South Dakota 988: Building Local Capacity is a joint venture undertaken by the state's only Lifeline crisis center, Helpline Center, and the Department of Social Services, Division of Behavioral Health to rapidly mobilize the necessary workforce for 988 call center expansion and projected ramp-up over 988's nationwide launch beginning July 2022. This cooperative agreement will serve as the foundation for which to build sustainable performance indicator monitoring that can be leveraged for years to come as 988 services expand, and as relationships are formalized between Public Safety Answering Points/911 services and referral-accepting organizations in the area of crisis response and receiving facilities. Given the fact South Dakota is a relatively population state, but with considerable geographic challenges in its frontier/rural nature, the population to be served will be all South Dakotans experiencing behavioral health crisis with specific focus on those impacted by health disparities or limited referral access to appropriate levels of care as close to their home communities as possible.
South Dakota's Behavioral Health Crisis Response Stakeholder Coalition (BHCRSC, or 988 planning coalition) was formed in February 2021 and met monthly under the leadership of the South Dakota Department of Social Services, Division of Behavioral Health (DSS-DBH) to inform the development of the State's 988 implementation plan as part of the grant funded by Vibrant Emotional Health. This project builds upon the work completed and outlined by the 988 planning coalition, highlighting the need for additional workforce capacity to operationalize 988 call center capacity.
The Helpline Center began serving South Dakota in 1974. Through the years, the agency was formalized with staff, grew to 24/7 services, and was the first location west of the Mississippi River to begin 211 services. The Helpline Center services thousands of people every year by connecting individuals to resources and support, connecting local agency volunteers, and offering hope to individuals with thoughts of suicide. The Helpline Center is the only entity in the state accredited by the Alliance for Information and Referral Systems, and the only entity in the state that provides a certified crisis line through the American Association of Suicidology. The Helpline Center is in the process of creating a separate division to house the 988 call center, with shared administration services provided by existing Helpline Center staff. The new 988 call center will be housed in the same location as the existing 211-based information and referral call center, but staffed separately due to the unique staff qualifications required for answering 988 calls.
The implementation approach centers on four key goal areas, all of which build off of initial planning efforts outlined in the state's 988 implementation plan. Key areas of focus center around workforce capacity building, supported by additional funding through this program, along with further refinement and definition of key operational and quality improvement protocols to support and sustain 988 call center staff. The 988 planning coalition will continue to convene as an advisory resource for the Directors and Helpline Center team and will be instrumental in the development of follow up protocols that extend into local care settings as well as on identifying crisis workforce training needs across the full continuum that ultimately increases access to quality, responsive behavioral health care for South Dakotans experiencing crisis.
Key performance indicators and other measure s have been identified in alignment with existing NSPL metrics, the required SAMHSA infrastructure, prevention and promotion indicators, and those that will aid the state in understanding 988 call center workforce staffing, partnership development, and the disposition of people supported by 988 call center staff as capacity expands and public awareness.