“When a family is in crisis, they jump from one thing to another and they’re just putting out fires,” Rose says. “They rarely have anybody sit with them and says, ‘let’s take a step back and really look at how we can prevent the fires.’”
The crisis team brings empathy and expertise to their conversations with families and aligns their support with family goals, whether it’s providing a referral for treatment, bridging a conversation with school administrators, or sharing evidence-based parenting skills.
They also play to families’ strengths. Rose says that the family support partner often excels at this element, as the team works to make clients’ desired next steps a reality.
“They’re listening and really picking up on what a family brings to the table. What are their strengths? What natural supports can they lean on?” Rose says. For example, a teenager struggling with depression who loves to sing is encouraged to enroll in choir to connect a community.
While the unit is just getting started, the impact has been powerful. For example, Rose says, multiple families avoided involuntarily commitment of a child by the courts while in the program.
In addition to working to expand coverage to additional counties across the state, the team is also active in spreading the word in the community.
“Most people do not know there is immediate crisis help available for people experiencing a mental or behavioral health challenge,” she says. “Part of the pilot is a community outreach component to educate the public and to create community champions to help families connect with these services.”
