This manual is a compilation of recommended data elements organized around each of the six intercepts represented in the Sequential Intercept Model. Each section lists data points and measures that are essential to addressing how people with mental and substance use disorders flow through that intercept. The sections also cover common challenges with data collection and ways to overcome them, along with practical examples of how information is being used in the field.

Efforts to share data often fail when stakeholders lack clarity on the most essential information to collect, integrate, and examine. This manual provides a starting place for jurisdictions in considering important data points and measures they should be gathering and analyzing at each intercept.

The linear version of the Sequential Intercept Model was developed by Mark Munetz, M.D., and Patricia A. Griffin, Ph.D., along with Henry J. Steadman, Ph.D., of Policy Research Associates, Inc. in the early 2000s. The model was developed to help communities understand and improve the interactions between criminal justice systems and people with mental and substance use disorders. The SIM is used to identify community resources and help plan for additional resources for people with mental and substance use disorders at each phase of interaction with the justice system, beginning with Intercept 0 (crisis response) and ending with Intercept 5 (community corrections). The SIM can help leaders and staff more effectively collaborate to divert people with mental and substance use disorders away from the justice system and into treatment.

  • Associated Mappings:
    • Sequential Intercept Model Mapping Workshops

This resource was first shared in 2019.