BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – A polo shirt and jeans aren’t the uniform anyone would typically expect from a police officer or a paramedic. For crisis mental health teams, dressing down is a part of the job.
“We go in kind of discreet,” Juan, a paramedic for Bexar County’s S.M.A.R.T. program, said.
(S.M.A.R.T. asked KSAT not to share the last names of any team members involved.)
S.M.A.R.T. is the county’s mental health crisis response team that dispatches to 911 mental health calls. This unit rides unmarked for a reason: to meet residents where they are.
“Sometimes, an officer showing up can be a barrier to communication, to building rapport and trying to really connect a person with empathy,” Ernest Stevens, the deputy division director at the Council State Governments Justice Center, said. “Showing up in uniform and in a marked vehicle — especially the way the officers dress today — it can be alarming.”
From the car to the clothes, S.M.A.R.T. is careful about how its team arrives at a scene.
“We’re stepping out of the uniform, and we’re into the soft uniform,” Ron, a deputy sheriff with the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office mental health unit, said.
SA CORE has a similar response style with polo shirts and unmarked vans.
“We’re able to do it all here on this little mobile team,” Isaac Gomez, a paramedic with the San Antonio Fire Department, said.
Soon, SA CORE will have customized vans, but what those will look like is still unknown.
Every crisis response team in the country may not agree with how SA CORE and S.M.A.R.T. look when they arrive at a scene.
Those decisions are made on a team-by-team, city-by-city basis.
“People should know that when they call in a crisis, they’re going to get the help that they need and that they deserve,” Maita Thomas, the WellPower supervisor for clinicians in Denver, Colorado, said.
In Denver, STAR is the city’s mental health crisis response team. Evan Thompkins, the STAR program specialist with the city’s Department of Public Health and Environment, said feedback from Denver residents helped them choose labeled cars.
“I think (the) community really kind of pushed the narrative forward that (sic) having those marked vans,” Thompkins said.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution to best addressing mental health calls. No matter the style, the purpose is all the same.
“A lot of people don’t want to talk to somebody in uniform,” Ron with S.M.A.R.T. said. “My biggest goal is to get that rapport and convince that person that you’re not going to jail and that I’m here to help.”
“Crisis in Question: Measuring Mental Health in South Texas” began airing on Monday, Nov. 11 on The Nightbeat with a new episode each night at 10 p.m., culminating on Friday, Nov. 15 at 10 p.m. All episodes can be seen on KSAT, KSAT+, KSAT’s YouTube channel, and KSAT.com.
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health or thoughts of suicide, call 988 or text TALK to 741-741.
You can also reach out to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) or the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) at 210-223-7233 (SAFE) or 800-316-9241. You can also text NAMI to 741-741.
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