1) Please explain how the program works:
The System-wide Mental Assessment Response Team (SMART) program pairs a Sheriff’s Deputy and a Mental Health Clinician, for a response to mental health-related calls throughout Summit County. The team employs specialized training to de-escalate situations and to provide crisis intervention and stabilization on the spot.
The team is able to complete mental health assessments in the field, freeing up other Law Enforcement, Fire, EMS, and Hospital Emergency Room resources. The team will safely stabilize most individuals in place, using the least restrictive means possible, through coordinated care using a system-wide approach – essentially efficiently leveraging every resource the Summit County Community has to offer.
The SMART program is also supported by an in-house case management team that will continue to work with clients post-incident – guiding them to a safe return within our community, assisting them in finding available resources, and providing supportive and continued follow-up. One of the barriers to positive mental health in our resort-style community is a lack of connectivity and a feeling of being accountable to someone. Our program homes to help overcome this.
2) What was the impetus for the program> Are there other cities/towns in Colorado or elsewhere this program is happening?
We believe that nearly 80% of Law Enforcement calls in Summit County have some sort of mental health component. It may not be right on the surface, but if you dig just a bit, it is there. A mental health crisis is not a crime, yet law enforcement is often on the first responders in these dynamic situations. A Co-Responder program is the best tool law enforcement has to deliver the services needed to individuals in crisis. There are similar models throughout the country, but Sheriff FitzSimon’s approach differs from most in that the program is 100% housed an operated by the Sheriff’s Office. Law Enforcement agencies do not traditionally directly employ mental health professionals but we feel this integration is a key to a program’s success by creating a single culture of compassion towards those we serve.
3) How will it improve the lives of Summit County Residents?
Benefits to the community can be looked at through two lenses, those who are directly impacted by crisis and the community at large. If you or a loved one is in crisis, you have the benefit of trained mental health professionals being dispatched to your assistance immediately. Those experiencing a mental health crisis will often be saved costly and time-consuming transfers to the emergency room. The case management services will increase the effectiveness of treatment and reduce recidivism by keeping clients in touch with the services and support needed to stay healthy.
The entire community will benefit because traditional Law Enforcement, Fire, and EMS will all be more efficiently freed up from these specialized and time consuming mental health calls so that they can respond more quickly to other calls for help. Additionally, we believe that each person that is stabilized and helped through our program will ultimately go on to help improve our community at large in their own ways.
4) Why were you the one chosen to head this program?
I bring 20 years of law enforcement experience to this new position, 15 of which have been with the Summit County Sheriff’s Office; I have had a diverse career path that has touched many facets of law enforcement. As a Patrol Sergeant, I held my team to higher standards of communication with those they encountered, with a problem-solving emphasis in all cases. I believe understanding and addressing root problems is what citizens are looking for when they call 911 for service . . . far beyond a “band-aid” approach. I think this mindset helped me in the competitive selection process to lead the SMART program.
Additionally, like most, I have had my own firsthand family experience with mental health issues, most notably with the tragic suicide of my father two years ago. He and I were very close, and having seen this kind of tragedy first hand, I wanted to do everything in my power to bring help to those who need it, where they need it, and any and every time they need it. For me, it is personal.
I know that Sheriff FitzSimons has a similar passion, and it was important to him to find a leader for this program who truly felt the calling. The Sheriff and I are dedicated to seeing this program succeed and excel.
5) How will you know your program is working?
Our program is designed in a way that we are proactively engaging and assisting citizens, many times before they go into crisis. Judging success can be difficult in that it is impossible to count the number of calls you don’t get . . . due to pro-activeness and ongoing case management services. That said, we will certainly be tracking analytical outcomes such as clients stabilized on the scene, Law/Fire/EMS resources saved, timeliness of the services we provide, diversions from the Emergency Room and jail, and recidivism reductions.
