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Since Nov. 6th, the pilot project that pairs police officers with mental health workers in Middlesex County has already helped 132 people experiencing a crisis in just over a month.
The new initiative, known as the Middlesex Crisis Rapid Response Team (MCRRT) is the result of a partnership between the Canadian Mental Health Association and West Region Police Services. Provincial Constable Kevin Howe says the project was developed after Strathroy-Caradoc police and Middlesex OPP saw a 63% increase for mental health and addiction related calls in the past three years.
“We’re very happy to announce that we now have a Middlesex Crisis Rapid Response Team, who’s inserted to work with the members of the Middlesex OPP detachment, and are running out of our office here at Exeter Road in London” Howe declares.
The MCRRT works by having two mental health response workers embedded within the Middlesex OPP and SCPS to accompany officers on mental health and addiction-related calls.
“It’s not just a policing response,” Constable Howe says. “It’s where we’re having someone who is specifically trained in crisis response in the medical field that is assisting and triaging members from the community who are struggling.”
Howe adds that if there are no immediate calls at the time. The vehicle with the officer and mental health worker will conduct follow-ups within the community to those who may have had interactions before. It’s the service that keeps on giving for those in need.
A similar project is set to launch in London next year. But Constable Howe says this program is especially important for the rural communities outside of the city.
“There’s a lot of services for people who are living within the city area,” he explains. “But people who are living in our remote communities out in Parkhill, Glencoe Area, they don’t have that same access to those services. So in this situation, the Response Team can come out and actually support them in their community and in their homes.”
Via myFM Strathroy
The MCRRT mental health response workers, in collaboration with police will:
- Access triage, de-escalate and provide resources to individuals in a mental health or addictions-related crisis
- Decrease unnecessary emergency department visits or justice involvement
- Determine appropriate links to community services and supports
- Provide a wellness check 24-48 hours after crisis occurs
- Improve the experience of individuals and their families
- Ensure every individual living in the rural community has access to high-quality service, whether in Middlesex County or within First Nations communities
- Decrease stigma of individuals living with mental health and/or addictions concerns
- Build and maintain effective partnerships between police services and health care partners
Individuals who may be experiencing a mental health or addictions crisis can access crisis services in Middlesex County by calling Reach Out 24/7 at 1-866-933-2023, contacting the non-emergent line 1-888-310-1122, or dialing 911.
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