New Team To Help People In Mental-Health, Substance-Use Crisis In The Comox Valley

People experiencing a mental-health or substance-use crisis will soon have access to a new community-led crisis response team.

“When people are in crisis because of mental-health challenges, we want them met with care and compassion,” said Jennifer Whiteside, Minister of Mental Health, and Addictions.

“That’s why we are expanding crisis response teams to communities throughout B.C. These new teams will ensure that, at their most vulnerable time, people in distress are met with a mental-health response that connects them to the services and supports they need on their pathway to well-being.”

The team will be made up of peers with lived experience and mental-health professionals who will serve people aged 13 and above in the Comox Valley.

The Province, with the support of the Canadian Mental Health Association, is bringing new Peer Assisted Care Teams (PACT) to Prince George, Kamloops, and the Comox Valley.

The teams will support people in crisis by meeting them where they are, providing person-centred care and connecting them to follow-up support.

In 2022, the Province committed $10 million for new and existing PACTs. These are mobile, community-led crisis teams that are trained to de-escalate mental-health crisis situations and provide trauma-informed, culturally safe support.

PACTs help free police time to focus on crime and divert people from hospital emergency rooms and the criminal justice system, while helping them access services in their communities.

Between January and May 2023, the existing PACTs on Vancouver’s North Shore, New Westminster and Victoria provided support to people through more than 700 calls, with minimal police interaction.

The three new teams announced are in addition to the three existing PACTs.

CMHA BC is leading a community-activation process in the Comox Valley this summer, and existing service providers will have the opportunity to apply to operate a PACT.

Operators will be selected this fall. Teams could launch shortly after that.

The Province is in the process of selecting the remaining four communities for a total of 10 PACTs. Work is also underway to develop Indigenous-led crisis response teams.

Wendy Morin, Courtenay’s acting mayor and director of Comox Valley Regional District, says council has been advocating for support at the provincial level for affected members of the community and they are thrilled the program is going to be launching in the Comox Valley.

She says the PACT will provide compassionate and informed care on the ground, with local expertise, and involving those with lived experience; a truly community-led and driven initiative.

To see the full release, visit Government of British Columbia.