CPI Security is proud to support the Steve Smith Family Foundation and its newly opened Smith Family Behavioral Health Urgent Care (BHUC).
On Friday, March 3, former NFL great and Carolina Panther, Steve Smith, alongside local donors and dignitaries, cut the ribbon to a first-of-its-kind behavioral health urgent care in Charlotte. The BHUC is like a physical health urgent care facility but provides people suffering from mental health crisis a place, other than the emergency room, to receive triage, care, and referral.
In addition to providing the security system needed to protect and secure the new facility, CPI Security’s CEO and Founder Ken Gill donated $100,000 to the ongoing operations of the BHUC.
“So many people in a mental health crisis wind up in the back of a police car,” Gill said during his remarks at the ceremony. “Now, they [police] can bring them here, where they can receive a proper diagnosis and get to the right place. That’s a help to all of us.”
Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings reiterated how important a resource this facility is to the police department, those suffering from mental health crisis, and the entire community.
“For so many years, the answer of somebody having a mental health crisis was to take them straight to jail,” Jennings said. “[It made] the jail the biggest institution for people having mental health crisis … And that just wasn’t the answer. We’re proud to say that this gives another resource to the police department to be able to give people long term help and long-term assistance.”
The BHUC will treat people with mental health and substance abuse disorders 24/7, 365 days out of the year. Services include:
- Rapid assessment/Diagnostic screening
- Short-term evaluation, start and referral
- Medication evaluation, start and referral
- Brief Crisis Counseling
- Referral Mental Health and Substance Abuse
- Outpatient Treatment
- Referral Mental Health and Substance Abuse Outpatient Treatment
- Peer Support Coordination with other community resources
- Discharge planning and referral to community-based providers and other resources for follow-up care
The Steve Smith Family Foundation was founded in 2013 by Steve and his wife, Angie. The Foundation focuses on the awareness and prevention of domestic violence and the health, wellness, and needs of underserved families and communities.
For more information, click here.
