Item:
Title
Presentation on HEART Framework and De-escalation Practices (45min)
Body
Date of BOCC Meeting: May 5, 2025
Request for Board Action:
Agenda Text
The Board is requested to receive a presentation regarding de-escalation practices, training and information on the City of Durham's HEART Program. The Durham County Sheriff's Office has previously discussed its current de-escalation practices and trainings, and staff will be available for further discussion and questions. Part of the discussion will lead into framework on next steps for HEART in Durham County.
On June 27th, 2022, Durham Community Safety Department (DCSD) launched 3 new crisis response units that aim to connect people experiencing non-violent mental health crises or quality of life concerns with the right care by sending new responses that better match residents' needs. A fourth unit launched at the end of September 2022. The goal with these approaches is to connect Durham neighbors to the right care - starting from the point at which someone calls 9-1-1, to the warm handoff to those prepared to help meet the needs of our neighbors in crisis.
These first response teams operate under the name of "HEART", which stands for stands for Holistic Empathetic Assistance Response Teams.
HEART's 4 crisis response units are:
1. Crisis Call Diversion (CCD): CCD embeds mental health clinicians in Durham's 9-1-1 call center.
2. Community Response Teams (CRT): CRT dispatches unarmed 3-person teams as first responders to non-violent behavioral health and quality of life calls for service.
3. Care Navigation (CN): Care Navigators follow up with people after meeting with one of our first responders to help connect to the community-based care they need and want.
4. Co-Response (CoR): CoR pairs clinicians with Durham police officers to respond to certain calls for service that pose a greater potential safety risk.
Alignment with Strategic Plan: This item aligns with Strategic Plan Goal 3: Communi...
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