A report published August 11, 2026, highlights how Intermountain Health is working to expand pediatric behavioral health services across Utah and the Intermountain West. Through a partnership with the Utah Department of Health and Human Services, the Stabilization and Mobile Response (SMR) program helps children and adolescents experiencing behavioral health challenges receive care in their homes and communities instead of being taken to emergency departments.
The SMR program provides immediate crisis response, mobile teams or telehealth support, and crisis assessment and safety planning. It also offers short-term, in-home follow-up services, often over several weeks, to help families develop coping strategies and connect to community resources.
In Utah, the program is funded by the Utah Department of Health and Human Services, which contracts with Intermountain and local mental health authorities to provide services. Intermountain holds the SMR contract in 10 Utah counties, including Salt Lake County. Bryan Wilde manages the SMR team out of the Primary Children's Hospital Taylorsville Campus.
According to Bryan Wilde, SMR reduces police involvement and emergency department visits by providing timely crisis intervention and ongoing stabilization. The team led by Wilde consists of eight full-time mental health clinicians and 15 social service workers who respond in pairs to behavioral health calls.
Stabilization services under the SMR program include approximately 12 to 18 sessions over two months with a clinician and a social service worker. These sessions help children and caregivers strengthen emotional regulation, improve communication, and build coping skills. All stabilization and mobile response services are provided at no cost to families in Utah.
Families seeking help can call 988 or 1-833-SAFE-FAM. The 988 number is available to anyone in the U.S. for immediate mental health crisis support for children and adults.
Beyond crisis intervention, Intermountain Community Health focuses on educational and preventive resources. Doug Thomas, director of Community Health for Children's Health, stated that the team provides resources like the Feelings Wheel and Talk to Tweens workbooks to help families manage stress and emotional challenges before a crisis develops. These resources are designed to help children identify specific emotions and provide parents with practical tools for supporting their children's mental health.
