Lewis & Clark County council lays out plan for crisis response and care

Lewis & Clark County's Behavioral Health Local Advisory Council (LAC) has gathered detailed planning documents, meeting schedules and reports on a public page that lays out the county's near-term priorities for crisis response and behavioral health system improvements. The materials emphasize work on a Mobile Crisis Response Team and planning for a crisis receiving and stabilization facility called the Journey Home, along with prevention, data-sharing, and continuum-of-care initiatives.

The LAC page functions as both a record and a roadmap. It includes recurring meeting dates, contact information, three-year strategic plans, workgroup logic models, recent presentations and reports, and links to public meeting agendas and minutes. Together these documents show how local leaders are cataloging gaps and building steps intended to reduce emergency room visits, prevent law enforcement involvement in behavioral health crises, and improve access for children and adults across the county. "The LAC's objectives include identifying gaps in child and adult services and recommending solutions when gaps are identified."

Mobile Crisis Response is framed as an immediate priority. Implementing an MCRT means trained clinicians and crisis responders could be dispatched to homes, schools or public spaces to stabilize people in crisis, connect them to services and divert unnecessary hospitalizations or arrests. For rural and small-town residents of Lewis & Clark County, a functioning MCRT could shorten time in crisis, address transport barriers and provide culturally competent intervention closer to home.

Planning for the Journey Home receiving and stabilization facility represents the longer-term infrastructure goal. A local site for short-term stabilization could centralize care options now scattered across systems, but it will require sustainable staffing, funding and coordination with county health, law enforcement and social service partners. The LAC documents underline that success depends on improved data-sharing and a full continuum of care that spans prevention, acute response and follow-up supports.

These initiatives carry public health and equity implications. Investing in prevention and accessible crisis services can reduce disparities for families with children, people experiencing homelessness or neighbors with limited transportation. Data-sharing efforts aim to close gaps in who receives care and when, but community advocates warn that protections around privacy and culturally responsive services must be integral to any rollout.

For residents who want to follow or influence the work, the county's LAC page provides agendas, minutes and strategic documents to review. Attending meetings, reviewing minutes and reaching out to the contacts listed are practical ways to stay informed and hold systems accountable.

Our two cents? Read the minutes, show up to a meeting, and bring specific local needs to the table — especially for youth, people without stable housing and those facing language or mobility barriers. That kind of civic muscle will help make the MCRT and Journey Home plans real, and keep the county moving toward more equitable crisis care.