The presentation of October 9 will review the San Bernardino County’s Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training Program, a collaborative program administered through San Bernardino County’s Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) and Sheriff’s Department. Presenters will review the brief history of the program, the benefits, and successes of training first responder to recognize a mental health crisis, communication, and de-escalation skills, and how to utilize DBH and other resources to help stabilize the crisis and connect the individual and their families to services. In addition, attendees will learn about the DBH crisis system of care and how to utilize community crisis services as an alternative to calling 911