Section 441.24.34. Twenty-four-hour crisis line.

A 24-hour crisis line provides counseling, crisis service coordination, information and referral, linkage to services and crisis screening. Crisis line staff are qualified to provide crisis stabilization services pursuant to subrule 24.24(2).

         24.34(1) Performance benchmark. Crisis screening, counseling, crisis service coordination and referrals are provided to individuals in crisis.

         24.34(2) Performance indicators.

            a.               The crisis line service is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

            b.               Policies are in place regarding how the crisis line is answered live, when to utilize the hold feature, the use of queue systems and triage of calls.

            c.               Policies and procedures govern the use of technology, including telephonic and Internet capability in the service delivery structure, quality assurance, data integrity and confidentiality.

            d.               Procedures are in place for ensuring the quality of the crisis line, including monitoring calls and corrective action plans.

            e.               The crisis line is an integrated component of the crisis response service system; the crisis line is answered in an organization setting by trained crisis response staff.

            f.                Policies define collaborative efforts and triage procedure between the mobile outreach teams, law enforcement and emergency services.

            g.               Policies are in place to ensure follow-up contacts are provided within 24 hours of a crisis call for all risk cases. The crisis line integrates follow-up into all crisis service contacts.

            h.               The crisis line utilizes standardized call center software with the capability to track:

             (1)             Date and time of answered call, topic of call, crisis screening provided, referral made, hold time, and demographics of call.

             (2)             Number of contacts, including terminated and lost calls.

            i.                Policies and procedures describe a uniform process of crisis screening and training for crisis line staff.

            j.                Training includes crisis screening tools, lethality assessment, crisis counseling, cultural competence, crisis service coordination, and information and referral.

            k.               Twenty-four-hour access to a mental health professional is required.

[ARC 1660C, IAB 10/15/14, effective 12/1/14]