Multi-level, Mixed Methods Evaluation of Elm City COMPASS: A Comprehensive Approach to 911 Crisis Response

This proposal extends the multi-level, mixed methods evaluation of Elm City COMPASS, a comprehensive approach to 911 crisis response for individuals with behavioral health challenges. COMPASS, Compassionate Allies Serving our Streets (elmcitycompass.org), is a community-based, civilian initiative to create a system of sustainable supports for individuals in New Haven, CT experiencing a behavioral health crisis. Developed through a year-long planning process of 14 focus groups, three community forums, two co-design sessions, and a Sequential Intercept Mapping process, COMPASS engages community stakeholders: individuals with lived experience, law enforcement, city/state officials; service providers; advocates; faith leaders; and community residents. COMPASS has four primary objectives: (1) To implement a crisis response team, launched 11/1/22, staffed by a social worker and a peer with lived experience, that complements and supports first responders during 911 calls and through outreach; (2) To strengthen the crisis response system through better collaboration and coordination of crisis response services; (3) To sustain a Community Advisory Board of New Haven residents to ensure that COMPASS reflects community needs and values; (4) To conduct a multi-level, mixed methods evaluation that assesses continuous quality improvement of crisis team operations and the effectiveness of COMPASS for individuals served, the service system, and the community. This proposal extends the current COMPASS evaluation for two years to enhance an already rigorous, longitudinal assessment of multi-level program effectiveness at the individual, service system, and community level. At the individual level, New Haven Police Department data from 1/1/18-6/30/26 are expected to demonstrate reduced arrests and emergency department visits and increased service referrals based on interrupted time series analyses. At the service system level, surveys of service system partners (service providers, advocates, faith leaders) collected annually are expected to show increased service system collaboration and coordination as evidenced by increased total service system connections, increased bridging of service system sectors, and increased interconnected sectors over time using social network analyses. At the community level, street-intercept interviews of New Haven in all neighborhoods collected prior to COMPASS launch and annually are expected to show through regression analyses increased awareness of COMPASS over time and increased comfort asking for crisis services, including police when calling 911. Finally, qualitative focus groups with COMPASS service recipients, law enforcement, and service system partners will inform these quantitative findings and provide directions for new research on 911 alternative crisis response. CA/NCF