Massachusetts Suicide Prevention - The MA988 Improvement Project will reside within the Massachusetts (MA) Department of Public Health (DPH) Suicide Prevention Program. DPH funds five Crisis Contact Centers (CCC) that provide statewide phone, chat, and text services through the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Building upon previous SAMHSA investments, DPH will strengthen the Commonwealth's behavioral health crisis system by enhancing CCC capacity, strengthening coordination across the behavioral health crisis continuum, expanding follow-up and referral services, improving quality management and cybersecurity, and implementing sustainable system improvements. MDPH anticipates serving approximately 100,000 individuals annually and more than 300,000 individuals over the three-year project period. Capacity-building activities will expand access to crisis intervention care and services and benefit individuals of all ages experiencing suicidal, behavioral health, or substance use crises, with targeted efforts to improve access and outcomes for populations at elevated risk, including individuals at risk for suicide or overdose. Services include crisis assessment, de-escalation, emotional support, safety planning, referral, warm handoffs, and follow-up. DPH will achieve four goals with associated measurable objectives. Goal 1 is to sustain and strengthen CCC operations by maintaining a minimum 90% in-state response rate for 988 contacts; distributing grant funding to the five CCCs conducting annual organizational workforce assessments and staffing plans; strengthening workforce recruitment, retention, and well-being; cybersecurity improvements; and monitoring statewide performance and quality indicators. Goal 2 is to strengthen coordination across the behavioral health crisis continuum by implementing standardized referral and follow-up protocols; strengthening partnerships with Mobile Crisis Intervention, Community Behavioral Health Centers, the Behavioral Health Help Line, substance use treatment providers, and the State 911 Department; improving access for populations at elevated risk of suicide and overdose; strengthening substance use crisis response; and expanding partnerships with Tribal communities. Goal 3 is to enhance statewide system performance through continuous quality improvement, sentinel event review, participation in SAMHSA's National Cross-Site Evaluation, and ongoing performance monitoring and evaluation. Goal 4 is to increase awareness and utilization of 988 services through statewide outreach and public education activities designed to improve access to timely, high-quality behavioral health crisis services. Together, these objectives advance SAMHSA's strategic priorities by strengthening the behavioral health workforce, improving crisis system coordination and partnership, and supporting sustainable statewide systems of care.
