From 2011 to 2015, the number of 911 calls for mental health crisis incidents in Waterloo Region increased by 41 per cent.
Over the same period, the number of arrests Waterloo Regional Police made under the Mental Health Act actually decreased.
While those two things may seem contradictory, police say there’s a simple answer – a new partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association.
A team of seven CMHA nurses now works with the police for 13 hours each day, moving between police calls where mental health is considered likely to be a concern.
Once at the scene, nurses assess the situation and determine whether the person involved would best be served by hospitalization, support services or an arrest.
“We all come together for the good of the individuals that we want to support,” says Carmen Abel, the manager of the CMHA’s local crisis services program.
Abel hopes to see the program expand beyond its current 10 a.m.-to-11 p.m. hours – perhaps even into a 24-hour service – before too long.
In the meantime, the program is expanding geographically.
The Guelph Police Service announced Wednesday that they had formalized a partnership with the CMHA to cement the same program in that city.
