Heart Forward Conversations from the Heart
The American mental health system is broken beyond repair. Rather than trying to tweak a system which fails everyone, it is time to commit to a bold vision for a better way forward. This podcast explores the American system against the plumb line of an international best practice, recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO), in Trieste, Italy. The 40-year old Trieste model demonstrates how a community-based treatment system upholds the human rights of the people served. The Trieste story is anti-institutional and models the therapeutic value of social connection. Topics will address contemporary challenges in the American failed mental health system as contrasted with the Italian approach toward accoglienza – or radical hospitality – as the underpinning of their remarkable culture of caring for people. Interviews will touch upon how the guiding principles of the Italian system – social recovery, whole person care, system accountability, and the human right to a purposeful life – are non-negotiable aspects if we are to have any hope of forging a new way forward in our American mental health system. This podcast is curated and hosted by Kerry Morrison, founder and project director of Heart Forward LA (https://www.heartforwardla.org/). Heart Forward is collaborating with Aaron Stern at Verdugo Sound as the technical partner in producing this podcast (https://www.verdugosound.com). Kerry Morrison is also the author of the blog www.accoglienza.us.
Heart Forward Conversations from the Heart
What is CAHOOTS and why are more and more people talking about this? A Conversation with Ben Adam Climer
2020 will go down in history for many things, including the significant push for a diversion of mental health related calls from law enforcement to a different model. The CAHOOTS program, initiated in Eugene, Oregon, has captured the imagination of many throughout the country who are looking for a tested approach which shifts the burden to a peer-led team.
CAHOOTS stands for Crisis Assistance Helping out on the Streets and was started in Eugene, Oregon in 1989. It originated as a collaboration between a local nonprofit clinic and the city and has grown into a 24/7 service. Multiple vans serve the city and offer an alternative to the traditional reliance upon first responders of police or paramedics which can often be a traumatic experience for all involved.
Ben Adam Climer, who started his career working in homeless outreach in Los Angeles, moved to Oregon in 2014 and worked on the CAHOOTS team for five years, first as a crisis worker and then as a trained Emergency Medical Technician (EMT).
Climer is now consulting with a number of local jurisdictions who are looking to shift crisis calls away from the traditional law enforcement response to specialized teams with clinical workers, trained crisis workers and/or peer responders. Climer walks us through how CAHOOTS is dispatched in Oregon and describes the types of calls they are uniquely equipped to handle. He also shares data about the positive outcomes, both financial and human in scale. Most noteworthy is the importance of de-escalating situations by not resorting to forceful interventions and avoiding costly hospital and jail interventions.
To contact Ben-Adam Climer
Ben Adam Climer | LinkedIn
Articles:
CAHOOTS: A Model for Prehospital Mental Health Crisis Intervention (psychiatrictimes.com)
Huntington Beach latest to create non-police team to handle mental health, homeless issues – Orange County Register (ocregister.com)
You Tube:
(153) Los Angeles CAHOOTS Presentation - YouTube