DEPARTMENT: Social Services-Adult Services
FILE TYPE: Consent Action
TITLE
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Authorization To Execute Joint Powers Agreements With Dakota County Law Enforcement Agencies For Social Services Public Safety Embedded Social Worker Partnerships
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PURPOSE/ACTION REQUESTED
Authorize execution of joint powers agreements (JPAs) with Dakota County law enforcement agencies for Social Services Public Safety embedded social worker partnerships (hereinafter referred to as "Embedded Social Worker Model").
SUMMARY
Cities and counties across the nation are exploring new approaches to working with people who experience a mental health crisis. Dakota County and cities have been working together, for years, to develop partnerships and new models of response to a mental health crisis that promote safe, healthy communities and people receiving the right services at the right time.
Dakota County and public safety partners have been among the first in Minnesota to develop and implement crisis follow-up models, including through the Coordinated Response Pilot (the Pilot). The Pilot, launched in 2019, was an innovative partnership aimed at providing a more effective, coordinated response to residents whose use of emergency services may indicate a need for a more integrated response from law enforcement and Social Services (SS). The Pilot operated in four Dakota County cities - Apple Valley, Rosemount, South St. Paul, and West St. Paul - and was eventually expanded to all interested cities and the Dakota County Sheriff's Office. In participating law enforcement agencies, a SS mental health social worker works closely with an assigned law enforcement partner to provide follow-up, service coordination and crisis stabilization services following a mental health crisis event. Crisis follow-up services link residents to other short- and long-term support services and are an essential component of an effective crisis services continuum. Partnerships have expanded to include co-locati...
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