Policy Research has conducted over 300 Sequential Intercept Model (SIM) Mapping Workshops across the United States and its territories, significantly enhancing how behavioral health and criminal legal systems interact with people with mental health and substance use conditions. What makes these workshops stand out is their integration of collaborative dialogue with strategic planning, empowering participants to convert insights directly into actionable improvements. Read on to learn how communities that participate in SIM Mapping Workshops develop meaningful, lasting social change.

What is a Sequential Intercept Model Mapping Workshop?

SIM Mapping Workshops, conducted by Policy Research, bring together community members and professionals to visualize how individuals with mental health conditions and substance use disorders interact with the behavioral health and criminal legal systems. Through structured conversations, communities identify existing resources, critical gaps, and practical opportunities to intervene effectively. With this knowledge, they set priorities for change through a facilitated dialogue. Once a SIM Mapping Workshop concludes, communities are given a roadmap to sustainable change via strategic action planning.

What specific problems do SIM Mapping Workshops address for individuals with behavioral health conditions and their communities?

SIM Mapping Workshops help communities establish systems and services to interrupt the often-repetitive cycle of criminal legal system involvement driven by unaddressed behavioral health conditions. By identifying opportunities for intervention at every stage of the criminal legal process, and even before criminal legal system contact, SIM Mapping Workshops help communities develop appropriate community-based solutions, effectively diverting individuals from incarceration or repeated system involvement. This approach not only improves personal outcomes but also significantly reduces the strain on local criminal legal resources, fostering healthier, safer communities.

How is Policy Research’s SIM Mapping Workshop unique?

Unlike typical workshops, Policy Research’s SIM Mapping Workshop directly incorporates strategic action planning, guiding communities from conceptual understanding to actionable, community-specific strategies. The workshops don’t just highlight problems—they foster collaborative action plans with measurable, long-term outcomes, which build on already existing resources and successes.

What are some examples of successful outcomes from a SIM Mapping Workshop?

Here are two community case studies showing the profound and long-lasting impacts a mapping and strategic planning session can have.

  • In Fulton County, Georgia, a Policy Research-led SIM Mapping Workshop in 2017 catalyzed the creation of the Center for Diversion and Services, which opened in January 2025. This center offers law enforcement and first responders a ready alternative to incarceration, providing immediate assistance and ongoing case management for individuals with mental health conditions and substance use treatment needs. Services include physical and behavioral health screenings, connections to housing, healthcare, and continuous support, significantly reducing jail bookings and improving community health outcomes.
  • In Dutchess County, New York, a 2011 SIM Mapping Workshop conducted by Policy Research identified the urgent need for crisis stabilization services. This led to the establishment of the Dutchess County Crisis Stabilization and Wellness Center in 2017—a 24/7, voluntary facility providing crisis counseling, peer support, and care coordination. By 2023, this center assisted over 3,000 people annually, significantly easing burdens on local emergency services and reducing unnecessary incarceration.

Who benefits most from participating in a Policy Research SIM Mapping Workshop?

Communities eager to enhance collaboration between behavioral health and criminal legal systems, policymakers aiming for practical reforms, and system professionals invested in reducing incarceration through effective, community-based interventions will find substantial value in participating.

How can I bring a SIM Mapping Workshop to my community?

Find more information on working with us at the Systems Mapping and Training Center website.

This blog post was developed with the assistance of generative artificial intelligence.