Jasper County and the City of Newton are fortunate to be a part of the Central Iowa Community Services Region and have access to a mental health crisis response team through that organization. The crisis response team, staffed and administered by Eyerly Ball Community Mental Health Services at Unity Point Health, responds to community members that are having a mental health crisis anywhere in our community.
Residents can call the crisis response team themselves or they can referred by law enforcement, schools and other community members and organizations. Jasper County residents utilized the crisis response services 107 times in 2020, with 87 of those responses being in Newton. The crisis response team responded to self-reports in 49 cases, responded to family/friend reports in 15 cases and assisted law enforcement in 8 cases. Crisis team responders come in pairs and guarantee a response of less than 1 hour.
This valuable service provides resources for those in desperate need of services during times when other social services are not open. The crisis response program meets with residents in crisis and provides care on site and provides referrals to mental health professional for long term treatment. This service has been a great asset to our community is a resource that law enforcement has desperately needed for many years.