With the completion 11th Crisis Intervention Team Academy for Law Enforcement Professionals, 100 percent of departments in Miami, Darke and Shelby Counties have now had at least one officer trained in special encounters with persons in mental health crisis. Eighteen law enforcement officers from Darke, Miami and Shelby Counties attended Crisis Intervention Team Academy presented by the Tri-County Board of Recovery and Mental Health Services April 4-7.
Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training is a nationally recognized program that teaches law enforcement safe and effective approaches to handling crisis incidents involving a mentally ill individual. The intensive 4-day training is conducted under the instructional supervision of local CIT-trained police officers, mental health professionals, consumers, and family advocates and offers practical techniques for de-escalating crisis situations.
CIT Coordinator Kim McGuirk, Director of Clinical Services and Evaluation for the Tri-County Board, said, "We are extremely proud that we have reached all of our local law enforcement agencies with this important, often life-saving training. Officers tell us they now feel better equipped to handle calls involving mental health crisis, and those of us involved with mental health services have a better understanding of what the law enforcement officers deal with in the field."
The training is underwritten by the Tri-County Board's mental health levy, by grants from the Ohio chapter of the National Alliance for Mental Illness and NAMI of Darke, Miami and Shelby Counties, and by in-kind donations of food by local vendors.
The Tri-County Board also presents CIT companion courses for mental health professionals, dispatchers, court personnel and other groups. For more information about the CIT Academy or companion courses, see the Tri-County Board's website at www.tcbmds.org/community.
Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training is a nationally recognized program that teaches law enforcement safe and effective approaches to handling crisis incidents involving a mentally ill individual. The intensive 4-day training is conducted under the instructional supervision of local CIT-trained police officers, mental health professionals, consumers, and family advocates and offers practical techniques for de-escalating crisis situations.
CIT Coordinator Kim McGuirk, Director of Clinical Services and Evaluation for the Tri-County Board, said, "We are extremely proud that we have reached all of our local law enforcement agencies with this important, often life-saving training. Officers tell us they now feel better equipped to handle calls involving mental health crisis, and those of us involved with mental health services have a better understanding of what the law enforcement officers deal with in the field."
The training is underwritten by the Tri-County Board's mental health levy, by grants from the Ohio chapter of the National Alliance for Mental Illness and NAMI of Darke, Miami and Shelby Counties, and by in-kind donations of food by local vendors.
The Tri-County Board also presents CIT companion courses for mental health professionals, dispatchers, court personnel and other groups. For more information about the CIT Academy or companion courses, see the Tri-County Board's website at www.tcbmds.org/community.
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