988 Summit aims to meet people where they are

The Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, along with the Tribal 988 Workgroup and Oscar Jacobson Foundation, hosted the second annual Tribal 988 Mental Health LifeLine Summit Tuesday and Wednesday at the Apache Casino Hotel Event Center.

The event hosted tribal leaders, public health professionals, mental health professionals, community advocates and allies of mental health advocacy and awareness. Many booths were available to teach both native and non-native people about mental health help options available.

Tracy Poafpybitty, a case manager for the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes 988, said

“This has been a great turn out. It was a lot of information, a lot of networking, partnerships, and it was a good thing.”

Poafpybitty said that she has always had a passion for helping others and meeting them where they are, something that she strived to do in her work throughout the summit.

“I have always had a passion for helping people, for getting them where they need to be and meeting them on their level.”

Poafpybitty said that there were multiple types of mental health issues that the summit was aimed at helping alleviate, including mental health issues such as depression or anxiety, as well as helping those struggling with addiction.

“If I can’t help them, then I will network and find a solution to help them and get them what they need.”

The impact of the 988 programs has been tremendous, according to Poafpybitty, especially regarding the fentanyl crisis among youth. Her goal was to get the message out that there is help for those struggling with their mental health.

Throughout the event, local tribal leaders and mental health professionals were able to collaborate and bring awareness to treatment options available for those struggling. 

Kristy Turney, with Parkside Hospital in Tulsa, said that the goal of Parkside was to support the 988 program. 

“We are just wanting to first of all support this organization and we also want to share information about the services we provide; which is acute psychiatric in patient care.”

Turney said that the 988 number has been incredibly beneficial for those in a crisis, as they now have a short, easy to remember number available 24/7.

Stephanie Hawk, with the Southern Plains Tribal Health board, works to do follow up care after a client is transported to a hospital. 

“It’s been great to coordinate with other programs, to see how they’re running their programs and also to continue with our tribal work group to ensure that citizens are receiving the services they need.”

988 is available via call or text for those in need of help, with mental health professionals on the line to aid those in crisis. 988 can send out crisis management professionals to a person’s location, and help to transport them to professional care if needed, according to the website, 988oklahoma.com.