Crisis Services

814/456-2014 or toll free 1-800/300-9558

Crisis Services of Safe Harbor Behavioral Health provides five types of intervention, 24-hours-a-day/7-days-a-week, to anyone experiencing a crisis within Erie County, PA. A crisis is defined very broadly and includes anyone experiencing a disturbance of mood, thought, emotions, behavior or social functioning. Examples include: suicide; symptoms of mental illness; bereavement; situational stressors (financial, job loss, homelessness); relationship discord; substance abuse; family discord; and/or parenting concerns.

  • Telephone Crisis Services
    • Crisis staff provide telephone screening to gather information regarding a caller’s particular situation, providing crisis counseling and support. This also includes outreach to residents in the county who may be in need of assistance in accessing community resources, referrals, and information.
  • Walk-In Crisis Services
    • Individuals may come to Crisis Services’ office for an in-person assessment of their situation, crisis counseling, information, referrals for ongoing treatment, and assistance with hospital admission for voluntary or involuntary evaluation.
  • Mobile Crisis Services
    • Crisis staff can provide assessments in the community at the scene of a crisis along with resource and referral information. Options are explored to include continued treatment, and assistance to the hospital for voluntary or involuntary evaluation. On-scene support is offered to assist the individual through this process.
  • Referral to an RTFA (Residential Treatment Facility for Adults)
    • Person or persons who have a diagnosis of a serious mental illness, and are in need of a supportive structured environment to ensure stability, could be referred to a residential treatment facility for adults. RTFA is a structured program to assist clients in identifying their emotional needs. Length of stay is from 1-30 days and is determined by the client’s treatment team and RTFA staff.
  • Crisis Follow-up
    • Crisis services provides a follow-up program to assist individuals with support after the initial in-person contact. A crisis worker can offer support in a client’s home or the client can come to Crisis Services’ office and staff will offer counseling and assist in linking them to community resources necessary to resolving the crisis.

There is no inappropriate referral for Crisis Services. Crisis Services responds to any request according to an established system for prioritization a clinical basis.

The Intervention Priority Code assists Crisis Services staff in responding to those people most at-risk for self-injury or injuring others first, but still assures that every request for service shall be addressed within 24-hours.

Crisis Services are available to anyone regardless of ability to pay. Medical Assistance is billed for those persons having the PA ACCESS card. The Dept of Human Services provides funding for services for people not covered by Medical Assistance. There are no co-payments, monthly liabilities, or fees for Crisis Services.

Crisis Services is committed to providing a quality customer service approach through collaboration and teamwork at all times, weekly in-services, clinical supervision and 24-hour accessibility to psychiatrists and administrators.

Crisis Services responds to nearly 2,500 phone calls per month (67 per day) and completes approximately 300 individual crisis evaluations per month.