Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Services is marking Mental Health Awareness Month in May by highlighting the availability of its mental health and substance use disorder services to residents. With the closure of the Mental Health Complex last year, BHS has transitioned to community-based locations across the neighborhoods, making behavioral health services more accessible across the county than ever before. The services include Community Access to Recovery Services (CARS), the Crisis Assessment Response Team (CART), the Milwaukee Mobile Crisis Team, Access Clinics, and the Milwaukee County Mental Health Clinic.
BHS hopes to destigmatize the need for mental health support in the community by encouraging residents to explore the services and resources available to them. Each week of the month will have a different focus.
During the week of May 1-7, BHS will highlight Community Access to Recovery Services (CARS), which has been providing prevention, treatment, care management, and recovery support to Milwaukee County residents for over 30 years. The goal of CARS is to eliminate barriers to behavioral health services and increase the community's ability to thrive.
The week of May 8-14 will focus on the Crisis Assessment Response Team (CART), which works in partnership with law enforcement for co-response to mental health emergency calls. The team's clinicians respond to 911 dispatch and requests from other police officers or mobile clinicians for mental health emergencies. The goal is to assist individuals in stabilizing in the community, linking them to appropriate resources and diverting them from detention or arrest.
From May 15-21, BHS will highlight the Milwaukee Mobile Crisis Team, which supports callers on the Milwaukee County Crisis Line and provides mental health response and intervention services to individuals of any age on an outreach basis, on-site, in-person or face-to-face in the community.
The week of May 22-28 will focus on Access Clinics, which support uninsured or underinsured Milwaukee County residents over the age of 18 who are facing a mental health or co-occurring crisis by connecting them to culturally competent behavioral health care, regardless of their ability to pay.
Finally, from May 29-31, BHS will highlight the new Milwaukee County Mental Health Clinic, which is an outpatient clinic providing medication management and psychotherapy services to serve youth and young adults enrolled in Wraparound Milwaukee or Youth Comprehensive Community Services (CCS).
BHS aims to connect the community to compassionate quality behavioral healthcare that helps people of all ages continue their path toward healing. As community-based intervention services continue to expand, it's important that Milwaukee County residents experiencing behavioral health crises have access to trained professionals to support them. Milwaukee County is currently hiring Mobile Clinicians to join Milwaukee Mobile Crisis and CART and is seeking candidates who want to make a difference in the lives of Milwaukee County's most vulnerable residents.
|
|
For more information about Mental Health Awareness Month and Milwaukee County’s involvement, visit the Behavioral Health Services website.
