PLYMOUTH – The Police Chiefs of Plymouth County are pleased to announce that Plymouth County Outreach (PCO) has been selected as a mentor site for The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) Law Enforcement/First Responder Diversion Mentor Program.
The mentor program, set to begin in October, will provide communities interested in implementing a law enforcement/first responder diversion program with the opportunity to learn from programs that have shown success in meeting their communities’ treatment needs. As a mentor site, PCO will host communities interested in starting a diversion program or enhancing an existing program.
Law enforcement/first responder diversion refers to overdose response plans where first responders, working in partnership with substance abuse treatment providers and peer recovery coaches, may refer overdose victims to treatment and recovery support services rather than the criminal justice system.
PCO began offering diversion program services in 2016. On average, 1,350 individuals have contact with the program each year and approximately 43 treatment referrals are made each month.
Communities who are selected to visit PCO will send representatives from the key groups involved in a collaborative diversion program, such as law enforcement, public health and recovery organizations. They will be able to observe and experience day-to-day operations, shadow PCO’s civilian project coordinator and operations supervisor, attend meetings and trainings, shadow post-overdose follow-up outreach visits with officers and recovery coaches, experience daily collaboration with key stakeholder partner organizations and observe how the law enforcement Critical Incident Management System (CIMS) database supports real time overdose tracking and follow-up outcomes.
“We are honored to have been selected to be one of the few programs throughout the country that will serve as a mentor site,” East Bridgewater Police Chief Scott Allen said. “We’re proud of our diversion program and how it has grown over the past three years and we look forward to sharing our approach with other communities.”
As a result of being selected as a mentor site, PCO is recognized by BJA as an exemplary model of multidisciplinary overdose response and diversion programs. PCO will also be provided with a $2,000 stipend to cover some costs associated with hosting visitors. Mentor sites will serve for two years and will host approximately three to five communities per year.
More information on PCO can be found at www.plymouthcountyoutreach.org
