SAN ANTONIO — Dispatch gets thousands of mental health calls each year. And now San Antonio’s mental health crisis team, known as SA-CORE, is expanding to help people citywide.
“No, there are no calls holding right now,” said Officer Roger Astin.
For seven years, Astin has worked for the San Antonio Police Department. His primary role is helping others.
“Thought it would be a cool opportunity to be able to be part of something new and see it grow and expand,” said Astin.
Lately, he’s been doing that a little differently. For the last year and a half, Astin has been providing safety for SA-CORE, which stands for community outreach and resiliency effort.
“There’s some kind of psychiatric call that the SA-CORE team can jump on,” said Chris Edwards, SA-CORE’s lead paramedic.
An officer, a clinician and a paramedic ride in unmarked units hoping to help folks in crisis, even minors.
“We have things we like to give kids and things like that to make them feel more comfortable,” said Edwards. “Because showing us as a team with three people sometimes makes people feel uncomfortable.”
Unlike typical 911 calls, this team is focused on a person’s mental state, like how they’re feeling and what can SA-CORE do to help.
“We knew that we had a mental health crisis in San Antonio,” said SAPD Assistant Police Chief Karen Falks. “Their family members don’t know where to get help. And all they know is to call 911.”
The majority of mental health 911 calls came from downtown. So that’s where the SA-CORE pilot started. According to Falks, the program is helping.
“[We want to] ensure that those folks who needed mental health services were provided that as opposed to being put in jail,” Falks said.
In its first year, SA-CORE responded to 1,465 calls. But only six arrests were made. Thirty-five percent of those calls were resolved on site. Others transported to outpatient clinics.
“All the calls are different,” said crisis response clinician Shawn. “Some of our clients have a history of mental health and some don’t. Some are just having a really bad day.”
This charge is personal for Shawn, who has family with mental health concerns. As an SA-CORE clinician, she understands the need for professional intervention.
“A lot of times, they don’t feel like they have any care or support,” Shawn said.
City Council has voted to invest $7.2 million into SA-CORE over the next two years. Starting in the new year, it will add two more response teams and expand coverage citywide, 24/7.
“At the end of the day, we’re helping people,” said Astin.