The phone rings at the 988 call center, and a woman sitting at a desk, ready to respond to anyone who reaches out, picks up the receiver. There is no script for her job, but as she often does, the operator starts with a simple line:
“Thank you for calling 988, how can I help you?”
“This year has been s*****," the 29-year-old caller responds. "I’ve been unemployed since October of last year. I thought things were going to get better, but they haven’t. I honestly don’t have faith in anything anymore," he said. "Sometimes I feel like I’m better off not being here than to deal with this bull****.”
The caller said he owes over $10,000 in rental debt and $30,000 in student loans. He emptied his 401K just to get by. His bank account total? $78.
"What is there to live for, really?”
The 988 call center operators in Hamilton County are trained to manage calls like this, from anyone who may be suicidal or have a mental health crisis to anyone who simply needs someone to listen. The number 988, a national suicide and crisis call service, has been serving Ohioans for two years. Recently released data shows that people in Hamilton County, and Ohio, depend on the service.
988 calls, texts and chats roll into nonprofit's line
The 988 service has over 200 call centers in the United States . Talbert House, a Cincinnati nonprofit, runs the line for Hamilton County. Records show the nonprofit's operators have made 14,950 Hamilton County contacts with people seeking help in two years.
In addition to running Hamilton County's dedicated line, Talbert House serves as a backup for the state, meaning calls are directed to them from other Ohio call centers when necessary.
Records provide a 2-year view of 988 service here, in Ohio
The 988 service launched on July 16, 2022, and has grown steadily in the number of contacts made in the two years since, according to the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services .
Ohio has 19 call centers – more than any other state. Data shows that across the state, nearly 340,000 contacts with 988 operators have been made. A "contact" is any call, chat or text made to the lifeline. The total contact number includes repeat callers.
In Hamilton County, the nearly 15,000 contacts included 254 that resulted in emergency responses from police, fire department or emergency medical help.
Forty-one callers were actively trying to die by suicide, records show.
The number of statewide contacts for the lifeline was 153,329 in the first year, and 186,061 in year two, a 21% increase. In Hamilton County, the total contacts increased by 16% with 6,905 in year one and 8,045 in its second year of service.
While the contacts are increasing, Kaiser Family Foundation data shows that only 18% of adults are familiar with what 988 is. And while only a small percentage of people know about 988, data from the CDC says that more than 1 in 5 adults, or 20% of U.S. residents, have mental illness and could need help.
988 helps, mental health experts say
The jump in calls and the nearly 15,000 contacts in Hamilton County were no surprise to Michael Madigan, a UC Health licensed social worker and adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati's School of Social Work. He said he has seen 988 benefit some of his patients, and he thinks more people will call the help line as it becomes more known.
“There are lots of people who have mental illness who have burned all bridges and they have no connection to anybody," Madigan said. "So being able to reach out to somebody is really important."
Calls to 988 are often from people who need to be connected with other community resources, but some just need someone to talk to. A lot of the callers have thoughts of dying by suicide, Talbert House quality assurance administrator James Reeves said.
Reeves said he is good at dealing with emergency situations, but still finds them draining.
Once, he took what turned out to be a three-and-a-half hour call with an engineer who said he'd been fired. The caller was driving and screaming about wanting to run his car into people to "kill everyone and himself."
"There’s no script that can prepare you to handle this," Reeves said. "We get equipped with skills. We get trained. But if you aren’t the person for this job then you’re not the person for this job."
The training includes getting an Ohio Certified Prevention Specialist Assistant credential, which requires 45 hours of prevention specific training, beyond general lifeline training. The operators also shadow other calls for a month before they are permitted to respond to calls on their own, Talbert House Associate Director Rebecca Jones said.
988 operators connect Hamilton County callers with regional help
The 988 line is connected to the other mental health and emergency response resources in Hamilton County. One partnering agency is the UC Health Mobile Crisis Team , which responds to mental health crises in the community. The 988 operators of the Talbert House line have been able to de-escalate 80% of their calls, but for the remaining 20% they often reach out to the Mobile Crisis Team or 911, said Mobile Crisis Team manager Katherine Cannon.
There used to be a stigma around calling for help, with people worried that police would automatically be sent, Jones said. But with 988, calling 911 is the last resort for operators, Jones said. Instead, they create a safety plan over the phone, connect callers to other resources, and provide people with coping skills.
What happens after the call ends?
The 988 operators are not allowed to call anyone back unless a follow-up call is requested. It can be hard not knowing what happens after a caller hangs up, they said. But there are also calls that make their jobs worth it, Reeves said, like when people thank him for being the one who answered their call.
In the case of the laid off engineer, after more than three hours on the phone he was crying and thanking Reeves for his help.
The man who called with suicidal thoughts because of his financial hardship ended the call after about 20 minutes, saying "You know what, I’m done talking. I hope you have a good day.”
“You too," The operator responded. "We’re here if you need anything – 24 hours a day.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 'What is there to live for, really?' 988 suicide and crisis line reaches 340,000 in Ohio
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