Dakota County expands follow-up program for 911 callers with mental health concerns

Dakota County plans to expand a 911 pilot program that follows up on callers with mental health concerns from its current four cities to the entire county.

The program, which now serves Apple Valley, Rosemount, West St. Paul and South St. Paul, has been a success, officials say. So, five more social workers are being hired to collaborate with police departments and connect with callers, offering them short- and long-term support services provided by the county or other agencies.

"We definitely have the data points to show that we are reaching hundreds of people that we wouldn't have reached previously," said Emily Schug, deputy director of Dakota County Social Services.

The county needed to do more to address the "root causes" of crises rather than just solving the problem in the moment, Schug said.

"It's been a very positive program and it needs to be expanded," said West St. Paul Police Chief Brian Sturgeon. "I can't say enough ... about how it benefits our community."

The Dakota County Board approved using $320,000 in American Rescue Plan Act aid to fund part of the expansion. The rest will be funded from the existing budget, state grants and third-party billing, Schug said.

The project began with West St. Paul and South St. Paul in 2019. Rosemount and Apple Valley joined in mid-2020.

"The point ... is to meet people individually, wherever they're at," said Jamie Rud-Collett , supervisor of the county's coordinated response team. She said no one is disqualified.

Her team members are all licensed mental health professionals, Rud-Collett said. She said they can help provide a range of services, including offering short-term therapy, finding chemical dependency treatment options, resolving housing and legal concerns, or referring callers to food and transportation assistance.

The county has been tracking how well several goals are being met, including better collaboration with police, prevention of callers' additional crises, reduction of emergency room visits and involvement with the criminal justice system

West St. Paul and South St. Paul referred 378 people to the program for follow-up; Apple Valley and Rosemount referred 259. Most callers were referred only once and were already known by county social services.

Most calls included mention of a mental health crisis or suicide attempt, though there were calls for other reasons — for example, welfare check requests, domestic disturbance reports or criminal activity concerns — that still led to program referrals.

In West St. Paul and South St. Paul, staff contacted just over a third of those referred. About half of those referrals acceptedservices.

But data showed that the program didn't always reduce participants' use of emergency resources.

The county followed 24 participants in West St. Paul and South St. Paul for six months and found that a handful of them continued to call 911 or be taken to the hospital at least aa often as before.

Rud-Collett said the COVID-19 pandemic was a possible variable influencing people's behavior, especially surrounding mental health.

And Schug said an increased number of 911 calls may be a good thing.

Rud-Collett had a similar perspective on hospital visits: "I think it's really important when someone needs that level of care to help them get there."

Still, the program gives police departments a chance to "break the cycle" for some 911 callers, helping them find appropriate services rather than continuing to have run-ins with police for non-criminal behavior, said Capt. Greg Dahlstrom of the Apple Valley Police Department's support services division.