Police agencies, health-care providers and people in crisis in the Interior will benefit from the launch of a digital public safety tool to support officer response to people in crisis.

“Supporting people in our community suffering from mental-health challenges is extremely important to me,” said Harwinder Sandhu, MLA for Vernon-Lumby. “HealthIM is a key resource that supports police when they respond to people experiencing a mental-health crisis. The implementation across Interior RCMP detachments reflects our government’s commitment to ensuring people in crisis receive timely, compassionate and appropriate care, as we continue to work to strengthen mental-health services so people can access these supports close to their home.”

Strengthening mental-health police response

HealthIM is a digital public-safety system to improve emergency police response in mental-health and addiction crisis situations, increasing safety for first responders, health-care providers and the person in crisis. By facilitating better communication, HealthIM aims to help officers gain insight into the factors behind a person’s behaviour, leading to more informed and compassionate interactions.