Crisis Access Point to open Monday in Jefferson City


Scores upon scores of stakeholders streamed through a new set of offices Tuesday at Compass Health Network's Crisis Access Point.

Compass Health is to open its newest CAP, at 227 Metro Drive, in Jefferson City, at 7 a.m. Monday.

Formerly known as Crisis Stabilization Centers, Gov. Mike Parson included $15 million in his budget this year to establish six new centers and further support five existing ones (like the Kansas City Assessment and Triage Center, Springfield's Burrell Behavioral Health Crisis Center, Joplin's Ozark Center and others).

The Jefferson City facility, which occupies the bottom floor of a Compass Health office, features four "slots" -- recliners where patients may rest or sleep. The access points are mandated to only keep clients for 23 hours.

The access points are intended to be places where people undergoing behavioral health crises may be diverted, so they don't clog up hospitals and court systems.

Behavioral health clinicians may triage patients who arrive at the access points. Patients entering them may shower, get something to eat and get their clothes laundered.

Compass Health is operating three of the access points -- one each in Jefferson City, Wentzville and Rolla. Rolla's point will contain eight slots. Wentzville's contains four.

Karen Cade, a vice president at Compass Health, and her staff gave tours Tuesday of the new Jefferson City facility. Attending the tours were health leaders from surrounding counties and the state, law enforcement agencies and court officials.

Patients accepted into the access points (there may be no more than four in the point at a time) first enter a relaxation area is a space where patients recline, watch television or maybe play games, Cade said. Staff may bring them warm blankets, snacks or other items they require.

Behavioral professionals triage clients when they come in.

The crisis access point includes a private room for people who may be experiencing a more emotional crisis.

It has a blanket "oven," which it uses to heat lap blankets for clients. The oven gets hot enough that it kills all bed bugs and other pests that may be in clients' clothes or backpacks, Cade said.

Other features in the access points, like anti-ligature hardware on sinks, are designed to keep clients from harming themselves.

Jamie Bartin, who oversees crisis programs for Compass, said the Wentzville location opened in early December.

"They're in business, and it's going really well in Wentzville," Cade said. "One of the things I thought was really cool that Jamie told me about is that people are coming in on their own -- not being brought in -- which is great."

A goal of the program is to free up law enforcement who spend large chunks of time escorting people in crisis to hospitals or clinics, or taking them to jails.

Data from Wentzville is already showing promising results.

"Our No. 1 referral source is law enforcement," Bartin said. "Second is 'self.' Which is super-cool. That means it's a true diversion. They're not going to emergency rooms. And they're not going to law enforcement."