Kenosha County board accepts state crisis-intervention grant to place social worker with Pleasant Prairie police

The Kenosha County Board approved a modification to the Division of Behavioral Health Services' 2025 budget to accept a state crisis intervention program grant that will fund an embedded social worker for the Pleasant Prairie Police Department.

"We're gonna model this program, this embedded social worker, just like we're using it within the Kenosha Sheriff's Office," a county behavioral health staff member identified as Carrie told supervisors during the discussion. "So the requests will come from officers just like it does come from deputies or command staff."

Carrie described performance measures included in the grant application: enhanced suicide screening and identification methods, at least 80 percent of the Pleasant Prairie Police Department will receive screening on the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (CSSRS), use of additional screens including the CALM screen for lethal-means assessment, distribution of medication lock boxes and gun locks to households expressing suicidality, and quarterly outcome measurement documented in the electronic health record.

Supervisor Tim Stocker asked how program safety would be ensured in potentially volatile situations and how effectiveness would be documented. Carrie said law enforcement will remain on scene and that safety decisions will be made jointly; she confirmed the program's measures will be reported quarterly in the EHR.

The resolution — introduced as a joint recommendation from the Human Services and Finance Administration committees and described to the board as a budget modification to accept the state grant — requires a two-thirds vote. The board voted to approve the modification; the motion passed unanimously.

Ending: County staff said the program's data collection and quarterly reporting will be used to track screening rates and outcomes during the first year of implementation.