The Saskatoon Police Service says its Police and Crisis Team (PACT) units are being used more and more as an alternative to hospitalization or arrest.
In a report going to the Board of Police Commissioners, the force noted that PACT teams were sent out to 1,894 calls in 2021, an increase of 20 per cent from the previous year.
Created in 2015, the teams are made up of one patrol officer and one mental health social worker. The teams are sent out to both mental health related calls (attempted suicide, mental health checks) and addiction related calls.
The PACT teams are designed to de-escalate situations and reduce arrests of people in crisis. They also connect people to community supports and follow up with them to make sure they are alright.
Saskatoon police said that last year the PACT teams diverted 54 people from being arrested and stopped 353 people from being sent to the emergency room.
Right now, there are three PACT teams working in the city, enough to have three of the city's four patrol shifts covered.
Police would like to have another team.
"In the future, our hopes include having four operational PACT teams whereby each team is committed to one platoon," read the report.
"With the increasing mental health and addiction calls, this would alleviate the pressure on our calls for service to patrol officers, divert arrests in our cells, divert individuals from the Emergency Departments and allow for the reduction of acutely elevated-risk situations."
Right now, officers on two of the three PACT units are provincially funded and social workers are paid for by the Saskatchewan Health Authority. A third PACT unit, which began in October 2021, is fully funded by the Saskatoon Police Service.
Peer peacekeepers
Saskatoon police are also looking at designing a peer peacekeeping program to help community-based organizations dealing with vulnerable people.
The police force was inspired by work done at the Saskatoon Tribal Council's Emergency Wellness Centre (EWC). The centre, which provides 75 beds to people struggling with homelessness, pays traditionally trained peacekeepers to keep staff and residents safe.
"With peacekeeping already underway at the EWC, this location may be the first of several where peacekeepers can provide an improved alternative to police attending calls to address social-disorder complaints where, instead, on-site resources are better suited for optimal response," read the report.
The report said that a consultant has been hired to look at designing a project through the Saskatoon Police Service. Right now, the consultant is doing meetings with community partners, studying potential partnerships and outlining what the program could look like.
Phase 1 of the consultant's project is expected to be finished by the end of July.
While the project is focused on the Emergency Wellness Centre, it could be expanded to other groups later on.
The report said police officers are called to the outside of the wellness centre to deal with congregations of people and garbage and debris being left behind. However, it said that police resources are often stretched thin, and the force relies on peacekeepers to keep order.
Saskatoon police say PACT teams responding to more mental health calls - CBC.ca
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