By Caleb Wheeler | Staff Writer
After receiving funding to partner with the Waco Police Department, the Heart of Texas Behavioral Health Network is addressing the need for emergency mental health resources by putting behavioral health specialists in immediate contact with those in need.
In recent years, there has been an increase in law enforcement resources spent on mental health crises. Crisis call diversion programs are one possible program, and McLennan County is the most recent addition to the areas utilizing them.
“[Waco PD and the Heart of Texas Behavioral Health Network] will be working together to determine what is best needed as we go with having the [behavioral health] personnel within our dispatch,” Susie Murray, emergency communications 911 manager, said.
This initiative began on Sept. 1, but the partnership has existed for several years. According to Stacey Steger, outpatient crisis services director, this program is just the newest byproduct of a partnership that works to better McLennan County as a whole.
“Essentially, we are integrating behavioral health specialists into working dispatch,” Steger said. “The behavioral health worker will be on the phone trying to diffuse the situation.”
Steger said when there is a behavioral health situation, typically what happens is a dispatcher sends an officer, who then has to get a behavioral health specialist on the scene or on the phone. The new system will shorten the amount of time it takes to serve those individuals and provide officers with more time to address other situations.
“What this partnership does is it allows us to be able to work with individuals directly, so if someone is suffering from depression or psychosis, we like to have an expert ready to help, and it also helps law enforcement do their job more effectively,” Steger said. “Our goal is to divert law enforcement to issues where they are needed and get people more direct behavioral health care.”
According to Steger and Murray, there are mental and behavioral health needs in the community. Both said the best way to improve the situation is to move forward with the partnership and aim for growth.
“Right now, we’re starting with McLennan County,” Steger said. “But the hope is always to expand.”
Murray said starting small is the key to success and will create opportunities for the partnership between the organizations to grow stronger.
“Starting small gives us the opportunity to be able to tweak the program and what we need and don’t need, where we can make changes,” Murray said. “It’s a four-year grant, so we’ll be able to do this for four years, and then after that, hopefully we’ll be in a position where we’ll be able to continue to receive funding in order to grow the program, to meet the needs of our community.”
