Seven days a week, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., a social worker or registered nurse from our Mobile Crisis Team hits the road with a paramedic. Together, they respond to 911 calls for mental health emergencies across the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the Mental Wellbeing Response Team arrives on the scene, the paramedic first conducts a medical assessment to make sure that the patient is medically stable and doesn\u2019t need to go to the hospital for treatment. If the patient doesn\u2019t require medical attention, the paramedic then hands over care to the social worker or registered nurse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe conduct a mental health assessment, which might include focusing on safety if they\u2019re at risk of harming themselves or others,\u201d explains Cindy. \u201cWe offer in-the-moment support by talking to them, listening to them, validating them and letting them know they\u2019re not alone in their struggles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe also come up with a follow-up plan, which can include a follow-up by the Mobile Crisis Team or referrals to other community services, such as a program at the Royal Ottawa, addiction resources or community counselling. We might get in touch with their family doctor or their friends and family. We can call their pharmacy to see if they need to refill their prescription. And sometimes, the person does need to go into the emergency department to see a doctor for medication.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because the Mental Wellbeing Response Team can usually help patients right on the scene, without taking them to the emergency department, ambulances can respond to other calls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOn one of my first shifts with the team, we responded to a call of someone having a panic attack,\u201d recalls Scott. \u201cA paramedic crew was already there. We assessed the person and cleared the paramedics from the scene. We made a referral to the hospital\u2019s Mobile Crisis Team to help this person get a referral to a family doctor. Not long after, the same paramedic crew that we cleared from the scene responded to a very serious cardiac arrest. They took the patient to the hospital, where the patient made a full recovery. Had we not taken over that call, that cardiac patient may have waited a lot longer for treatment\u2014and the result may have been very different.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since the Mental Wellbeing Response Team first hit the road, approximately 65 percent of patients have received care out in the community, diverting them away from the emergency department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Scott spends upwards of five shifts a month with the Mental Wellbeing Response Team. Seeing mental health professionals at work in the field has taught him a lot about how to help people with mental health needs. During his regular shifts with his full-time paramedic partner, he often puts this knowledge to use. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI respond to a lot of calls where people are experiencing a mental health crisis,\u201d says Scott. \u201cAnd then sometimes, by the time we arrive, that crisis has finished and they\u2019re feeling calm, but they have no follow-up care in place. I can provide them with some resources, such as different types of counselling services, social services, substance use services, and resources and programs for people experiencing homelessness. Though I can\u2019t make direct referrals like the social workers or nurses can, I can still offer patients some help.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When conducting a suicide assessment, Scott has a better understanding of the red flags to look out for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cRecently, I had a call about a gentleman having an overdose, and within a few minutes of speaking to him, it became clear to me that he had made an attempt to die by suicide,\u201d he recalls. \u201cI concluded that he was not safe to go home and needed to go to hospital. Because of everything I\u2019d learned, the call went a little bit more smoothly than it might have otherwise and we were able to get him to hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For both Cindy and Scott, the most rewarding part about being on the team is seeing firsthand the positive outcomes they have helped create for their patients. Some of these calls will stay with them for the rest of their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOne memorable call involved a person who had young children,\u201d recalls Cindy. \u201cShe was feeling suicidal in reaction to some very stressful events in her life. We helped her regulate her emotions, referred her to our community counselling partners and found a follow-up care plan tailored to her needs. We were able to stay with her until a friend arrived to help care for her children. When we left the scene, the children were on their way to the playground.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOne call involved someone with anxiety who was very confused and distressed. We ended up taking the patient to the hospital for treatment because they weren\u2019t safe to stay at home,\u201d recalls Scott. \u201cAnd then maybe a couple weeks later, I was off duty, in my car, and I just happened to be driving down the road where that person lived. I saw that patient with their partner sitting outside on their porch, and they both looked super happy. It was nice to see that that person was doing a lot better and seemed to be thriving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Ottawa Hospital provides a range of hospital-based mental health services<\/a> at the Civic and General campuses, as well as a number of highly specialized community-based services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Mental_Wellbeing_Response_Team_vehicle_Ottawa_Paramedic_Service_headquarters-edited-scaled.jpg\")
Offering patients in-the-moment support and referrals for follow-up care<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Cindy](\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Mental_Wellbeing_Response_Team_Cindy_Gill-1024x683.jpg\")
Keeping ambulances on the road and patients out of the emergency department<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Cindy](\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Mental_Wellbeing_Response_Team_vehicle_interior-edited-scaled.jpg\")
A big learning experience for paramedics<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Scott](\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Mental_Wellbeing_Response_Team_Scott_Farrell-edited-scaled.jpg\")
The calls they will never forget<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Cindy](\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Mental_Wellbeing_Response_Team_Cindy_Gill_Scott_Farrell-edited-scaled.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nMental health services at The Ottawa Hospital<\/h3>\n\n\n\n