Beginning July 16, a single national 988 number will be available for anyone facing a mental health crisis. Callers from anywhere in the country can call 988 and get connected to trained crisis counselors. The phone line will be staffed 24/7 and is free and confidential.
XFERALL is working with state mental health agencies and other stakeholders to encourage use of our platform by 988 responders so they have in-the-field ability to identify locally available treatment options. While 988 is a national number, the recommended best practice is to have calls answered by local staff who can connect people with local services, including dispatching mobile crisis teams and scheduling follow-up appointments with local providers.
With XFERALL’s platform, call center responders, mobile crisis teams, and clinicians can quickly locate clinically appropriate behavioral health care services along the continuum and help facilitate a more immediate response. With XFERALL’s real-time ability to communicate with other clinicians and to move the individual into treatment, crisis responders are better positioned to achieve the objective laid out for them by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: “… be prepared to support all individuals seeking their care and then connect them to care in a manner that truly aligns with the needs of the person.”
With XFERALL, 988 responders can:
Identify available treatment options and place people in crisis in appropriate treatment quickly and efficiently.
Share in real-time relevant clinical and demographic information with all providers.
Track treatment and facilitate follow-up care, as needed and appropriate.
It is important to note that 988 will not be available to everyone until July 16, 2022. In the meantime, Mental Health America encourages anyone in crisis to continue to contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or the Crisis Text Line by texting MHA to 741741.
Read more about XFERALL’s work with crisis teams and schedule a demo with our team to see how we can help augment the responsiveness of national 988.