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Mobile Crisis, or Mobile Crisis Teams (MCT), are an emergency mental health service in the United States and Canada, typically operated by hospital or community mental health agency. They serve the community by providing emergency services to people in crisis, such as mental health evaluations, de-escalation, and/or pointers to local services (including potentially a ride). Evaluations are requested by hospital emergency rooms, ICUs, CCUs, jails, nursing homes, police, or EMS. These services are often available on a 24-hour basis. As of 2023, in parts of the USA and Canada teams can be called via the new suicide & crisis hotline 988 and some other crisis hotlines.[1][2][3]
Mobile Crisis Teams can be requested by someone in distress, or by anyone who is concerned that someone might harm themselves or someone else, based on their words and/or actions. Support may be requested due to a person exhibiting signs of psychosis, grave disability, or altered mental status believed not to have an organic cause.
Criteria for sending Mobile Crisis Teams can vary across mental health agencies and legal jurisdictions. An assessment may be requested for situations involving alcohol and drugs (where there is not a mental health component), or "routine" evaluations requested where there is not a reasonable expectation of harm to the client or another individual, as long as psychopathology is not otherwise ruled out.
- ^ https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/988-hotline-mental-health-canada-1.7043603
- ^ https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/07/15/1111316589/988-suicide-hotline-number
- ^ https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/promoting-988-and-911-coordination-ensure-timely-and-appropriate-mental-health-crisis