About the Program:
The Crisis Assistance Team (CAT) is Flathead County’s behavioral health mobile crisis response team, who works alongside law enforcement to serve all persons in crisis throughout the community. The program operates within the Flathead City-County Health Department in partnership with the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, Kalispell Police Department, Whitefish Police Department, and Columbia Falls Police Department. CAT started in August 2020 with the goal of decreasing the frequency and intensity of 911 behavioral health calls by working to link people in crises to mental health services. Since its inception, the team has responded to over 1000 calls for service working to support emergency department and justice system diversion. The team uses a client-centric, systems approach to provide on-site therapeutic services to community members experiencing a behavioral health crisis. The program is partially funded through MT DPHHS grant to support Behavioral Health initiatives as well as through partnership between Flathead County and the City of Kalispell using National Opioid Settlement Agreement Funds. The CAT Program can also bill Medicaid for client services.
The Team:
The CAT consists of two Co-Responder Crisis Therapists and two Crisis Care Coordinators operating in two independent teams.
The Co-Responder assesses and counsels individuals in crisis within the community. The Co-Responder is mobile for most of their shift in a company vehicle. The Co-Responder is responsible for performing field mental health evaluations of individuals in crisis and provides recommendations to law enforcement officers on scene with them. Co-Responders are dispatched onto calls through 911 or 988 and provide community-based crisis assessments at various locations such as in homes, schools, parking lots, grocery stores, etc. Co-Responders effectively collaborate with law enforcement partners to de-escalate and resolve crisis situations and work with mental health professionals, medical providers, and other social service community agencies to provide resources for treatment. This position frequently interacts with individuals identified as high utilizers of crisis units, emergency rooms, and police services related to behavioral health issues.
The Care Coordinator serves as the contact point, advocate and informational resource for Co-Responders, law enforcement, and community members in crisis. The care coordinator works with community members to assess unmet health and social needs of individuals in crisis and works with resources to develop a care plan/treatment plan which includes referrals to social service programs, treatment facilities, and other needs identified. This work is done on scene with the Co-Responders or at various places such as the hospital coordinating with hospital social workers and discharge nurses, at the detention center, or independently in a public place.
Thank you to the following agencies for continued support of the program:
