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lagunabeachindy . com MAY 19 , 2023 3
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budget funding to ensure that Laguna Beach has a Be Well OC Mobile Crisis Response Team available to respond and provide urgent and timely services to those who need it most .”
“ For too long mental health services have been ignored in communities throughout California . The Be Well OC program will fill that gap here in Laguna Beach and help us to provide services to residents and unhoused individuals . It will also allow us to better utilize our law enforcement and fire department personnel ,” said Laguna Beach Mayor Bob Whalen . “ We are grateful to Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris for securing state funding for this twoyear pilot program and to the County of Orange to contributing additional funding . We look forward to welcoming Be Well OC ’ s well-known blue vans to Laguna Beach and to helping address mental health in our community .”
Laguna Beach will be the sixth city in Orange County to adopt a Be Well Mobile Response model , joining Huntington Beach , Newport Beach , Garden Grove , Anaheim and Irvine . The program incorporates Be Well staff into a city ’ s network of first responders and enables 911 dispatchers to route mental health and substance use crisis calls to the Be Well Mobile Crisis Response Team . Skilled in de-escalation , crisis intervention , counseling and
From left to right : Laguna Beach Assistant City Manager Gavin Curran , Assistant to the City Manager Jeremy Frimond , City Manager Shohreh Dupuis , Mayor Pro Tem Sue Kempf , Councilmember Mark Orgill , Be Well OC Mobile Response Team Alyssa Guerrero and Frank Seitz and Mayor Bob Whalen .
mediation , the Be Well Mobile Crisis Response Team effectively addresses the client ’ s emotional and social well-being . If needed and wanted by the client , the team can transport them for additional care .
“ We could not be more grateful to Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie- Norris , the City of Laguna Beach , and Ueberroth Family Foundation for their visionary leadership in supporting the expansion of Be Well ’ s Mobile Response program and strengthening mental health support services in Laguna Beach ,” Be Well OC CEO Marshall Moncrief said . “ The Mobile Response Team in Laguna Beach will provide critical support not only to residents in need of mental health and wellness
care but also to first responders and law enforcement who can better prioritize areas of highest need for police response and community safety .”
Data from the five existing pilot programs across Orange County demonstrate the value of incorporating Be Well ’ s Mobile Response into the City ’ s first response network , including :
· 83 % of calls did not require transport for additional care
· 60 % of calls did not require a co-response from law enforcement
· Average response time : 14 minutes
· Average time on scene : 1.5 hours
· Law enforcement partners report that the Be Well Mobile Crisis Response Team saves 8-10 hours a day of productive police time ( on average )
“ We have seen that amazing things can happen when public and private partnerships come together , so we were compelled to join Be Well OC and the City of Laguna Beach in launching this mobile response program ,” said Vicki Booth , president of the Peter & Ginny Ueberroth Family Foundation . “ The Ueberroth Family Foundation believes strongly in the work being done by Be Well OC to create a systematic approach to solving the pervasive issue of mental health , something that everyone is affected by in some way . We have directly seen the impact the mobile response program has had in other cities , and we know this investment will pay in dividends on the impact it brings to Laguna Beach .”
Established in 1984 , the Peter and Ginny Ueberroth Family Foundation has been giving back to the community for three decades . The foundation is committed to assisting community-based organizations that are effectively making a difference , believing that by assisting people to take greater responsibility for their own well-being and for the communities in which they live , a better future can be created . The foundation supports local organizations , with a focus on youth programs , education , health and human services . The foundation believes in personal involvement with the organizations it supports , therefore the majority of the funding takes place in Orange County or within the communities where directors live .
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