Today, in recognition of #BellLetsTalk, the Saskatoon Police Service is announcing a new partnership with the Saskatoon Crisis Intervention Service to offer an alternative to a police response to calls relating to mental health.

This partnership introduces a “Mental Health & Suicide Intervention Call Transfer Protocol” for Saskatoon Mobile Crisis (MCS). This means, when a caller contacts SPS Communications to report a situation of a personal crisis, which may require mental health or suicide intervention, SPS call-takers may transfer the call to MCS.

In each case the SPS call-taker must confirm a number of things before transferring the call:

• making sure the situation is not emergent in nature;
• confirming there is no presence of weapons or any actions which may endanger the caller or members of the public;
• the caller is not reporting self-harm or harm to others;
• no criminal act has been implied or committed;
• the situation does not include indications of domestic/intimate partner dispute; and
• there is no immediate need for medical attention.

The SPS call taker will require permission from the caller before they are able to transfer the call. If refused, the call will be processed by Police.

Deputy Chief Mitch Yuzdepski says there are a limited amount of 24/7 support services in the community and when services are not available, the default agency is almost always the police.

“Based on the available research both locally and nationally, the pervasiveness of mental health embedded in many police calls for service is grossly underestimated. Despite this, the will of the Saskatoon Police Service for positive change has never been stronger. In Saskatoon this includes the diversion of some mental health calls to the SCIS’s Mobile Crisis Service and the expansion of the number of Police and Crisis Teams (PACT).”

Rita Field, Executive Director of the Saskatoon Crisis Intervention Service, says they are pleased to enter into this enhanced call transfer partnership with the SPS.

“This focus on mental health and matching service to need, builds on the strength of our collaborative working relationship that has been effective for many decades.”

The Saskatoon Crisis Intervention Service - Mobile Crisis Service is a nonprofit community-based organization that responds to crisis calls 24/7/365. Mobile Crisis Workers can respond on the phone, in the community or in the office to the full range of crisis situations including mental health, suicide prevention and families in distress.

Field adds that often the tendency when identifying a need is to think about creating something new; “in this case, police considered what is already working well and chose MCS. This protocol is straightforward and effective. It works for police, it works for our crisis service to respond and above all it works for individuals and families in need of immediate support.”

When a call is transferred, an MCS crisis worker will assess the caller’s situation and may respond in person or by telephone, depending on MCS’s operational protocols.

The Mental Health & Suicide Intervention Call Transfer Protocol began earlier this month, and will remain in effect indefinitely.