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County staff outline crisis‑intervention training, palm cards and naloxone box outreach
Summary
County community services staff described plans to create a crisis intervention team, distribute palm cards listing local mental‑health and substance‑use resources, and maintain more than 100 naloxone boxes around the county; a formal resolution to support technical assistance for creating a crisis intervention team was mentioned.
County community services staff told the Sullivan County Legislature they are creating a crisis intervention team (CIT) and will seek technical assistance and training to expand officers’ crisis‑response skills.
A staff member said a resolution regarding creation of technical assistance to create a crisis intervention team is expected to come before the legislature; she noted the resolution “would also allow for critical crisis intervention treatment training for officers that have not yet been trained.” She added the resolution was not coming through the current committee and that deadlines for some committee submissions were imminent.
Staff also discussed a public outreach effort: palm cards (palm‑sized handouts) listing when to seek help and local providers for substance use and mental‑health services. The cards will include the 988 crisis line and a no‑wrong‑door commitment by listed providers to help callers reach the correct service. The staffer said the county plans to begin with an initial print run of 3,000 to 5,000 palm cards and will identify an approved printer through county purchasing or existing contracts.
Separately, community volunteers and nonprofit partners reported maintaining more than 100 publicly accessible naloxone “NaloxBox” stations countywide, replenished as needed. A volunteer said usage is variable by location; some urban spots require frequent replenishment while rural boxes are used less often. The volunteer also said the boxes have an alarm light that they have removed in some locations because the red light deterred use; boxes otherwise continue to function.
Staff said they will use the Unite Us platform to make referrals and that they are recruiting volunteers for training programs such as Hope Not Handcuffs Angels. The county plans outreach at warming centers, libraries and on the street during cold weather to provide palm cards and referrals.
No formal vote on printing or a specific funding amount for the palm cards was recorded during the public portion of the transcript; the staffer said she had asked purchasing/HR to identify existing printing contracts.
