialist. They will work 10-hour shifts for three days. When fully staffed, the pilot program will operate 24/7 in the Downtown and East IMPD Districts.
The goal is to launch the teams this July.