Caring Causes: Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services

 Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, a leader in suicide prevention, stigma reduction and whole-person mental health care since 1942, received a generous $100,000 grant from the S. Mark Taper Foundation for its new state-of-the-art facility for suicide prevention in Los Angeles.

Founded in 1958, Didi Hirsch’s Suicide Prevention Center is the nation’s first and a recognized global leader in crisis care quality and innovation. Its multilingual 24/7 crisis lines respond to calls, chats and texts from 130,000 people in distress each year and launched a first-in-the-nation 911 call diversion initiative this February with the Los Angeles Police Department. The Center also provides suicide-specialized individual and family therapy, support groups for teens and adults bereaved by suicide, and support groups for adults who have survived an attempt; specialized groups for healthcare providers and adult caregivers are in development. Thousands of students, parents, teachers, mental health professionals, doctors, and first responders are trained by Didi Hirsch to prevent suicide each year.

Didi Hirsch has reached 90% of its fundraising goal and is on track to complete the campaign by the end of 2022, with key naming opportunities like the building and its crisis lines still available.

Before COVID-19, the facility was brimming with interdisciplinary teams of professionals and volunteers offering a wide array of life-saving, human-centered services. From calls, chats, and texts 24/7, to follow-up support for high-risk individuals who have been in the emergency room or hospitalized, to suicide prevention counseling, the emphasis is on meeting people wherever they are in their journey to help and healing. One silver lining of the pandemic is how Didi Hirsch rapidly transitioned and learned to provide crisis care remotely, opening opportunities to scale existing services and develop and train on new ones inside the building.

About Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services

Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services has been a leader in suicide prevention, stigma reduction and whole-person healthcare for nearly 80 years. It operates three residential facilities for adults struggling with mental health issues and substance use disorder, including Via Avanta, which is among the first programs in the nation to allow women to live with their children while in treatment. Didi Hirsch also provides outpatient healthcare services for children, teens and adults in Glendale, Inglewood, Culver City and South Los Angeles.

Didi Hirsch’s first-in-the-nation Suicide Prevention Center in West Los Angeles operates several 24/7 multilingual crisis lines, including the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, Lifeline’s Crisis Chat and the national Disaster Distress Helpline. The Center also provides therapy and support for families and individuals affected by suicide and prevention training for students, teachers, mental health professionals, first responders and others throughout the community. About 160,000 children and adults are served annually from 10 locations and 120 schools in Los Angeles and Orange Counties. Learn more at www.didihirsch.org.