Ontario is expanding the number of mobile mental health teams working with police officers in response to an increase in 911 calls from people in distress during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s very important they have backup from trained mental health professionals to help them de-escalate situations and get people the help they need,” Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday.
He announced $37 million for teams to begin working or expand existing operations in 33 communities, from Toronto and Ottawa to remote First Nations in northern Ontario.
The money will also go to “safe bed” programs working with the crisis teams to take in people on short notice, up to 524 new supportive housing units for Ontarians with mental health and addictions troubles caught up in the justice system, and more addictions counselling.
“When you get that 911 call you have to be ready for anything,” Ford said of the need for police to have backup on the mental health front.
“People don’t know where to turn or situations can go downhill real quickly without the social supports we normally have,” he added, referring to isolation many people are feeling in a world of physical distancing and financial uncertainty because of lost jobs.
The Canadian Mental Health Association applauded the additional cash, saying it will help people get the services they need sooner.
“We anticipate that this funding will help divert individuals who are experiencing a crisis to appropriate community-based care rather than the person ending up in the hospital emergency department or justice system,” said Camille Quenneville, chief executive of the association’s Ontario division.
“The government also wisely invested in supports for front-line staff in correctional facilities and for individuals already in custody,” she added.
“Supporting individuals while in custody or under community supervision can help them manage their mental health or addictions issue and reduce the likelihood of recidivism.”
Solicitor General Sylvia Jones said 911 calls related to mental health issues are up about 45 per cent, making it important to have supports more readily available when police are called.
“In many cases a police response is necessary but there are calls for service that could benefit from an alternative response,” said James Ramer, chief of Toronto police.
Almost $12 million of the $37 million is going to the mobile crisis teams and the safe bed programs. Another $14 million is for the supportive housing units.
The money is part of the $176 million Ford announced earlier this year to boost mental health and addictions services amid increasing awareness of the need for improvements.
https://www.thestar.com/politics/provincial/2020/11/17/ontario-expands-mental-health-teams-working-with-police-as-pandemic-drives-up-911-calls.html
Recent Comments
These kind of posts are always inspiring and I prefer to read quality content so I happy to find many good point here in the post. writing is simply wonderful! thank you for the post
This is my first time i visit here. I found so many helpful stuff in your website especially its discussion. From the tons of responses on your posts, I guess I am not the only one having all the enjoyment here! keep up the excellent work
I loved your idea there, I tell you blogs are so exciting sometimes like looking into people’s private life’s and work. Every new remark wonderful in its own right.
This website has lots of really useful stuff on it. Thanks for informing me.
You need to really control the comments listed here
I would share your post with my sis.
I wrote down your blog in my bookmark. I hope that it somehow did not fall and continues to be a great place for reading texts.
Woh I enjoy your content , saved to bookmarks!
Nice Post. It’s really a very good article. I noticed all your important points. Thanks.
I am glad to be a visitor on this website!, regards for this rare information!
A cool post there mate ! Thank you for posting.
Please let us know when you plan to publish your book!
Howdy, a helpful article for sure. Thank you.
have already been reading ur blog for a couple of days. really enjoy what you posted. btw i will be doing a report about this topic. do you happen to know any great websites or forums that I can find out more? thanks a lot.
You certainly deserve a round of applause for your post and more specifically, your blog in general. Very high quality material!
Your thing regarding creating will be practically nothing in short supply of awesome. This informative article is incredibly useful and contains offered myself a better solution to be able to my own issues. Which can be the specific purpose MY PARTNER AND I has been doing a search online. I am advocating this informative article with a good friend. I know they are going to get the write-up since beneficial as i would. Yet again many thanks.
There is a lot of misunderstanding about these issues today. Your material helps explain things.
We absolutely love your blog and find the majority of your post’s to be exactly what I’m looking for. Do you offer guest writers to write content to suit your needs? I wouldn’t mind composing a post or elaborating on a number of the subjects you write about here. Again, awesome weblog!
Nice blog. Could someone with little experience do it, and add updates without messing it up? Good information on here, very informative.
Very nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I’ve really enjoyed browsing your blog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again soon!