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DPH: BERT interventions rise while use-of-force incidents fall 52% over four years
Summary
DPH security director Basil Price reported that the Behavioral Emergency Response Team (BERT) has expanded services across emergency departments and clinics, completed training for private security ambassadors, and contributed to a 52% decrease in hospital use-of-force incidents over four years; most BERT interventions occurred without law enforcement involvement.
Basil Price, DPH director of security, updated the Health Commission on the department’s Security Management Plan and BERT activity. "Over the past 4 years, use of force has actually decreased by 52%," Price said while reviewing BERT metrics, staffing progress and clinic safety-ambassador placements.
Price reported filling the majority of BERT vacancies, improving sheriff's cadet hiring, and expanding ambassador services at clinics (three clinics staffed with a fourth expected in September). He said BERT provided over 6,500 emergency-department patient interventions in its first full year, and that 87% of BERT interventions were conducted without law enforcement.
Commissioners asked about how race and ethnicity are recorded for monitoring use-of-force. Price said demographic information in reports is typically drawn from government identification or documentation and committed to follow up with the sheriff's office on data collection practices.
Director Colfax and multiple commissioners praised the results and the BERT program's translation into improved safety while minimizing law-enforcement involvement. Commissioners asked for follow-up on the 14% of incidents that still escalate to law enforcement.
What's next: DPH will continue to staff ambassadors at clinics, follow up on data-collection practices with the sheriff's office, and study the escalations where BERT requested law-enforcement support.
