ValueOptions® and Colorado Health Networks Win Administrative Contract
ValueOptions® offers a specialized Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) program designed specifically for law enforcement officers interacting with people in crisis.
Phoenix, Arizona — February 13, 2006
Police officers are faced with challenges every day trying to keep our communities safe. When confronting an individual who is in crisis, officers may struggle with how best to handle the situation given these individuals' special needs.
ValueOptions addresses this awareness and education problem with a specialized Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) program designed specifically for law enforcement officers interacting with people in crisis. To date, ValueOptions has trained over 600 officers in how to work with consumers they encounter in the field.
"This program is jail diversion at its purest because it gives officers an alternative to arresting consumers," says Joe Prawdzik, ValueOptions Training & Education Manager. "It basically decriminalizes being mentally ill."
Recognized as a national model for working with law enforcement, the program consists of a 40-hour training curriculum which spans a variety of topics concerning mental health. Participants are given a general overview of psychiatric disorders, as well as some signs and symptoms to help them recognize when they are dealing with someone who may require special treatment.
The training then focuses on giving the officers tools for effective communication with these individuals and teaches them critical de-escalation techniques. The curriculum utilizes role-playing to enable officers to learn from real-life crisis scenarios such someone threatening to jump from a tower, holding a baby hostage, or locking him or herself in a room.
"The CIT program protects the physical safety of consumers, now that the police are armed with verbal skills," says Prawdzik. "The training gives them an alternative to using force, and consumers are less likely to be harmed in a confrontation."
Referral options are another component of the CIT program. Previously, officers may have seen incarceration as the only option for consumers that cannot be left alone in public. The training teaches them to utilize such resources as the ValueOptions Crisis Line, emergency mobile teams, or the ValueOptions Urgent Psychiatric Care Center.
"This program has helped improve relationships between the mental health community and law enforcement," says Nick Margiotta, an officer with the Phoenix Police Department. "It gives us a method to help de-escalate a crisis situation, and then everyone wins – consumers and police officers."
About ValueOptions of Arizona
ValueOptions of Arizona is the Regional Behavioral Health Authority for Maricopa County, which serves nearly 60,000 county residents. ValueOptions manages publicly funded behavioral health services through more than 100 agencies and 22 case management sites. The company offers a range of services, from mental health case management, to crisis services and strengths-based, family-centered programs for children. Visit www.valueoptions.com/arizona for more information.
