Story by AL Vineyard. Photos contributed by KC Rafferty and Jen Gentry.
More than 100 community leaders, representatives, and advocates from Stone and Taney counties met at the Branson Chamber of Commerce on December 15 and 16, 2022, to identify gaps in the criminal justice and health care systems regarding mental health and substance use disorders at a Sequential Intercept Model (SIM) mapping workshop.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, in the United States nearly 1 in 5 people live with some form of mental illness, including substance use disorder. Those struggling with mental health and substance use disorders need guidance and resources to relieve symptoms and succeed in recovery.
Policy Research Associates, Inc., a national leader in mental health research, created the SIM initiative to map the local systems at each intercept, collaborate across agencies and resources, identify gaps, and create objectives and action plans to bridge the gaps.
An intercept is the point where, during a crisis, a person’s path crosses with community services and/or the judicial and health care systems. At each point, there are opportunities to reach and help the person in need of resources.
The workshop participants openly discussed six intercepts including:
- community services
- law enforcement
- initial detention and court hearings
- jails and courts
- reentry
- probation and parole.
Unfortunately, the systems in place for recovery and rehabilitation have gaps in resources at each intercept.
The SIM workshop was hosted by the Honorable Alan Blankenship, Associate Judge with the 39th Circuit Court, and the Honorable Jeffrey Merrell, Presiding Judge with the 46th Circuit Court. Participants included judges, attorneys, sheriffs and law enforcement, public safety, jail and Department of Corrections administrators, healthcare professionals, social services, peers (people with lived experience), and representatives from various recovery houses, churches, and other local nonprofit organizations.
The open discussion between so many community advocates informed the participants of what each organization offered in goods, housing, and services. Knowing all of the services provided within Stone and Taney counties is important for collaboration across agencies. With such a wide variety of professions and passions, the participants were able to identify gaps that can be addressed at the local level and the information shared regarding services identified existing solutions as well.
After identifying the major gaps to be addressed, participants separated into small groups. Each group determined objectives and created action plans to bridge the gaps.
The main goals of this workshop were to promote and support recovery, ideally through treatment not jail, and through providing adequate treatment when incarceration is unavoidable. Each participant passionately discussed the gaps experienced when working with people with mental health and substance use disorders. There were probation officers advocating for transportation for their clients, judges advocating for jail alternatives and swift releases to approved treatment programs, and law enforcement advocating for peer support to bridge the gap between them and those they frequently serve.
There were not opposing sides between judicial and healthcare professionals and people with mental health and substance use disorders. The workshop participants did not view people with mental health and substance use disorders as adversaries. The community leaders and representatives passionately advocated for the people in need of services at every intercept. They want to help. The workshop may have ended on Friday, but several groups have already scheduled meetings and committed time and resources to move forward with the action plans and established community connections to create a fluid recovery system.
If you would like more info on how you can get involved in the continued work, please contact Marietta.Hagan@coxhealth.com.
If you or someone who know is experiencing a crisis, please dial 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
