UW launches Husky Assist mental health crisis response team

In early December, the UW launched a dedicated, skilled team of on-call mental health workers ready to respond to students, staff and faculty experiencing a mental health crisis on the Seattle campus. This new team goes by Husky Assist.

Husky Assist team members are trained mental health professionals who can respond compassionately on the UW campus in Seattle to a variety of situations. The team provides in-person help with things like emotional distress, suicidal thoughts, substance use concerns, support for survivors, connecting to resources, delivering tough news and checking on someone’s well-being. The UW is now one of a growing number of universities in the United States with an on-call mental health team.

The launch of Husky Assist is a big step, many years in the making, and its reality is thanks to scores of students, staff and faculty who have advocated for such a team. Initial funding was approved by former UW President Ana Mari Cauce and Provost Tricia Serio as part of the commitment to reimagine what safety looks like at UW.

Meet Jennifer Magnani, Director of Husky Assist

Husky Assist Director Jennifer Magnani started building policies, procedures and staffing about six months ago. We asked her about her work with UW so far.

Tell us about your professional experience. How did you get into social work?

My path to social work was not linear. I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and was working in the field (radio and copy editing) but was struggling to feel connected to the work. I didn’t know if what I was doing was having a positive impact on the world around me. I started volunteering, first at a hospice for people with AIDS and came to know that I needed to do work that had results that I could see and feel more easily. I took a couple of years to explore the health care field more generally. I really liked what I saw the social workers doing, so I went back to school (at UW!) for my Master of Social Work degree.

When should people contact Husky Assist for help?

Husky Assist is a great resource when you or someone you know needs mental health or substance use help on campus but in the moment can’t figure out how to get that help. Maybe the person is feeling overwhelmed or in crisis, or unsure what next steps might look like. Or, maybe you know someone who seems to be deteriorating from a mental health perspective, and you are not certain how to help them.

We have a lot of fantastic mental health and substance use resources on campus, but Husky Assist provides a low-barrier way to start getting help.

What can UW students and employees expect when they call Husky Assist?

The call will be answered by a UW Police Department dispatcher who will ask you questions about what’s going on, such as: What kind of help do you need? What’s happening in that space right now? Are there any weapons around or threat of weapons being used? What are the reasons you are concerned about the person? Based on those answers, the dispatcher will mobilize Husky Assist either solo, or, if there is the potential for a safety issue, with an officer from UWPD. UWPD officers will also respond if there is an active suicide attempt or a close call. If you are certain that you want Husky Assist, please ask for us!

What can you do for students and employees when you show up?

From the moment we arrive on scene we are assessing what’s going on and what would be helpful. We can help deescalate someone in crisis and talk through what’s going on. We can provide a listening ear, answer questions about resources and help guide people towards next steps. We know that some people are more receptive to talking about what’s going on than others, and that’s OK. You can still call Husky Assist even if you’re not sure if the person will talk with us.

Husky Assist team members are considered “confidential employees” because we provide mental health care. That means that clients we are serving can disclose Title IX-related events (sex- and gender- based violence and discrimination) to us and we are not mandated to report in the same way as other University employees. Like other mental health providers, there are limits to confidentiality around disclosures of child abuse/neglect, the abuse/neglect of vulnerable adults, and when someone intends to harm themselves or others. We can review those confidentiality limitations when we respond.

It’s a big campus. How will the team move around? Will people see the team out and about?

Yes, it’s a huge campus! We have a UCAR with the Husky Assist logo on the doors. The car allows us to respond more quickly across the entirety of the Seattle campus.

The team itself tries to be very low-profile much of the time, except when marketing or if we are at a large response scene where it would help to be able to pick us out of the crowd. We do have some Husky Assist labeled clothing for those scenarios. But most of the time, we try to blend into the campus environment so that it’s less obvious when someone is receiving support from the team.

What are some misconceptions you’ve encountered about students, faculty and staff in crisis?

I think a big one is around how a ”crisis “is defined. In my experience, most of us don’t identify with that label, even if we are in acute distress. We question if it really is that bad. Or a common thought is “I SHOULD be dealing with this better, so I just need to get myself together on my own,” which usually means there’s some shame involved that compounds things.

If there’s one thing that I really wished people knew is that we all hit bumps in the road in life and have moments where we are just at a loss or feel really stuck. Sometimes it feels like there are no options or ways of feeling better. It’s really OK to ask for help — help with sorting out what’s going on, what resources are available and, ideally, finding the hope to move forward.

The other thing I’ll mention is that if you are worried about calling us in too soon, don’t be. Sometimes we’ve been called in when things have deteriorated, but if we’d been called in sooner, we perhaps could have helped that person get some relief before things got worse.

How have people responded when you’ve asked for help putting Husky Assist together?

I’m so thankful for the many community partners here that have helped me understand the unmet need that Husky Assist was created to fill and how the program fits into the larger whole. SafeCampus, the UW Counseling Center, Husky Health, Housing & Food Services and UWPD all have spent hours with me hammering out best practices and protocols that are critical for the success of the program. Their partnership has led to a much smoother rollout.

What are you happiest doing when you’re not working?

I love spending time with family, cooking (especially with friends) and being out in nature. I also try to have some sort of trip on the horizon — from local to international.