Peace River Center’s Community Mobile Support Team (CMST) provides crisis outreach counselors at each of the five Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) District Substations throughout Polk County to assist with mental health related calls/cases. Two Crisis Outreach Counselors are assigned to each of these locations. Working 12-hour, day shifts (8a-8p), they are at the District Offices 7 days a week. The Crisis Outreach Counselor responds to calls involving a person experiencing a mental health crisis at the request of the PCSO Deputy on scene within the community. In these situations, the Crisis Outreach Counselor provides a crisis assessment, which may include a suicide severity screening, and provides crisis intervention to deescalate the current situation so an action plan can be developed for services at the appropriate level of care.

Proven Results

The goal of the response is to bring the situation to a level where a Baker Act is not necessary, reduce the acute stress, build coping and resiliency, and connect the person to needed services. So far, in the districts where the Community Mobile Support Team is fully implemented, there has been a 24% average decrease in Baker Acts. Where the situation warrants a more restrictive level of care, the Crisis Outreach Counselor works in partnership with the responding Deputy to facilitate the Baker Act process.

Reducing the Likelihood of Another Baker Act Through Follow Up and Support

In those incidents where an individual is placed under a Baker Act by a PCSO Deputy (Crisis Response Team or CMST may not have been involved), the Crisis Outreach Counselor will follow up with the person post Baker Act discharge.  The goal is to reduce the likelihood of the person being re-Baker Acted through assisting the person to connect with aftercare services in the community.  The Crisis Outreach Counselor re-evaluates the situation and can provide additional support to bridge the time from Baker Act discharge to connection to community services.