Tony Mantor: Why Not Me ?
Sherri Witwer: Rethinking How We help People in Mental Health Crisis
21 May 2025
Send us a text Sherry Witwer, board president for CIT Utah, shares her insights on improving crisis response systems for people experiencing mental health emergencies and creating alternatives to incarceration through specialized training and community partnerships. • CIT (Crisis Intervention Team) training provides law enforcement with tools to effectively respond to mental health crises and connect individuals with appropriate treatment • Mobile crisis outreach teams staffed by behavioral health providers and peers can handle most crisis calls without police involvement • Receiving centers offer alternatives to jails or emergency rooms, providing specialized assessment and stabilization for those in mental health crisis • Proper training helps officers distinguish between substance use and mental health crises through scenario-based practice and building community partnerships • Access to care remains a significant challenge, particularly coordinating services for people with serious mental illness across different systems • Better case management and peer support services are needed to help individuals navigate complex systems when they're least able to do so independently • Affordable and supportive housing is essential for recovery and breaking cycles of hospitalization and incarceration • Including voices of people with lived experience and families is crucial for designing effective mental health services that people will actually use https://tonymantor.com https://Facebook.com/tonymantor https://instagram.com/tonymantor https://twitter.com/tonymantor https://youtube.com/tonymantormusic intro/outro music bed written by T. Wild Why Not Me the World music published by Mantor Music (BMI)
Full Episode
Welcome to Why Not Me? The World Podcast, hosted by Tony Mantor. Broadcasting from Music City, USA, Nashville, Tennessee. Join us as our guests tell us their stories. Some will make you laugh, some will make you cry. real life people who will inspire and show that you are not alone in this world.
Hopefully you gain more awareness, acceptance, and a better understanding for autism around the world. Hi, I'm Tony Mantor. Welcome to Why Not Me? The World, Humanity Over Handcuffs, The Silent Crisis special event. We're delighted to welcome Sherry Witwer, a dedicated and passionate advocate for mental health and community well-being.
With an extensive career spanning numerous roles, Sherry has made significant contributions across a wide range of sectors. This includes community nonprofits, government, and corporate environments. She currently serves as board president for CIT Utah, sits on the National Advisory Board for the CIT Assist Program, and holds the position of board vice chair for the Utah Housing Coalition.
Additionally, she is a founder and board member of Peers Empowering Peers Utah, an organization devoted to advancing mental health peer support. It's an honor to have her with us today to share her wealth of experience and insights. Thanks for coming on.
Thank you. Thank you for the opportunity.
Oh, it's my pleasure. I understand that you are the president for CIT Utah. Can you expand on what that is?
Yeah. I guess as a matter of introduction, I'm a longtime mental health advocate. I've worked in various capacities in our mental health system. primarily in public policy advocacy. I'm a family member of someone with a serious mental illness, and that's what has driven my work and my interest in the mental health system.
As part of my work, I have been and am working with other families and people with lived experience with mental illness. I have been an advocate for crisis intervention team training. That is training for law enforcement, behavioral health providers, and families and people with lived experience.
They come together to provide training for law enforcement and, more importantly, to have an effective crisis response when someone is in crisis. that law enforcement has the training and the support of the mental health system to help them respond effectively and get the person to the treatment that they need.
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