Crisis navigators at Catholic Charities in Trenton are taking calls from the statewide 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline call centers.
Once they answer the phone, they assign a degree of urgency to each call that comes in. And then they start offering help — help that can come in any one of a number of services, according to Susan Loughery, the associate executive director of the organization.
“So, they’re checking in with the individual until they present for the (mental-health) appointment or they’re scheduling transportation directly to the site,” she said. “Or, if it’s a higher level of care that’s needed, they’ll also engage with the screening-center teams that do the mobile screening for the higher level of care needs.”
Since July 16 when the 988 hotline went into effect statewide, 12 calls have been transferred directly from the statewide centers that handle the incoming 988 calls to Catholic Charities in Trenton, according to Loughery.
‘The goal is for 988 to become embedded in the public consciousness as the number to call when someone is experiencing mental distress.’ — Sarah Adelman, commissioner, NJ Department of Human Services
From those 12 calls, Catholic Charities has dispatched a multitude of services, including psychiatric, nursing and therapy services. They also offered such help as meetings with housing location assistants and food pantries to mitigate social factors that have impacts on a wide range of health and quality-of-life outcomes.
“We’re really starting to see a spike in need for crisis services for youth and adolescents,” said Loughery. The organization serves as a treatment provider and a responding agency through its certified community behavioral-health clinic and early-intervention support services programs.
A heavy toll
Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death among Americans, the second leading cause of death for adults aged 25 to 34, and the third leading cause of death for those 15 to 24, according to the state Department of Health. In New Jersey, 60% of all violent deaths are suicides and there are almost twice as many suicides as homicides in the state, according to the state.
People in New Jersey are navigating a wave of mental-health concerns compounded by the pandemic and exacerbated by a lack of mental-health providers throughout the state. And that is reflected in the rise in calls to the 988 number.
Since 988 was launched in July, there has been a sizeable increase in the number of calls when compared to the original 11-digit crisis hotline, meaning that more New Jerseyans experiencing a mental-health emergency and in need of help were able to reach a counselor trained to offer compassionate care and support, said Sarah Adelman, the commissioner of the state Department of Human Services.
There was a 20% increase in calls in New Jersey with the new 988 number during the transition week in July when the number went live compared to the previous week, according to Eva Loayza-McBride, the deputy communications director at DHS. To date, the department has received 8,670 calls, according to Loayza-McBride. Less than 1% of these calls resulted in emergency rescues and 6% required follow-up. Both nationally and across the state, most calls are resolved by phone without an in-person emergency response, according to Loayza-McBride.
“When someone calls 988, they are connected to counselors equipped in crisis intervention who can connect individuals to mental-health and substance-use services,” Adelman said. “While the Lifeline’s original 1-800-237-8255 number still works, the goal is for 988 to become embedded in the public consciousness as the number to call when someone is experiencing mental distress,” she added.
How it works in NJ
The state has five Lifeline call centers that respond to calls, chats and texts when someone is in crisis, according to a DHS report. Of these five, Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care is the only center funded by the state Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services to respond to National Suicide Prevention Lifeline calls.
It’s also accredited by New York-based Vibrant Emotional Health, which was awarded a grant by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to administer the 988 number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
“As the only NJ 988 crisis call center that operates 24-7, Rutgers will continue to provide uninterrupted support for New Jersey residents and visitors, providing access and support around the clock, regardless of weather conditions or operating status of local services,” said William Zimmerman, the program manager for the NJ Hopeline and the Lifeline national backup center at Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care National Call Center.
The state Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, within DHS, received $16 million to fund the 988 Mental Health Crisis and Suicide Prevention Hotline and another $500,000 for a gun-violence and suicide prevention grant in the current state budget.
In all, state lawmakers agreed to distribute a total of $480.5 million for mental-health services to the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services under the most recent budget.
Big increase in call volume across US
Nationally, the first month of the transition from the earlier hotline to the 988 number saw a 45% increase in overall call volume and a substantial improvement in answer rates and wait times compared to August 2021, according to data released earlier this month from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The federal department also announced a new $35-million grant opportunity to better support 988 Lifeline services in tribal communities, which face unique challenges in accessing technology and crisis services, according to the department. This will result in more trained crisis counselors that can connect more people in need; the grant is part of the $150 million allocated for the 988 Lifeline under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act signed on June 25 by President Joe Biden.
“Now that 988 is building traction and building momentum, it’s important that we also look at the investment in the response and the resources in the provider communities to meet that response and to provide services like psychiatric urgent care, access to medication, and access to clinical therapy, in particularly in language of choice and in setting, whether that be virtual or in person,” said Loughery of Catholic Charities.
