Mobile mental health units need better collaboration with police, says OmbudsPEI report

Better communication is needed in order for the province's mobile mental health unit to operate at optimal efficiency, P.E.I.'s ombudsperson says.

A committee of MLAs asked OmbudsPEI to conduct a review of the units following the death of 34-year-old Tyler Knockwood in January 2023. Knockwood died by suicide during a mental health crisis.

That review is now complete.

In an interview with CBC News, Ombudsperson Sandy Hermiston said the main issue with the mobile mental health units is communication.

"I don't think everyone really had a clear idea of how to call and when to call and what the parameters were for involvement. So, it resulted in a bit of an inconsistent approach."

Knockwood died inside Province House, the historic seat of the P.E.I. Legislature. He had been part of the team working to restore the building. 

Police were called to the Knockwood home three separate times in the hours leading up to his death. But instead of taking the man to the hospital, they dropped him off in downtown Charlottetown. 

Knockwood told police he didn't want mental health services, so the mobile unit wasn't dispatched. 

His widow has been speaking out about wanting the system improved. Hermiston said Knockwood's name is not mentioned in the report because they did not want to "sensationalize such a tragic event," but OmbudsPEI did speak with his widow.

'Collaboration is possible'

The report noted there have been some slight changes in terms of dispatching after his death.

In 2023, police were automatically sent to the scene after a call. Now the police or a 911 dispatcher will do a risk assessment. In low-risk situations, police officers aren't sent.

Hermiston said she does not know how that is working because it wasn't the focus of the review.

"We were just finding out how it operated," she said. "I think the changes were made, obviously, in hopes of improving things."  

'No clear guidelines' for when to use P.E.I.'s mobile mental health units, ombudsperson says

3 months ago

Duration 1:38

P.E.I.'s ombudsperson has released a report on the province's mobile mental health units. Sandy Hermiston says groups delivering the service need to do better at speaking with one another, and clearly lay out when the unit should be dispatched.

In an email to CBC News, officials with P.E.I.'s Department of Health and Wellness and Medavie, which operate the mobile mental health units, said the "innovative" hybrid approach is not used anywhere else in Canada.

"For the current model to succeed, it is critical that both the mobile mental health units and law enforcement work together to develop clear and detailed operational procedures…. OmbudsPEI has canvassed the MMHU, Department of Health and Wellness and the police — they have all expressed their belief that this collaboration is possible."

CBC reached out to Charlottetown Police Services and the RCMP but nobody was made available for an interview.

Going forward, Hermiston said she sees a benefit to the mobile mental health units if operated they way they are intended.

"It's important when there's a mental health crisis that people who are equipped to help that person in crisis are available at that time."