Nanaimo will formalize a partnership with the province for a program that supports individuals or at risk of harming themselves or others in the community.
Nanaimo’s acute response table, formerly known as the situation table, arose from a provincial government proposal to create multi-agency teams that focus on cases where there is imminent probability a vulnerable person could experience harm and intervene with social supports to reduce that risk.
The situation table, comprised of 21 participating agencies, launched its first meeting a year ago but changed its name to Nanaimo acute response table six months later.
At a Nanaimo city council meeting Jan. 15, co-chairs Christy Wood, city manager of social planning, and Lauren Mayes, VIU criminology professor, reported on the table’s first year of operation.
The acute response table’s 21 partner agencies represent the school district, city bylaws department, police, B.C. Ministry of Children and Family development, and stakeholders from the housing and mental health and addiction fields. They make referrals to the table based on criteria that meet a threshold of risk factors, Wood said.
“Partners at this table share information about vulnerable individuals or families that are referred to the table, which allows our front-line professionals to design and deliver in-person interventions to connect individuals to service,” she said. “The goal is always to try to connect individuals and families to services within 24 to 48 hours.”
Acute response table members work to reduce risk factors that may increase the likelihood someone might be victimized or commit a crime.
During the program’s first year of operation, 28 referrals were made. The most common risk factors that triggered referrals involved drug and alcohol use, mental health challenges, lack of housing, and criminal involvement.
“Every time a referral is made to the table, we have a database [where] we collect all the risk factors, so as time goes on, we’re going to have a really good understanding of the types of risk factors that are prevalent in Nanaimo,” Wood said.
Of the 28 referrals, 15 people were connected with services and had their risks lowered, she reported. Seven people weren’t connected with services for varying reasons and two referrals didn’t meet the acute response table’s criteria. Three people who were referred relocated and one who was transient was unable to be located again. One family was also referred.
The most common age group to be referred was 30 to 39, but 12 referrals were for people younger than 25, and Wood said partner agencies found it “highly concerning” that young people were facing such high risk.
Mayes said one of the successes from the acute response table’s first year is the information sharing between partners.
“Our service providers work very hard in this city and already work very closely together, but it’s often difficult to break out of the silos that everybody’s working within and so this table really provides a great opportunity for us to come together and be able to share information about people in a way that respects their privacy and confidentiality, but can still help them get the support services they need,” Mayes said. “We’ve had some really great opportunities that have resulted in people getting services that they may not have otherwise.”
But she also said lack of capacity and funding makes it hard to overcome challenges in dealing with caseloads. She and some of the non-profit partners volunteer their time and Wood works on the program “off the side of her desk.” Sustained provincial funding is needed to overcome such challenges, Mayes said.
Wood said there are 30 situation tables in B.C. communities. The province provides support for community outreach and engagement, funding for training, professional development, administrative support and risk-tracking databases. There are no additional costs to run Nanaimo’s program, but it requires about eight hours per week of city staff time.
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Coun. Paul Manly asked if the acute response table members find the work valuable.
“The response that I’ve gotten … is they are really grateful for the table and that co-ordinated response that they’re able to pull together, I think,” Wood said. “Many of them were already working together, but this provides a bit of a formalized process for them to actually do it in a much more co-ordinated way.”
Council voted unanimously to authorize the mayor to enter into an integrated program agreement with the province to support the activities of Nanaimo’s acute response table.
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