Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

B.C. promises $3M to expand program that partners cops with health-care providers

Darpan News Desk IANS, 17 Jul, 2023 12:33 PM
  • B.C. promises $3M to expand program that partners cops with health-care providers

British Columbia is spending $3 million to expand a program that partners health-care workers with police to respond to mental-health-related calls.

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth says the program aim is to connect people in crisis to the appropriate services in their community and take pressure off stretched police resources.

New teams are being funded for Abbotsford, Port Coquitlam/Coquitlam, Burnaby, Chilliwack, Penticton, Vernon, Squamish, Prince Rupert and the Westshore on southern Vancouver Island. 

Similar programs already exist in 10 B.C. communities including Kamloops, Victoria, Surrey and Vancouver.

The government says one in five interactions with police in B.C. involve someone with a mental-health disorder.

Minister of Mental Health and Addiction Jennifer Whiteside did not provide a specific timeline for when the new programs would be running, but says she anticipates them in “fairly short order.”

 

MORE National ARTICLES

Zelenskyy declares NATO summit victory for Ukraine as Canada, allies pledge more help

Zelenskyy declares NATO summit victory for Ukraine as Canada, allies pledge more help
As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other NATO leaders wrapped up their two-day summit Wednesday, they bid farewell to a very different version of Volodymyr Zelenskyy than the one they had met the day before. Ukraine's president declared the meetings a success, even though he left without the thing he had most vehemently argued for: a quick invitation for his country to join the alliance.

Zelenskyy declares NATO summit victory for Ukraine as Canada, allies pledge more help

More evacuations, alerts, reflect difficult wildfire season in B.C., Yukon

More evacuations, alerts, reflect difficult wildfire season in B.C., Yukon
At least 12 new evacuation orders or alerts have been issued over the last day in British Columbia as lightning storms and drought conditions add to the challenge of fighting hundreds of wildfires. The BC Wildfire Service says just over two-thirds of the province's roughly 330 fires are raging in those two centres.

More evacuations, alerts, reflect difficult wildfire season in B.C., Yukon

U.S. hiker dies after falling from popular B.C. hiking trail near Whistler

U.S. hiker dies after falling from popular B.C. hiking trail near Whistler
Sea to Sky officers as well as RCMP Air Services, BC Ambulance paramedics and Whistler Search and Rescue responded to a report that a woman had fallen off the Black Tusk chimney portion of Garibaldi Provincial Park on Monday and was seriously injured.  

U.S. hiker dies after falling from popular B.C. hiking trail near Whistler

B.C. port strike could end pending approval of terms set by federal mediator

B.C. port strike could end pending approval of terms set by federal mediator
Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan has given a federal mediator 24 hours to send him recommendations to end the dispute between the BC Maritime Employers Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada. O'Regan will forward the recommendations to the two sides and says they'll have a further 24 hours to decide whether to ratify them.  

B.C. port strike could end pending approval of terms set by federal mediator

BOC raises interest rate to 5 percent

BOC raises interest rate to 5 percent
The central bank says it raised the rate because of elevated demand in the economy and strong underlying inflation pressures. It is now suggesting it will take longer -- until the middle of 2025 -- to get inflation back to the two per cent target.   

BOC raises interest rate to 5 percent

3D printed guns on the rise

3D printed guns on the rise
The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit says that although a fully functional firearm cannot be printed, conversion kits that complete 3-D guns can be bought in stores or online. It says anyone with a 3-D printer for their kids or for schools should be aware of the risks.

3D printed guns on the rise