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Minnesota council considering adding MH professionals to support police response
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
mental health weekly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1556-7583
pISSN - 1058-1103
DOI - 10.1002/mhw.32831
Subject(s) - mental health , law enforcement , enforcement , emergency response , political science , public relations , nursing , health professionals , business , psychology , public administration , medicine , law , health care , medical emergency , psychiatry
The Winona City Council in Minnesota last week considered adding two full‐time mental health professionals to complement or support police response in situations where law enforcement may not be necessary, the Winona Daily News reported June 6. More specifically, as stated in the request, the professionals will take on a role similar to that of first responders and provide “proactive response and follow up support to individuals who often use emergency services for mental health crisis.” An additional benefit to having a dedicated professional is they would reduce call volume so law enforcement has more capacity for other services. The city has studied and considered programs using trained mental health professionals for the past four years, the request states. Just last fall, a coalition of Winona community members, stakeholders and city staff formed the “Alternative Response Group” and subsequently created the “Alternative Response Team,” which was described as a model that works best for Winona. The positions have already been budgeted for and will be provided through Hiawatha Valley Mental Health Center. If approved, the contract with Hiawatha Valley will run for three years, through 2024.