The message was clear: Stratford needs to collaborate to help those in need, especially those with mental health challenges.
The tenth annual mental health conference was held Tuesday, Nov. 19, with members of the community, the Multicultural Association of Perth-Huron and Stratford Police in attendance. Association founder and sitting city councillor Geza Wordofa spoke about the relationship the city's residents have with local police, especially the newcomers to Stratford.
“We are never going to see mental illness like they do in Toronto or Brampton where people are beaten,” said Founder of the Multicultural Association Perth-Huron and Stratford Councillor Geza Wordofa. “Stratford Police are very friendly and work with our community. Our police sometimes have to work at hospitals, where they bring a person to the hospital and they have to wait, to keep the greater community safe from people who may become aggressive.”
When it comes to newcomers to Canada and mental health, there are lots of challenges including language barriers, access to services, and stigmas associated with mental health.
“Newcomers have a lot of trauma,” said Wordofa. “Now add in the pressures of finding a job, and a home, and getting used to Canada. Many people watch videos and see Canada as this amazing place, which it is, but people have to work really hard for it. In many cultures showing any pain, especially mental health brings shame, so many newcomers try to hide it, so because of this we may lose newcomers from Stratford, as they may flee to a larger city.”
Police Chief Greg Skinner spoke about how police like events like this one, as it helps officers understand the needs of the community, while allowing police to highlight what they can offer within mandates, budgets and staffing.
“When I started in policing 37 years ago, we didn’t have the issues our officers are dealing with today,” said Skinner. “While we are still dealing with thefts, break and enters, assaults and crashes, our officers are dealing with mental health, addiction and homelessness challenges. Officers are also dealing with suicide, family challenges, and much more conflicts in general because of the complex issues our community is facing.”
Skinner reiterated numerous times during his speech that instead of locking people up in jail who are dealing with mental health challenges, he would like to see alternative services offered to help those people in need. The pressures of life right now, and the stresses of being a police officer are also causing staffing shortages within police services around the country.
"Police officers aren’t supposed to succumb to the stressors and trauma of what they are experiencing on a daily or weekly basis,” said Skinner. It’s difficult to get the older cops to engage in mental health support. Younger people that we are hiring have grown up with mental health support, so they expect us to provide support but the older cops are still resisting them.”
A typically unseen cost of policing is assisting people dealing with mental health challenges, especially when they have to attend a hospital.
“Its expensive to deal with those types of situations,” said Skinner. “The Mental Health Act says when police apprehend someone who’s in crisis and we think they are going to harm themselves or others, we have the responsibility to take them to a doctor. Officers will then take the person to a hospital, present them to the doctor, but their safety and security is still our responsibility until they are either admitted to the hospital or discharged.”
Skinner would like to see other agencies step in to support those in need dealing with a mental health challenge, as there is a perception that when a person is brought to the hospital by police that they are dangerous or a criminal. He mentioned during his speech that he would like to see assessments completed by social workers who come to calls with police, as they work with the hospital so they can bring up a person's medical records, something police cannot do because of privacy.
MacGregor Austin-Olsen, a mental health, wellness and resiliency coordinator who works with Stratford Police, spoke about how he believes there are many services out there for people to access but it's about getting the word out there in the community.
“I think the hardest part of mental health is it's kind of a secret illness,” said Austin-Olsen. “It’s invisible, but sadly for some people the condition can become visible through law enforcement. When people are dealing with a mental health crisis in their homes, and for whatever reason it moves out into the community, sometimes police get involved and that is where I believe we can work in collaboration."
He also told attendees at the conference that it is important to know that mental health is a health issue so it shouldn’t be stigmatized.
“If a person has a condition like Crohn's or other health issues people don't mind talking about it,” said Austin-Olsen. “But for some reason no one wants to talk about mental health because there is this stigma that it shows weakness, which isn’t true at all. The world is a hard place to live in right now, there are lots of factors that make it hard. I cannot stress this enough, whether you are a newcomer or have lived in Stratford forever, there is support available but you have to put in the work.”
