Mental health support through 911

ORISKANY >> For roughly one year, the Oneida County 911 has had a new service that provides mental health counseling to individuals who call 911

he move has drastically improved the amount of police and emergency medical personnel available at any given moment, said Kevin Revere, county 911 director said.

Typically in the past, if someone was having a mental health issue that was nonmedical in nature and not related to any criminal activity, police, fire departments and/ or an ambulance crew would still be dispatched, Revere said.

Now, if someone is having an issue, counselors on staff at the 911 center can take the call, counsel the individual and then take appropriate action.

Mental health professionals are in- house and that frees up resources for crimefighting and medical assistance to those who need it, Revere said. It’s for people having an issue who “just want to talk.”

Diverting the call frees up resources. “It doesn’t tie up the cop,” said Revere.

Oneida County is the first in the state to do this, he said

MCAT, or Mobile Crisis Assessment Team, staff also meets people at the hospital if they are eventually transported there, said Mary Fedor, a crisis counselor at the neighborhood center on Mary Street in Utica, the organization that provides counseling staff at the 911 center. The staff also now responds to on- the- scene calls.

MCAT is funded by Oneida County, and staffing is nearly around the clock. All year round, counselors provide crisis services for individuals with mental health needs, said Fedor.

MCAT staff will even make house calls.

“It’s nice that we can get out to people in the community,” Fedor said.