Practice Improvements

TP50 - Building Partnerships: How the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Strengthened Crisis Services in Maryland

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

1:30 PM – 2:00 PM

Location: South Exhibit Hall HJK, Level 2, LACC

Poster Presenter(s)

Kathryn Grant Dilley, LCSW-C (she/her/hers)

Executive Director
Mid Shore Behavioral Health, Inc.
Easton, Maryland
Sharon Lipford, LCSW-C (she/her/hers)

Program Administrator, Behavioral Health Crisis System
State of Maryland, Behavioral Health Administration
Catonsville, Maryland

The bridge that spans across the Chesapeake Bay has been the location for multiple suicides over the years. In August 2020, the bridge experienced its highest volume of critical incidents and suicide attempts drawing increased media attention from community members and commuters. Community members and leaders asked, "What can be done?" The Bay Bridge Workgroup, comprised of state partners, law enforcement, crisis response, community leadership and local systems managers was formed and has become the statewide catalyst for increased law enforcement training opportunities with crisis providers.

Learning Objectives:

Describe how to build on existing resources to enhance crisis response structures and standards of quality.
Demonstrate effective partner communication and collaboration systems planning to address gaps and crisis trends and system support needs.
Identify process for and model a warm hand off mode of crisis response across multiple jurisdictions.
Participants will understand Maryland's crisis response resoruces and planning efforts that have been identified out of the Bay Bridge Parnership.
Paricipants will be inspired to work with local, regional, and state parnters to address suicide prevention and communtiy awareness of suicide prevention support needs, and how to be a more involved parnter, advocate, and catalyst for change.