Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) programs in rural communities: a focus group study.

Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) programs in rural communities: a focus group study.

Skubby David; Bonfine Natalie; Novisky Meghan; Munetz Mark R; Ritter Christian

Community mental health journal

2013

2013-12

The Crisis Intervention Teams model (CIT) was originally developed as an urban model for police officers responding to calls about persons experiencing a mental illness crisis. Literature suggests that there is reason to believe that there may be unique challenges to adapting this model in rural settings. This study attempts to better understand these unique challenges. Thematic analysis of focus group interviews revealed that there were both external and internal barriers to developing CIT in their respective communities. Some of these barriers were a consequence of working in small communities and working within small police departments. Participants actively overcame these barriers through the realization that CIT was needed in their community, through collaborative efforts across disciplines, and through the involvement of mental health advocacy groups. These results indicate that CIT can be successfully implemented in rural communities.

Cooperative Behavior; Criminal Law/organization & administration; Crisis Intervention; Crisis Intervention/*organization & administration; Descriptive Statistics; Focus Groups; Human; Humans; Interprofessional Relations; Mental Health Personnel; Mental Health Services/*organization & administration; Models; National Alliance for the Mentally Ill; Organizational; Police; Program Development; Program Evaluation; Psychiatric Emergencies; Qualitative Research; Rural Health; Rural Health Services/*organization & administration

Article information provided for research and reference use only. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).

756–764

6

49