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In Eugene, Oregon, civilian response workers—not police—are dispatched to nonviolent crises

Caitlin Yoshiko Kandil

January 19, 2021 |

The Christian Century |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Eugene, Oregon

Eugene's well-established CAHOOTS program for replacing police as first responders to certain types of 911 calls has become a model for multiple cities as they seek to replicate its success in an era of questioning the role of police. While it saves its city money and replaces arrests and possible violence with social and health services for people needing housing or mental health care, or suffering from addiction, CAHOOTS is somewhere in the middle of the spectrum of programs responding to these challenges. Communities' differences will dictate what works best for them.

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Albuquerque's vision for non-police first responders comes down to earth

Ted Alcorn

January 17, 2021 |

New Mexico In Depth |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Albuquerque, New Mexico

In response to the 2020 policing protests, Albuquerque was among the first cities to embrace a major change in handling mental-health-crisis calls to 911. But its new Community Safety Department has foundered in its first year, a victim of inadequate planning and resources. The plan to send unarmed first responders on such calls, to reduce the risk of a violent over-reaction by the police, depended on reassigning city workers from other agencies, none of whom were mental health professionals. City councilors have sent the planners back to rethink the latest in a history of failed responses.

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Criminalizing Mental Illness, Part 2

Andrew Stelzer Sarah Shourd

January 14, 2021 |

KALW |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles County's Office of Diversion and Reentry has moved about 6,000 people out of jails and into programs providing mental health care, drug treatment, housing, and job training at a cost that is about one-fifth that of incarcerating people with mental illness. Like Eugene, Oregon's CAHOOTS program, ODR provides an alternative to the default model in the U.S. of incarcerating people with such health problems. L.A. County is now shifting as much as $500 million from policing to supportive services because programs like ODR and CAHOOTS fall far short of the actual need.

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At Teen Lifeline, teens help in ways only they can

Jordan Elder

January 11, 2021 |

Cronkite News - Arizona PBS |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Phoenix, Arizona

A hotline staffed by teenagers for teenagers has been providing peer-to-peer support and counseling services in Arizona for years but has played an even bigger role during the coronavirus pandemic. The group quickly pivoted to reduced staffing shifts to limit exposure to the virus and implemented longer hours for texting services. Not only have calls to the hotline increased, so has the number of those who want to volunteer.

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In Brattleboro, a new kind of police patrol pushes treatment, not jail

Paul Cuno-Booth

January 02, 2021 |

Sentinel Source (The Keene Sentinel) |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Brattleboro, Vermont

Police officers paired with substance abuse counselors go onto Brattleboro's streets to offer no-strings-attached help to people using drugs. Without using arrests or other coercion, the Project CARE "recovery coaches" have connected dozens of people to rehab and other needed services since the program began in July 2018. Modeled on bigger, successful programs in Gloucester and Brockton, Massachusetts, CARE's effect on overdoses is unknown and the involvement of police is seen by some as a drawback. But the outreach has let the community know help is available for the asking – even from cops.

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An Alternative to Police That Police Can Get Behind

Rowan Moore Gerety

December 28, 2020 |

The Atlantic |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Eugene, Oregon

A street-level view of White Bird Clinic's CAHOOTS program in Eugene explains its appeal as a cost-saving, humane alternative to sending the police to 911 calls concerning mostly minor problems involving homelessness, mental illness, and substance abuse. From the decades-old program's countercultural beginnings to today's 24/7 presence, the private agency's publicly funded teams of a medic and crisis worker have helped keep problems from escalating into violence and jail time. But a number of factors call into question how scalable this approach would be in larger, more diverse cities.

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Addressing the mental health plights of Swiss migrants

Svet Lustig

December 22, 2020 |

Geneva Solutions |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Switzerland

In parts of Switzerland and Sweden, mental health care professionals are working to implement culturally appropriate psychiatry services that better addresses the needs of migrant populations. Although acquiring funding for these specialized services can be a challenge, the approach has come to be a model throughout Europe and participants have reported positive feedback.

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As Pandemic Threatens Britain's Mental Health, These ‘Fishermen' Fight Back

Megan Specia

December 06, 2020 |

The New York Times |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: England, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire

The Bearded Fisherman, a mental health charity formed by two men with their own past struggles with mental illness and homelessness, runs a weekly, virtual community support group, takes crisis-intervention calls, and runs the Night Watch suicide-prevention patrol to help people find ways to survive and cope with pandemic-driven unemployment and isolation. In addition to intervening in the moment to prevent a suicide, and providing informal counseling, the group refers people to counseling as England endures Europe's highest COVID-19 death toll and a deep recession.

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Amid COVID and Racial Unrest, Black Churches Put Faith in Mental Health Care

Aneri Pattani

December 01, 2020 |

Kaiser Health News |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Durham, North Carolina

Black churches across the U.S. are collaborating with psychologists and counselors to offer their community access to mental health care services during the coronavirus pandemic. Although not all congregants were initially receptive to the idea of intertwining religion with virtual psychology presentations and on-site counselors, "over time, some members of the clergy have come to realize the two can coexist."

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Gun advocates take the lead in embracing suicide prevention message

Carol Cruzan Morton

November 28, 2020 |

The Oregonian |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington

An alliance between health professionals and gun owners has increased suicide-prevention education and training through multiple initiatives in many states. Groups like Washington’s Safer Homes and Forefront Suicide Prevention ground their message in problem-solving rather than threats to restrict gun owners’ rights. Backed by data showing the deadly correlation between gun ownership and suicide deaths, these groups have made peer counseling and suicide prevention more common components of gun safety education, and have spread gun-storage devices and strategies much more widely through gun owner circles.

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