CMHA, Ont. police pilot project partners mental-health workers with officers on mental health calls

A two-year pilot project will embed crisis workers from the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) with officers from the Woodstock Police Service and Oxford OPP on mental health service calls to improve police responses. The partnership will see the formation of the Mental Health Engagement and Response Team (MHEART) in which CMHA workers help officers de-escalate situations and determine whether someone should be diverted to mental-health supports or needs to be apprehended under the Mental Health Act.