Tim Black

Tim Black is the Director of Consulting at White Bird Clinic. With a background in runaway and homeless youth, harm reduction, and street outreach, he began working for CAHOOTS as a Crisis Intervention Worker in 2010, before moving into an administrative role as the CAHOOTS Operations Coordinator. His work with White Bird Clinic and CAHOOTS has put him in touch with cities across North America looking to implement services based on the CAHOOTS model of behavioral health first response. Programs based on the CAHOOTS model have been implemented in Olympia, Washington, and Denver, Colorado.

CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets) provides mobile crisis intervention 24/7 in the Eugene-Springfield Metro area in Oregon. Designed as an alternative to armed police response for non-violent crises, it is a model being studied and replicated in other parts of the country. CAHOOTS is dispatched through the Eugene police-fire-ambulance communications center, and through the Springfield non-emergency number. Each team consists of a medic (a nurse or an EMT) & an experienced crisis worker.

CAHOOTS provides immediate stabilization in case of urgent medical need or psychological crisis, assessment, information, referral, advocacy & (in some cases) transportation to the next step in treatment. Any person who reports a crime in progress, violence, or a life-threatening emergency may receive a response from the police or emergency medical services instead of or in addition to CAHOOTS. CAHOOTS offers a broad range of services, including but not limited to:

• Crisis Counseling
• Suicide Prevention, Assessment, and Intervention
• Conflict Resolution and Mediation
• Grief and loss
• Substance Abuse
• Housing Crisis
• First Aid and Non-Emergency Medical Care
• Resource Connection and Referrals
• Transportation to Services