In the heart of Denver, a movement is reshaping how the city responds to mental and behavioral health crises. It doesn’t arrive with sirens or flashing lights. It doesn’t wear a badge or carry restraints. It shows up in a van, staffed by a Denver Health paramedic or EMT and a WellPower mental health clinician, ready to listen, support and connect. This is STAR—the Support Team Assisted Response program—and it’s been offering an alternative for what a first response can be for the past five years.
Five Years and Over 14,000 Responses
Launched as a pilot in 2020, STAR sends a mental health clinician and emergency medical professional to certain 911 calls. Over the past five years, the program has grown from one van and a handful of staff into a multi-agency, integrated team with multiple vehicles, operating from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week across the City and County of Denver. The mission? To offer an alternative to police or emergency medical services (EMS) when someone is in a behavioral health crisis. And it’s working.
“Anyone in Denver can call 911 and, if appropriate, have a STAR van meet them where they are,” said Maita Thams, LPC, program manager for STAR. “We’re giving people hope that their needs will be met in a trauma-informed way.”
That hope is tangible. With over 14,000 encounters since its inception, STAR has reached more than 8,500 individuals. Of the 12,000 clinical encounters between June 2020 and December 2024, only 3% resulted in a mandatory psychiatric hold—a testament to the team’s ability to de-escalate and support with their clinical expertise. Instead, 30% of those encounters included transport and connection to additional services, and roughly half received referrals to appropriate community care, including that provided by STAR’s Community Partner Network.
“We’re not just a transport vehicle,” said Sam Rabins, LCSW, associate director of WellPower’s Crisis and Community Services. “We provide acute crisis support and then connect people to referrals for long-term care. A crisis doesn’t end when the van drives away.”
That’s where STAR’s Community Partner Network comes in. STAR program staff and community partners, like Servicios de la Raza, work together to help people access the resources they need most. From culturally and linguistically appropriate care to follow-up acute case management, STAR ensures that individuals aren’t just stabilized—they’re supported.
Whether it’s a referral to WellPower’s Walk-In Crisis Center or Behavioral Health Solutions Center, support getting an ambulance for medical needs or a connection to a culturally specific service provider, STAR’s wraparound model is designed to meet people where they are and connect individuals to long-term behavioral health care.
“We want to help people feel safe and stabilized within their community,” said Rabins. “Everyone on the STAR program – from the people who staff the van to our Community Partner Network – is working to increase the longevity of community well-being.”
First Responders are Community Members, Too
It’s not just the community that’s benefiting. Denver’s first responders are, too.
The collaboration between STAR and other first responders has become a model of mutual learning. First responders learn what an alternative, trauma-informed approach can look like for the community and, in turn, have a pathway to collaborate and support one another in the process.
“It’s really beautiful,” said Caroline Rapp, LCSW, a program evaluator at WellPower. “Our entire Denver network of first responders has become more adept at handling behavioral health calls through these community-wide partnerships.”
STAR has also opened up precious time for police, EMS and firefighters.
“Our STAR teams are specifically trained to handle mental and behavioral health crisis calls,” Thams added. “That allows police, firefighters and EMS to focus on calls that require their expertise. It’s a win-win.”
The impact is deeply personal. “We see a lot of family members calling into 911 for their loved ones, asking for a STAR response,” Thams said. “Before STAR, some of these individuals may have felt a typical first responder response wasn’t the right solution for their situation. With STAR’s inception, people feel they are getting the right response at the right time for their needs. STAR helps people feel safe asking for help.”
That trust is hard-earned and deeply rooted in STAR’s values. The teams wear plain clothes, not law enforcement uniforms. They don’t carry weapons or restraints. They use their extensive clinical training, empathy and advocacy during encounters. And they reflect the community they serve— STAR’s clinical teams have a multitude of cultural and linguistic representations that mirror Denver’s diverse populations.
“We want to build and repair trust from systems that have failed people,” Thams said. “Talking about suicidality or mental health doesn’t mean we’re going to take someone to the hospital against their will. We’re here to help get people connected to the right resources for their current needs.”
STAR is for the People
Looking ahead, STAR has big dreams. “We’d love to see a 24-hour STAR option,” Thams said. “That would mean shelters, crisis centers and aid organizations would also need to be available around the clock. It’s a systems-level goal.”
Rabins agrees. “We’d like to see more vans, expanded hours and more direct referral options—including direct access to medical and psych appointments and shelter beds held specifically for folks who use STAR’s services.”
Of course, expansion requires funding. But the return on investment is clear: having mental health expertise as an emergency response option allows people to get the right help at the right time.
“Many people on the STAR teams – paramedics and mental health clinicians – have decades of experience in community mental health care,” said Thams. “They could go anywhere and be successful, and they choose to be here with us.”
STAR is more than a program. It’s a commitment that when someone in Denver is in crisis they’ll be seen, heard and supported.
“We consistently advocate for our community members who experience barriers to resources, but there are still gaps in the systems at large,” said Rapp. “While we can’t fill every crack or solve every problem, I’m grateful that the STAR program has provided additional pathways of access for people in Denver.”
To access STAR support directly for yourself or another person in Denver, please call (720) 913-2000. You can also call 911 and Denver’s trained operators will dispatch the most appropriate available response, including STAR. The STAR program operates seven days a week, 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. For more information, visit wellpower.org/star-program.