INDIANAPOLIS — Recently, the City of Indianapolis launched a unified response initiative to better serve the entire Indianapolis community as well as the responding personnel during mental health crises. This 24/7 collaborative effort reflects a shared commitment to addressing the complexities of mental health calls with compassion, efficiency, and resources.
This unified response is activated when Mobile Crisis Assistance Teams (MCAT) or the Clinician Led Community Response (CLCR) teams are not available. The unified mental health response is a joint response to mental health calls to enhance coordination among IMPD, IFD, and IEMS personnel. It focuses on understanding the situation and whether there are any active safety concerns, while determining the needs of the individual in crisis. It then allows one agency to take the lead for appropriate care.
Under the Unified Mental Health Response Metropolitan Emergency Services Agency (MESA) dispatches calls for service, engages with the caller to better understand the situation and asks about prior diagnoses, medications, and known weapons. That information goes to IMPD, IFD, and IEMS and monitors radio traffic for changing conditions. The medical needs of the patient are assessed and hospital destination is determined. IMPD determines the need for arrest or Emergency Detention and secures the scene.
If there is an active threat or weapons known at the scene, IMPD officers will address the incident first while IEMS/IFD stages nearby. If there is no credible threat, IMPD will stand by and allow medics and other first responders to provide appropriate care.