Training for the PowerPhone Pilots

Please scroll down to access the training courses.

Statutory Background and Requirements Heading link

The Illinois Community Emergency Services and Support Act (CESSA) legislation requires the development of plans to coordinate emergency responses between 911 Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs), emergency medical service providers (EMS) dispatched by 911 PSAPs, law enforcement, 988 entities and Illinois Division of Mental Health (DMH) funded Mobile Crisis Response Teams (MCRTs). The intent is to provide emergency response options, in addition to a law enforcement response as appropriate, to individuals experiencing mental health or behavioral health crises.

Implementation of CESSA – PowerPhone Pilots Heading link

The implementation of CESSA requires the establishment of protocols for emergency responder coordination. This is being addressed by working with PSAP protocol vendors to incorporate risk factors and risk acuity information developed by the CESSA Protocol and Standards Technical Subcommittee into their protocol scripts to support dispatch decisions made for callers experiencing behavioral health crises that provide alternative responses to law enforcement as appropriate.

The first vendor with whom the subcommittee has worked to make protocol changes is PowerPhone. The changes to the PowerPhone scripts are being pre-tested with three PSAPs using PowerPhone. Once the pre-test is completed and evaluated, a pilot will be initiated using the modified protocols as a basis for referring 911 callers experiencing behavioral health crises to a 988 Lifeline Call Center for referral to an MCRT when appropriate. CESSA and this change in operations requires training for 911 PSAP telecommunicators, 988 Lifeline crisis call center staff and mobile crisis response team (MCRT) staff. The pilot training plan is based on the Core (required) courses that were developed in collaboration with the CESSA Training Technical Subcommittee, the Statewide 911 Administrator, the Illinois Department of Human Services Division of Mental Health (IDHS/DMH) staff, and with concurrence from the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS). The training plans have also been vetted by CESSA Regional Advisory Committees.

CESSA Training Course Overview and Requirements Heading link

All training courses required by CESSA for the PowerPhone pilots are being provided by The Behavioral Health Crisis Hub in its role as the academic partner to IDHS/DMH, with two exceptions. The National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) training course, required to be completed by 988 staff and MCRT staff, is available through the SAMHSA website. Additionally, it is presumed that the MCRT staff participating in the pilot have already completed the training courses required by HFS.

All training for the pilots, including the CLAS course, is self-paced, virtual, and available on demand. The required training courses for 911, 988, and MCRT vary slightly based on professional or other regulatory or contractual requirements. The courses to be completed by 911, 988, and MCRT staff are displayed below. Exemptions for training that is equivalent to the CESSA content covered in the courses may be requested using the process described below.

 

The links to all training courses are accessible through Box, which is a secure cloud-based platform that permits access to and sharing of information. 

Certificates of Attendance and Continuing Education Credits Heading link

A Certificate of Attendance will be emailed to all individuals within three weeks of completing each required course for submission to their supervisor.  This certificate will serve as confirmation that the training course has been completed.

In addition, Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available upon request for the courses identified below with an asterisk next to the course name.  Individuals requesting CEUs will receive an email upon completion of the course informing them of their post-test scores. Individuals must receive a score of 70% or above on the post-test to receive CEU credit.  CEU certificates will be emailed to individuals who pass the post-test within three weeks of completing the course.

Required Pilot Training Courses Heading link

*indicates CEU’s are available for this course upon request. 

PSAP Telecommunicators (2 Courses; Approximately 3-4 hours)

  1. Illinois Emergency Crisis System and CESSA
  2. Mental Health Topics for 911, content areas include:
    1. De-escalation
    2. The Power and Importance of Language
    3. Respectful Interactions and Working with Individuals who have Developmental Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder Experiencing a Mental Health and/or Substance Use Crisis
    4. Respectful Interactions with and Working with Individuals Experiencing a Mental Health Crisis and/or Substance Use Challenge
      1. Course title: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Crisis Training)

Note: You may request an exemption for any of the content areas in the course Mental Health Topics for 911, but you will only receive a Certificate of Attendance upon completion of all content areas (including exempted content areas).

988 Crisis Counselors (3 Courses; Approximately 5.5 Hours)

  1. Illinois Emergency Crisis System and CESSA
  2. Mental Health Topics for 988, content areas include:
    1. De-escalation
    2.  The Power and Importance of Language
    3. Respectful Interactions and Working with Individuals who have Developmental Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder Experiencing a Mental Health and/or Substance Use Crisis
    4. Respectful Interactions and Working with Individuals Experiencing a Mental Health Crisis and/or Substance Use Challenges
      1. Course title: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Crisis Training
    5. Developing Community Relationships for 988
  3. National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) (only Course 1 Module 1) *
    1. Course 1: Cultural Competency Program for Disaster and Emergency Management
    2. Module 1: Cultural Identity, Social Determinants of Health, Intersectionality, and Vulnerability

Note: You may request an exemption for the CLAS course or for any of the content areas within the Mental Health Topics for 988 course. You will only receive a Certificate of Attendance upon completion of all content areas in Mental Health Topics for 988 (including exempted content areas).

Mobile Crisis Response Team (MCRT) Staff (6 Courses; Approximately 6 hours)

  1. Illinois Emergency Crisis System and CESSA
  2. National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) (only Course 1 Module 1) *
    1. Click on Course 1: An introduction to cultural and linguistic competency
    2. Click on Module 1: Understanding Culture, Cultural Identity, and Intersectionality
  3. The Power and Importance of Language *
    1. Course Title: Language Matters – Verbal Empowerment
  4. Respectful Interactions and Working with Individuals who have Developmental Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder Experiencing a Mental Health and/or Substance Use Crisis *
  5. Respectful Interactions and Working with Individuals Experiencing a Mental Health Crisis and/or Substance Use Challenges *
    1. Course title: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Crisis Training
  6. Developing Community Relationships for MCRT *

Note: You may request an exemption for any of the required courses with the exception of the Illinois Emergency Crisis System and CESSA.

How to Access the Pilot Training Courses Heading link

A secure link to the training courses provided by the Behavioral Health Crisis Hub is available on a password-protected document stored in Box. Supervisors at each Pilot Site (PSAPs, 988 and MCRT) have been provided with the Password to access the training. Please get the password from your supervisor. The procedure for accessing the training courses is described below.

  1. Click “Access Links to Training Courses on Box” which will open up a password-protected document in Box.
  2. When Box is displayed, enter the password.
  3. Click the link for the course you must complete.
  4. Complete the identifying information section.
  5. Complete the pre-test section if indicated.
  6. Review and complete the training content.
  7. Complete the post-test.
  8. Complete the CEU request (if applicable).
  9. Complete the evaluation.
  10. You will receive an email immediately after completing the training indicating your score on the post-test.
  11. You will receive a separate email containing a Certificate of Attendance within 3 weeks of completion.

Please note: Once Box is accessed, steps 3-9 must be followed to complete each training module offered by The Behavioral Health Crisis Hub. For the CLAS course required for 988 and MCRT staff, please follow the instructions on the Department of Health & Human Services website. Upon completion of the CLAS course, please upload proof of completion here.

Tracking the Completion of Training Heading link

The Behavioral Health Crisis Hub will send pilot agency administrators/program managers a weekly report of staff who have completed the required training. Pilot agencies will use this information to follow up with their staff to ensure that all courses are completed within the required timeframe.

Training Exemption Process Heading link

We recognize that some individuals may have professional or regulatory training requirements equivalent

to the CESSA Pilot course requirements. Therefore, 911 communicators, 988 crisis counselors, and MCRT staff may request an exemption for a pilot training course if they have taken comparable training within the past 12 months. There are no exemptions for the Illinois Emergency Crisis System and CESSA course.

To qualify for an exemption, staff must obtain supervisor permission and submit documentation of previous, comparable course content and course completion using the online CESSA Training Exemption Form. Please complete the required questions on the online form, and upload the supporting documents using the online form.

For questions related to exemptions, please email The Behavioral Health Crisis Hub at thebhch@uic.edu. The Behavioral Health Crisis Hub will review and respond to exemption requests within 3 to 4 business days to ensure enough time for course completion should the exemption request be denied.