Crisis Services
Resources that can help you and the people around you in and after a mental health emergency or crisis event.
If you are experiencing a Mental Health Emergency
Call or text 9-1-1 (ask for a Crisis Intervention Trained [CIT] officer) or go to your nearest hospital emergency room if you can safely get there.
Crisis Services
From respite services to intensive case management, below are resources found within San Mateo County.
StarVista’s Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention Center provides suicide intervention services and programs for San Mateo County residents, including a 24-hour crisis hotline, mobile youth crisis response team, online and text teen crisis support, and educational presentations to the community and schools. Call the Crisis Hotline 24/7 at 650-579-0350.
The Community Wellness Crisis Response Team (CWCRT) program launched as a pilot in December 2021, in Daly City, San Mateo, Redwood City, and South San Francisco with two goals in mind: to provide an alternative to jail and overburdened hospital emergency rooms for non-violent individuals undergoing a behavioral health crisis and to free up police officers. StarVista mental health clinicians are deployed by 9-1-1 along with police officers to calls involving individuals suspected of experiencing behavioral health crises, to help manage high-risk situations to improve outcomes and public safety.
Mobile Support Services – Mateo Lodge
Mateo Lodge provides 24/7 outreach support services by the bilingual staff of the Mobile Support team which can be reached at (650) 368-3178 or (650) 363-8125. The Support Team addresses the immediate needs for crisis intervention, transportation, and homelessness or in danger of becoming homeless.
StarVista’s S.O.S. Team also provides support for current/former foster youth and caregivers in need of trauma support. They can call or text StarVista’s free 24/7/365 Hotline at 833-939-3877 and be connected to a trained counselor or peer. For more support, a team can go directly to them to help stabilize the situation and keep them safe.
Mental health-trained paramedics provide assessment assistance to law enforcement when dealing with a mental health crisis. SMART can transport individuals to a local hospital that provides psychiatric emergency services or to other appropriate services as necessary. Dispatched by law enforcement only.
IMAT case managers are located at San Mateo Medical Center’s Emergency Department and Psychiatric Emergency Services educate and engage patients with opioid and alcohol use disorders in treatment services. For more information call IMAT at (650) 573-2735
Serenity House is a 13-bed short term respite/crisis residential program run by Telecare, the the new BHRS contracted provider, that reopened October 2022. The program serves adults age 18+ with a diagnosis of mental illness, including those with co-occurring substance use disorders. They provide care 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. The CRT will help people find relief from distress, maintain stability, and emphasize choice-making skills and harm-reduction techniques. Prior to arriving at the program, all referrals should call 650-539-0340 to access services. Location: 3701 Hacienda St, San Mateo, CA 94403
A mental health clinician and Sheriff’s Office detective co-respond to mental health crises within San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office jurisdictions. Dispatched by law enforcement only.
Intensive Case Management (ICM)
Case managers outreach to seriously mentally ill individuals in the community who are either unsheltered, at psychiatric emergency services (hospitalized) or referred by the community in an attempt to connect them to appropriate resources. Call the Adult Resource Management team at (650) 372-3210.