Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim announces $2.8M to fund new mental health workers

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim has announced new details on his plan to scale up mental health crisis responses in the city.

Sim says next week, on Feb. 14, Vancouver City Council will vote on a motion to give Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) $2.8 million to expand crisis response teams, including hiring 58 mental health workers.

He explains this grant is just the first phase of the plan to hire more police officers and nurses promised in his campaign.

“A lot of hard work and dedication went into making this happen, and I think it’s incredibly important that we acknowledge all the people that have been behind the scenes putting this together,” said Sim. “I look forward to the positive outcomes of this announcement, and I look forward to seeing what we accomplish in the future.”

Funding for this plan was made possible by a city council motion in November to bring in 100 new police officers and 100 new nurses. The motion directed the city to allocate $8 million each to the hiring of police officers and nurses.

Along with the addition of officers and nurses, the recommended grant funding in Sim’s plan will focus on: Increasing the capacity of the Car 87/88 police-partnership service, establishing non-police de-escalation services for those who aren’t in high levels of crisis, and strengthening Indigenous approaches across VCH Urgent Mental Health and Substance Use services.

The Car 87/88 program pairs up a police officer with a mental health nurse to handle non-emergency situations in order to give people in crisis more support and free up other officers to handle serious crimes in the community.

Related articles:

• Vancouver’s 100 police and 100 nurses plan likely to come in 2023

• Vancouver council votes to fund new police officers, mental health nurses

B.C. Premier David Eby spoke after Sim at the announcement, adding this type of plan is possible because of collaboration at all levels of government and health departments.

“Solving the problems that we see on our streets will require all of us working together,” said Eby.

“People in B.C., not just in Vancouver, want to know that our province is a safe place to build a life and to raise a family, but people in our province and across North America have seen our streets change for the worse after the pandemic. This is not something that happened overnight.”

(Angela Bower/ CityNews)

Eby says over a decade of cuts to essential supports and services, underinvestment in housing paths, and a toxic drug supply are among the factors playing a major role in the current state of the province.

“It’s going to take all levels of government working together, Indigenous leadership working with us, community service providers and law enforcement working together, health workers, and so many more. That’s the approach that our government is championing,” he added.

Vancouver Police Department Chief Const. Adam Palmer echoed Eby’s sentiment on collaboration.

“This is a positive step that will enhance public safety by supporting some of the most vulnerable people in our community,” said Palmer. “It is also an example of the positive change that occurs when we all work together to tackle complex problems.”

Sim says it’s hard to emphasize just how important of an announcement this is for Vancouver.

“We have the opportunity to set a new standard in North America for a modern and compassionate approach towards addressing the complex and often interlinked challenges regarding public safety and mental health,” he explained.