Revelstoke RCMP will soon have access to a new app called HealthIM, a tool designed to assist officers responding to mental health and substance-use crises.
Harwinder Sandhu, MLA for Vernon-Lumby, announced the HealthIM expansion Tuesday at the Vernon RCMP detachment. The evidence-based risk-screening tool supports police responding to mental-health-related calls.
“Supporting people in our community suffering from mental-health challenges is extremely important to me,” Sandhu said.
She said implementation across Interior RCMP detachments reflects local governments’ commitment to ensuring people in crisis receive timely, compassionate and appropriate care.
The app guides responding officers through a series of questions to help assess a person in crisis.
The system also improves communication with health-care partners by using consistent clinical language and providing critical information to doctors and nurses immediately.
Revelstoke RCMP Staff Sgt. Chris Dodds described the app’s specific benefits. He said the tool can assess the risk of harm to a person or others, provide safety and de-escalation information to support a trauma-informed response, alert health-care partners to incoming patients escorted by emergency responders, flag instances of weapon possession and violent behaviour, and develop a risk-of-harm analysis.
“From a frontline policing perspective, this work is about improving how we respond to individuals experiencing mental health or substance use crisis,” he said. “These calls are often very complex, fast moving and deeply connected to healthcare needs.”
He said the app will support more trauma-informed interactions, reduce duplication at hospitals and create a more co-ordinated response around the individual.
The app launched in late April in the Boundary, Okanagan and West Kootenay regions.
Officials said there has been a 46 per cent decrease in apprehensions, a 39 per cent reduction in hospital wait times and a 37 per cent increase in hospital admission rates.
“HealthIM has proven to be a valuable asset to help police officers safely and effectively de-escalate complex situations by promoting safer interactions with people in crisis,” said Nina Krieger, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General.
“Our government will continue to make meaningful investments to support law enforcement in responding to a mental-health or substance-use emergency as the program rolls out province-wide this year.”
Dodds added that the implementation of connecting officers with healthcare professionals in real-time of crisis has been discussed may come to fruition some time in the future.
