Across Canada, 911 operators field thousands of calls every year tied not to crime or fire, but to mental health crises. Too often, police arrive first — not because they’re the best equipped, but because they’re the default. The question is growing louder: should emergency services really be on the front line of mental health response?
Why It’s a Problem
Mismatch of skills: Police are trained for enforcement, not therapeutic de-escalation.
Risk of escalation: Uniforms, weapons, and commands can worsen a mental health crisis.
Resource drain: EMS and fire units tied up when what’s really needed is psychiatric care or community support.
Public trust: Families may hesitate to call 911 if they fear the response could harm their loved one.
Canadian Context
Mobile Crisis Teams: Pair clinicians with police (Toronto’s MCIT, Saskatoon’s PACT), though limited in scope.
Civilian-only pilots: Cities like Toronto and Vancouver testing unarmed crisis response teams led by health workers.
Rural gaps: Many communities lack any specialized mental health responders, defaulting to police by necessity.
Calls for reform: The Nova Scotia Mass Casualty Commission and other inquiries highlighting the need for health-first responses.
The Challenges
Funding silos: Health and policing budgets rarely coordinate, making cross-sector teams hard to sustain.
24/7 coverage: Mental health crises don’t follow office hours, but specialized teams often do.
Liability fears: Governments hesitant to reduce police involvement in case a crisis escalates.
Stigma: Viewing mental health crises as “public disorder” instead of health emergencies.
The Opportunities
Health-first dispatch: Route relevant 911 calls to mental health professionals from the outset.
Standalone crisis teams: Civilian-led, culturally competent responders available around the clock.
Peer support integration: People with lived experience as part of frontline crisis response.
Community hubs: Strengthen upstream supports so fewer crises reach emergency stage.
The Bigger Picture
Mental health calls are health calls. Treating them as policing matters doesn’t just waste resources — it risks lives. Canada’s public safety system will remain incomplete until crisis care is embedded as a core service, not an afterthought.
The Question
If we agree that mental health is a health issue, then why does our first line of response still look like enforcement? Which leaves us to ask: how can Canada shift from police-first to care-first without leaving communities unprotected?
Mental Health Calls: Should Emergency Services Be the First Resp
The Crisis Within the Crisis
Across Canada, 911 operators field thousands of calls every year tied not to crime or fire, but to mental health crises. Too often, police arrive first — not because they’re the best equipped, but because they’re the default. The question is growing louder: should emergency services really be on the front line of mental health response?
Why It’s a Problem
Canadian Context
The Challenges
The Opportunities
The Bigger Picture
Mental health calls are health calls. Treating them as policing matters doesn’t just waste resources — it risks lives. Canada’s public safety system will remain incomplete until crisis care is embedded as a core service, not an afterthought.
The Question
If we agree that mental health is a health issue, then why does our first line of response still look like enforcement? Which leaves us to ask:
how can Canada shift from police-first to care-first without leaving communities unprotected?