Mental Health Emergency Center

About the Program

Category: Health (Best in Category)

Year: 2023

The Mental Health Emergency Center (MHEC) is a joint venture between Milwaukee County and the area’s four health systems: Advocate Aurora Health, Ascension Wisconsin, Children’s Wisconsin and Froedtert Health. Just one component in the broader array of mental health services in Milwaukee County, the center serves as a national model for emergency crisis care that is patient-centered, recovery-oriented, and culturally informed. The MHEC offers 24/7 crisis mental health assessment, stabilization, treatment, and transition care management for children, adolescents and adults. There is a separate treatment area for child and adolescent patients, as well as a separate entrance for those arriving via law enforcement. The center provides a therapeutic environment for both voluntary and involuntary patients and facilitates the timely transfer for those under law enforcement custody to the care of highly trained, compassionate mental health professionals. The intended outcomes of this program are that there will be an increase of patients assessing behavioral health care, an increase of participants accessing behavioral health care from vulnerable zip codes, and there will be an increase of the community’s awareness and accessibility of service locations.