MONTGOMERY COUNTY — Montgomery County’s agency to promote mental health is making big changes in the New Year to open the doors to mental health help to more people.
The alcohol, drug addiction and mental health services board, or ADAMHS board, is establishing a different way of providing emergency care.
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News Center 7′s Mike Campbell spoke with the agency’s leaders about their new crisis hotline and the changes in the way mental health care will be delivered.
The ADAMHS board knows the community has had a long period of mental health challenges, even before the pandemic began. This is why they’re working to expand mental health services for everyone.
“We’re seeing an increase in suicide attempts, we’re also seeing, as you know, an increase in overdoses,” said Helen Jones-Kelley, ADAMHS Board Executive Director.
Jones-Kelley says the strain the community’s gone through over the last several years is showing and they want to provide more help.
“We also realize there’s a lot of people in mental health crisis situations that are reluctant to, or don’t know how to, connect to the system,” Jones-Kelley said.
Jones-Kelley says ADAMHS is launching Crisis Now, a large offering of expanded mental health services on January 1st.
The agency gave News Center 7 a sneak peak of the community announcement they created.
The new hotline number is 833-580-CALL, or 833-580-2255.
But its not just a new phone number, it’s a 24/7 call center and the possibility of mobile crisis services.
Additionally, people taken to hospitals by police officers for evaluations will now be helped to speak with a clinician to determine the next steps, instead of potentially experiencing trouble speaking with an officer.
“The phone call, the conversation, the phone assessment reduces or de-escalates the situation,” Jones-Kelley said.
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The idea is to get struggling people help before situations escalate to danger in the community and large police presence in neighborhoods.
Although, everyone needs to reach out for help, for themselves or a loved one, like they would for a physical disease like cancer.
“This is brain disease, we have to be able to share resources and information and talk openly about it,” Jones-Kelley said.
The new Crisis Now hotline number switches on January 1st.
Then, six months later, there will be a new nationwide number to connect to mental health services, it will be 988, the same as calling 911 for physical health services.
For more information about Montgomery County agencies providing mental health counseling and other services, you can download the free app “local help now,” in the app store.
Be sure to also specify Montgomery County.
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