The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners recently added two licensed clinicians to the partnership between county police and View Point Health, ensuring a behavior health responder team will be on duty seven days a week.
The teams work with residents experiencing mental health crises.
“This expansion is a vital step to ensure the county is serving our vulnerable population when help is needed most,” said Nicole Love Hendrickson, county commission chairwoman, in a news release. “I applaud the success of our current team — the compassion they’ve shown to residents — and I am thrilled to witness the future of the Police Mental Health collaboration.”
Commissioners approved a $540,000 contract with View Point Health for the expansion, bringing the number of clinicians in the behavioral health unit to three. More additions are expected, as this year’s county budget includes funding for six clinicians.
The county piloted the partnership last year with one team that answered more than 160 mental health crisis calls. The unit was credited with peacefully defusing a hostage situation in March on a Greyhound bus. The passengers were released and the suspect was safely taken into custody.
The expansion also frees patrol officers to answer other calls, Gwinnett Police Chief J.D. McClure said.
“We plan to continue expanding the unit so that we can provide more coverage in an effort to give our residents who may be suffering from a mental health crisis the opportunity to receive the care they need,” McClure said in the release.
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