CITY COMMISSION AGENDA ITEM

Department:	Lawrence Police Department		Commission Meeting Date: 05/02/2017
Staff Contact:	Captain Trent McKinley/Sergeant Ryan Halsted
Recommendations/Options/Action Requested:
Development of Mental Health Team Update
Executive Summary:		The Lawrence Kansas Police Department and law enforcement agencies around the nation have been dealing with increased amounts of mental health related calls for the past several years. The reduced amount of resources, combined with the complexity of these types of calls, all make mental health related calls some of the most labor intensive types of calls there are. The Lawrence Kansas Police Department has made a commitment to attempt to address some of these issues with the formation of a Mental Health Team consisting of a CIT-trained officer paired with a civilian Masters level therapist employed by Bert Nash Mental Health Center. This will help bridge some of the gaps that subjects with mental health issues experience when coming into contact with the Lawrence Police. The formation of this team has been researched by interacting and consulting with numerous stakeholders in the community including Bert Nash, Lawrence Memorial Hospital, Douglas County CIT Council, as well as others. City Auditor Michael Eglinski had laid out four initial objectives such as clarifying goals to improve the responses to people with mental illness, develop and administer an employee survey, develop a plan to collect data related to mental health related calls, and develop both policy and standard operating procedures for the team. All of these objectives have been met or are in the process of being addressed. Bert Nash is in the process of selecting a co-responder. The Mental Health Team Officer has already been assigned to the position and is currently working on the development of the team.
Strategic Plan Critical Success Factor		Core Services Collaborative Solutions
Fiscal Impact (Amount/Source):		N/A
Attachments:		Commission Presentation PowerPoint

Reviewed By: (for CMO use only)

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