Community Education & Outreach

Aspen Hope Center believes that, to raise awareness and reduce the stigma of mental illness, education is key.

Community Education

Aspen Hope Center believes that, to raise awareness and reduce the stigma of mental illness, education is key. The Hope Center offers several mental health classes to individuals of all ages and on a variety of mental health topics.

We Can Talk, a QPR Suicide Awareness Program

A class built for the community and designed to educate individuals on what to look for and how to approach someone who may be potentially suicidal. It teaches powerful, yet simple techniques. Local, state, and national statistics on suicide are presented and basic warning signs are discussed on how to detect if someone may be thinking about suicide. The attendees will gain knowledge on basic conversation tips, and be able to feel empowered to not own the persons crisis, but where to take people in need to get professional help. Participants learn what is essential to save a life!

Dealing with Difficult Behaviors

A class designed to help participants learn behaviors common to various disorders, and practical ways to deal with psychiatric patients or uncooperative individuals, ways to make an environment safe, detect warning signs for those in distress, understand how professional reactions can impact a patient, gain an understanding of how YOU need care and utilize a team. This class is typically arranged for agencies who would like their staff trained in de-escalation techniques. Classes have been taught at local hospitals and local businesses.

Psychiatric Emergency Training

A training geared toward law enforcement and EMS. This class teaches the basics of behavioral presentations common in psychiatric disorders. The similarities and differences between how a person can present with a medical conditions and a psychiatric condition. First responders are taught how to best approach and asses someone for suicide, they are educated on a clinicians requirement for scene safety, and interagency collaboration and mutual aid is also discussed.

Consulting Services

The deep collaborations and partnerships Aspen Hope Center has with local agencies, businesses and other nonprofits is what adds to the care and healing that is able to be provided.

Consulting Services

Aspen Hope Center has been successful in finding a way to hire, train, and retain mobile crisis clinicians that respond 24 hours a day, seven days a week. These clinicians are taught to work independently as well as part of a co-response team with law enforcement. As 988 rolled out across the country with the aim of separating medical and legal emergencies from mental or behavioral health emergencies, more and more communities looked to have mobile crisis teams or co-response services.

Not only has the Hope Center operated a mobile crisis and co-response team since 2010, it has also successfully replicated this service in other communities in ways that meet the individual community needs. From expanding out and forming a satellite office in a new county, to helping a community establish its own 501c3 and support a team locally the Hope Center has been successful. From consulting with adjacent county stakeholders and assisting a hospital as they stand up a mobile crisis team, Aspen Hope Center is dedicated to helping other professionals so they can serve their community.

The key is genuine collaboration and trusted partnership. When contracted, the local law enforcement, EMS, and 911 dispatch staff are engaged in a partnership where mutual respect and trust is encouraged to grow. Co-training, shadowing, and ride alongs, are common practice to help reach the partnership goal. The Hope Center staff also include local businesses, entities, and professionals in a community who are relied upon to help follow through with longer term care after a crisis. The consultation includes how to create a safety net or web in a community to care for individuals in their homes and natural environments so transport to an emergency room is needed less often and inpatient psychiatric care is lessened.

Any community with leaders and stakeholders who hold the following traits and passions - can succeed!

  • A common passion for serving individuals during a time of mental health crisis.

  • A desire to lessen transports to local emergency rooms or jails.

  • A shared vision on which entity in a community is equipped, knowledgeable, stable and dedicated to operating a crisis team.

  • A dedication to sustainability and longevity