As part of an ongoing effort to provide assistance and resources to those in crisis, the DeKalb County Police Department will host a virtual mental health fair next week.
The free event will take place Wednesday from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and will feature a discussion from the county’s Mental Health Roundtable, according to a news release. The roundtable, created by DeKalb CEO Michael Thurmond in 2017, was formed after a police shootout killed Quintas Harris, a veteran with mental illness.
Thurmond will give a speech to open the event, and the roundtable discussion will be moderated by former Channel 2 Action News anchor Monica Pearson. Representatives from the National Association of Mental Health, the DeKalb Crisis Center’s Mobile Crisis Service and several other organizations will also be present.
The fair’s goal is to provide citizens, police officers and other county employees with information and online resources to assist with a mental health crisis, the release said.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic turmoil, the Georgia Crisis and Access Hotline has reported an uptick in calls. In April, the department launched a COVID-19 Emotional Support Line, which received nearly 1,000 calls by the end of August.
“During these unprecedented times, the DeKalb County Police Department wants to ensure that the community has easy access to support through these online resources,” police Chief Mirtha Ramos said in the release.
Pre-registration is required to attend the virtual event. More information is available at www.dekalbcountyga.gov/mentalhealthfair.
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