The partners for pre-crisis intervention include:

• Henderson County EMS (lead)
• Henderson County Sheriff's Department (lead)
• Hendersonville Police Department (lead)
• Other first responders (collaborate)
• Henderson County Department of Public Health (support)

Pre-crisis intervention was identified by the Behavioral Health Summit as an action, that when combined with other actions in our community, has a reasonable chance of making a difference in mental health outcomes in Henderson County. This is an ongoing action in our community, but a new initiative defined in the Henderson County Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). Pre-cisis and crisis intervention is intervention that occurs when individuals and families are experiencing mild to moderate challenges, with the intent to keep them out of restrictive environments (e.g. hospitals). 

Law enforcement officials and first reponders in Henderson County are being equipped with Crisis Intervention Team training to better respond to community members experiencing a behavioral health crisis. 

The customers for this strategy include all community members, but particularly individuals and families experiencing mental/behavioral health crisis. Often, individuals in underserved populations experience troubles that pre-empt mental health crisis. This strategy aims to make a difference at the individual and interpersonal levels.

In April 2022, officers from three local law enforcement agencies completed Crisis Intervention Training coordinated by Vaya Health (Blue Ridge Community College Police, Fletcher Police, Henderson County Sheriff's Office). The training helps participants better communicate with people with mental health issues, substance use disorders, or intellectual/developmental disabilities and can increase both citizen and officer safety, help people get treatment, and reduce arrests.

In total in 2022, fifteen officers were trained in CIT last year through Blue Ridge Community College.

The Pre- Crisis Intervention strategy is in progress, and while no new officers were trained in 2023, the program has continued to offer support to the LEOs already CIT trained, identifying trainers to offer more CIT trainings in the future, along with recruiting more LEOs to participate.  There is a class scheduled for April 2024, coordinated by Vaya Health, with an estimated 20 participants attending, including Henderson County School Resource Officers.