Department of Community Services Works to Make Mental Health a Priority in Harford County

From Harford County government:

Harford County is recognized nationally as one of the first public safety agencies in the nation to offer Mental Health First Aid. The Harford County Department of Community Services partnered with the Harford County Sheriff’s Office in 2011 to sponsor Mental Health First Aid training.

The community wide effort to train Mental Health First Aid workers took place in key areas of the community, such as social services, aging, emergency response, military and schools.

“Mental Health First Aid will help keep people out of the criminal justice system, help reduce unnecessary hospitalizations and create a community environment that fosters an individual’s ability to recover from mental illness,” said Sharon Lipford, Deputy Director of Harford County Department of Community Services.

A person is more likely to encounter someone in an emotional or mental crisis than someone having a heart attack. Mental Health First Aid teaches a five step action plan to offer initial help to people with the signs and symptoms of a mental illness or in a crisis.

It connects them with the appropriate professional, peer, social or self-help care. Anyone can take the eight hour Mental Health First Aid course.
Aberdeen Proving Ground, the county’s largest employer, is one of the latest Mental Health First Aid partners. Additional partners in Harford County include: the Harford County Health Department and the Mental Health Association of Maryland.

Mental Health First Aid training is available to all Harford County employees to prepare them for a crisis. For more information on the training, contact the Harford County Department of Community Services at 410-638-3389.