The Police Social Support Services Team at the Bloomington Police Department has helped thousands of people since 2019. Critics say police and social workers have differing views of justice — criminal versus social — but the team’s licensed mental health professionals say they offer support that uniformed police officers aren’t trained to provide. Click here to read a Deep Dive on social support services.
The increase in mental health issues has led to the creation of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. As Rebecca Hill reports, the rise in suicides, serious mental illnesses, and mental health crises has shown more is needed than just a phone number. That’s why advocates designed 988 to be a continuum of care. Click here to read about 988.
For more than two decades, the opioid epidemic has raged on in small rural towns and in the suburbs. But what happens when the opioid epidemic collides with the COVID pandemic? Rebecca Hill writes about these “waves” of crises in Bloomington and other southern Indiana communities, and how people are weathering it. Click here to read the story.
