The County’s Co-Response Crisis Intervention Team’s (CCIT) mission is to improve outcomes and successful crisis resolution for individuals experiencing mental health crisis by co-deploying a response team comprised of law enforcement officers/deputies and licensed clinicians.
Nicole Seebach is a Senior Mental Health Counselor for CCIT and worked for years with a client that required significant intervention. This is her story:
When I first met her, she had already been living unhoused in Sacramento County for nearly a decade. She was known to local police officers and our team because of repeated calls for service, calls not rooted in crime, but in the challenges of surviving on the street. For her, the outer areas of the County felt safer than downtown Sacramento, even though that distance made it harder to access resources, transportation and services.
From the beginning, I knew her case wouldn’t be simple. She carried years of disappointment with the system, housing navigators who changed too often, programs that closed before she could settle in, promises that fell apart. Each let down built a wall of mistrust. She told me more than once that there was no point in trying, that services only raised hopes and ultimately let people down again.
When I took over her case, it felt like an uphill battle. If I was feeling overwhelmed by the barriers, lack of stable contact, frequent trespasses that kept her moving, and no consistent way to build rapport, then I could only imagine how heavy it felt for her. Still, I made her a promise: I would keep showing up. Even when progress was slow, even when she disappeared for weeks at a time, I wanted her to know that this time was different.
For three years, I submitted applications to every program she might qualify for. Each time, I told her I wouldn’t give up. Finally, after months of setbacks, a new housing program opened and she was accepted. The only challenge now was that we couldn’t find her.
For two weeks, I enlisted the help of everyone I could: City staff, law enforcement officers, their partners and anyone who was willing to help.
Then I saw her, sitting on a sidewalk as I drove to work. After chatting, she agreed to the housing opportunity, and with the help of Sacramento County Behavioral Health Bridge Housing, Hope Cooperative, HEART and support from law enforcement, City leadership and even the DA’s office, we were able to get her into housing.
When we arrived at her new home, we both cried. It wasn’t just relief; it was the weight of years of struggle giving way to hope.
While settling in, she received a visit from police officers who congratulated her on this step with a gift basket for her and her cat. Seeing her safe and smiling in her own home was a reminder of why this work matters.
This is what the Sacramento County Co-Response Crisis Intervention Team is all about. The team walks alongside first responders to bring clinical skills and a trauma-informed approach to individuals in crisis in real time. This story is just one example of how a multidisciplinary approach can benefit everyone. CCIT members specialize in de-escalation and engagement, clinical skills to effectively assess and triage mental health and substance use symptoms while addressing each situation with a client-centered, trauma-informed approach. To learn more, visit the Sacramento County Department of Health Services’ CCIT website.