By Thomas Goyer
Mental health occurrences have increased in Muskoka according to the OPP.
At the Muskoka District Council meeting OPP Staff Sergent Wade Beebe made a presentation to council regarding the use of the Mobile Crisis Response Team (MCRT) in Muskoka. MCTs operate as a cooperation between police officers and mental health service providers responding together to mental health, addictions, and neurodevelopmental crisis calls for assistance. There are two MCRTs in Muskoka, one in Huntsville and one in Bracebridge.
According to the presentation, there has been a noticeable increase in mental health occurrences in Muskoka. Between 2019 and 2023 the Huntsville OPP detachment saw mental health occurrences increase by 43 per cent, while the Bracebridge detachment saw an 18 per cent increase over the same period.
This increase in service calls has put a strain on the limited resources of the MCRTs and as a result, the MRTC was only able to attend to 19 per cent of the calls received between April and July this year. A report from the OPP states that increasing the resources of the MCRT could lead to a 20 per cent increase in response to mental health occurrences.
The MCRTs work as a partnership between an OPP officer and a Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) worker. According to Beebe, at the heart of the initiative is not only the direct response to the call but also the follow-up service provided.
“It’s not just about the initial call. It’s what we can provide that person after the call is over,” Beebe said.
A key element of the MCRT is to divert those suffering from mental health away from hospital services and towards more directed mental health support. According to Beebe, this removes strain on hospital resources while also providing more appropriate care to individuals.
Beebe stated that the MCRTs often respond to assist a small group of individuals on a regular basis. In response to this, the MCRT involves a situation table that aims to understand the needs of individuals suffering from mental health issues and find ways to ensure that they do not require an MCRT response in the future.
“The situation table provides them with those resources to try to eliminate how many times we need to go there for crisis because it provides them with that outlet,” Beebe said.
According to the report, the MCRTs have been successful but are limited by staffing shortages. Both Huntsville and Bracebridge now have a dedicated MCRT officer and a CMHA worker. However, these teams only work 40 hours per week.
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