I’d love to see the day when every city has something in place like a mixture of Curb Violence, Red Hook Community Justice Center, and White Bird Clinic’s CAHOOTS program in Eugene, Oregon.
CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets) provides mobile crisis intervention within the city limits of Eugene, dispatched through the Eugene police-fire-ambulance communications center, and within the Springfield urban growth boundary, dispatched through the Springfield non-emergency number. Each team consists of a medic (either a nurse or an EMT) & a crisis worker (who has at least several years experience in the mental health field). CAHOOTS provides immediate stabilization in case of urgent medical need or psychological crisis, assessment, information, referral, advocacy & (in some cases) transportation to the next step in treatment. Many, but not all, of our clients are homeless.
Before you call the police, ask yourself: Could this get someone killed?
