Police-Encounters-With-People-In-Crisis

advocacy community. These forums can be expanded on to oversee a CIT program in
addition to the MCIT program.
68. It may be that, with certain adjustments, the existing MCIT training course can
be used to train officers to become CIT officers. The development and revision of MCIT
and CIT training should be undertaken in consultation with the treatment and advocacy
communities. It should also take into account training for COAST and the Mental
Health First Aid course offered by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC),
which, as noted, I recommend be required of all new constables recruited to the Service,
as discussed in Chapter 6 (Selection of Police Officers).
69. The CIT model emphasizes the need for a mental-health-receiving facility. The
TPS already has established relationships with six hospitals through the MCIT program,
and has access to Toronto’s 16 hospital emergency rooms with psychiatric capabilities. If
transfer-of-care issues can be made more efficient, existing partnerships can function as
emergency no-refusal receiving facilities for CIT officers.
70. Other elements of the CIT program are also needed, such as providing crisis
intervention training to 10-20% of front line officers, and establishing policies and
procedures that ensure effective coordination of officers and mental health
professionals, both on scene and in the hospital. A research and evaluation program, a
recognition and honours program, and outreach should also be established or given
greater emphasis.
II. Overview Of Issues Highlighted by Stakeholders
71. Many of the stakeholder submissions that the Review received addressed the role
of the MCIT, and reforms to the Service’s overall approach to responding to people in
crisis. A majority of submissions grappled with the issue of how to expand or reform the
MCIT program in order to provide a specialized response to all calls involving a person
in crisis.
72. Many stakeholders emphasized the crucial role played by the MCIT in connecting
people in crisis to community health resources and other treatment streams. A
consistent theme expressed by a diverse array of individuals and organizations was that
the number of MCIT units, as well as their geographic and temporal scope of coverage,
is inadequate. These submissions consistently advocated for MCIT coverage across all 17
TPS operational divisions, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
73. Some stakeholders, while noting the utility of MCIT, also emphasized the
program’s limitations as a second response to people in crisis, especially if there is a
weapon involved. The MCIT in its current form is involved only in a small minority of
these calls. These stakeholders recommended that complementary models of crisis
response be explored, that enable the use of a specialized first response in crisis
situations where there is a security concern. Several stakeholders mentioned the
Memphis Model of CITs as one option.
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