Starting on July 1, 2024, Benchmark Human Services (Benchmark) will provide mobile crisis response services in several counties throughout Idaho. When community members call 988, and a mobile response team (MRT) is dispatched, Benchmark’s staff will provide face-to-face home and community-based interventions to support individuals experiencing a mental illness or substance use-related crisis.
With nearly 20 years of experience in crisis services, Benchmark is ready to make a positive impact on Idahoans. Jaime Garza, PhD, National Certified Addiction Counselor Level II (NCAC II), and Sarah Gordon, Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), will lead this effort.
“It is crucial to ensure everyone has access to mental health services in times of need,” says Dr. Garza, Benchmark’s Idaho Project Director. He has developed several nationally acclaimed programs for substance use treatment and behavioral health, helping countless individuals achieve and sustain their personal recovery goals. Most recently, Dr. Garza led the Hope Pointe Behavioral Health Crisis Care Center in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Having spent the first 27 years of his life in California, Dr. Garza is thrilled to return to the West.
“Our staff will be trained to provide high-quality care for individuals from a variety of populations, including rural and indigenous populations,” says Gordon, Benchmark’s Idaho Clinical Director. Gordon has worked as a substance abuse counselor, an inpatient social worker, an outpatient clinician, and is a certified designated examiner on Idaho’s region 4 mobile crisis team. She also helped develop the L.E.A.D. program (Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion) that aimed to address the opioid epidemic in Idaho by diverting people to treatment instead of jail when they are newly involved in the criminal justice system.
Under contract with Magellan Health, Benchmark will provide mobile crisis response services in regions 1 and 2 of Idaho, including 10 counties. Benchmark is collaborating with Community Bridges, Inc. (CBI) to serve regions 3 and 4 as well, including another 10 counties and Boise, ID.
Benchmark and CBI work together to provide mobile crisis services throughout Oklahoma. Additionally, Benchmark provides mobile crisis response services in regions 1 and 4 of Georgia, including 56 counties total.
About Benchmark Human Services
Founded in 1960 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Benchmark’s mission is to help people live as independently as possible, be included in their communities, and reach their full potential. Benchmark serves over 15,000 individuals with disabilities and behavioral health needs across the lifespan throughout 18 states. (www.benchmarkhs.com)