(Courtesy of University of Nebraska Public Policy Center.)LINCOLN–(KFOR/News Release Sept. 19)–Continuing to improve on protocols and services, plus raise awareness of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, is something the University of Nebraska Public Policy Center is actively working on with DHHS and Boys Town. Public Policy Center senior research director Denise Bulling tells KFOR News the 988 launch has been successful, but there’s more work to do, including the establishment of protocols. “The (Nebraska) Public Service Commission and Department of Health and Human Services, along with their partners in the 911 world are putting together standards to help guide 911 dispatchers, so they know when it’s appropriate and how to send a call to 988,” Bulling said. “We’re still developing the mobile crisis response,” Bulling added. “We have quite a bit of it in place, but we’re working to make that more consistently available across the state.” Mobile crisis response teams are dispatched when needed and wanted, either in person or virtually, for callers to 988, similar to dispatching police, fire or rescue when a 911 call is made. This week, it was announced that Lincoln Police and CenterPointe are teaming up to help in the response for mental health crisis calls, through the city’s Co-Responder initiative. Bulling says it fits well within the response system for 988. “There’s not only someone to call but it’s someone to respond when you need them,” she said. There’s also a focus campaign to remind Nebraskans there is help through the 988, with a specific focus on messaging to men ages 25 to 64 in rural areas. The campaign is part of a strategy to reduce suicide rates in Nebraska through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that will be in place through 2027. Public health data reported to DHHS found that men have a suicide rate nearly twice the state average, and rural men are dying by suicide at a rate nearly 2.5 times more than their urban counterparts. “We’ve been working together to use the data to help drive our prevention efforts, and we’ve identified disproportionately affected populations in Nebraska, with higher suicide rates,” Bulling said. “There were several in Nebraska, but one that is particularly disproportionate, and has not received as much attention, is men aged 25-64, and especially men in rural areas.” The campaign, which is running through December, will employ TV and radio placements, YouTube ads, digital audio on Spotify, and ads in print materials and on social media. Bulling said one of the next steps in fully implementing 988 is partnering with 911 dispatch centers to introduce protocols for when a 911 caller should be transferred to 988. The Nebraska Legislature passed a law that asked the state to put in standards for transferring those calls. The protocols have been written and are being piloted in some Nebraska communities, Bulling said. The protocol was initially fielded in Lancaster County.