Bridge Greenville: Uniting Partners for Mental Health Connections

The City of Greenville, South Carolina, in partnership with the Greenville Police Department, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Greenville, and United Way of Greenville County, will develop and implement a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to improve law enforcement response to individuals with mental health disorders and/or co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders. Project efforts will emphasize addressing barriers to access for Black residents and individuals who are experiencing homelessness.

In the planning phase, the partners will form a stakeholder advisory committee, conduct comprehensive data and landscape analyses to identify barriers and gaps in services, and develop a community action plan based on best practices. In the two-year implementation phase that follows, the city will embed two new mental health outreach specialist staff as co-responders with the Greenville Police Department to conduct field assessments and connect individuals with mental health services. These staff will also provide ongoing case management to the target population with clinical supervision provided by NAMI.

Services will address individual needs, including barriers and stigmas experienced by Black residents, to improve outcomes for individuals with mental health disorders or co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders who come into contact with law enforcement. The city and NAMI will develop and implement an enhanced Crisis Intervention Team training plan that better equips officers to serve the target population. The city will also partner with United Way of Greenville County to develop and implement a robust public outreach and education campaign. There are no planned conference activities for the recommended award.