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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2016-03-16, Page 22 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, March 16, 2016 Plan to assist mental health issues in Huron East and region Roughly 21 agencies from the Huron County area gather for a six-month project to benefit the vulnerable Shaun Gregory Huron Expositor The Huron OPP are con- scious of how difficult people's existence can be when dealing with mental health issues. To support their struggles they've joined forces with several dif- ferent agencies to form the "Situation Table," a calculated plan to best react in dangerous circumstances where a person may hurt themselves or others. According to the Huron - Perth OPP, the plan was ini- tially launched last October and the positive proposal is 'well' on its way to making a major impact on those who find themselves at a vulnerable point in time. From recent reports by the Canadian Men- tal Health Association about one in five Canadians will develop some sort of mental illness during their lifetime and the municipality of Huron East like every other region across the nation succumbs to this. From a recent request by the Expositor, the Huron OPP's personal analyst provided detailed statistics of how many Mental Health Act calls they have responded to in the last five years. Yearly, the numbers have been relatively steady with somewhere in the range of 69 calls at the high end to as low as 55 calls. Within the five years, the municipality origi- nated 18 per cent of the MHA calls in Huron County. Huron County OPP media relations officer, Jamie Stanley has nothing but good things to say about the 'Strategic Table' and he expects this to mini- mize the calls related to mental health and is confident it will better assist the residents, especially with physical restraint. "If a person has a mental health issue there is a certain criteria that we call appre- hendable, depending on the situation, if they expressed harm or harm to themselves. There (are) times when they are lacking the ability to care for themselves, in that situa- tion we can apprehend that person;' stated Stanley relating to certain circumstances when the police must step in. "Other times, maybe it's not best that the police are the expertise of dealing with this, maybe other agencies have a better skill set or ability to deal with this person!' Recently communicating through emails and phone interviews, Stanley expressed that the table plays a key role in assessing these specific 911 calls which can at times be constant with locals known to the police, however not in a criminal manner. "All of our agencies have limited resources, you can imagine how police are responding to the same indi- viduals, the same family mul- tiple times. That could put a strain on your resources for a number of reasons," explained Stanley. In the last five months the table consisted of 21 partners including social services, addiction counselling, mental health advocates, family coun- selling, justice services, and members of the education sec- tor. To lend a helping hand on the law's side of it, as well as Huron and Perth County OPP, the Stratford Police Service and Wingham Police Service are involved. To date, the six- month pilot has successfully identified and supported 18 individuals/families. "The Situation Table response model allows us to identify those at an elevated risk of harm or victimization and from there we can rapidly mobilize and provide the ABCA sends out community waterway warning Shaun Gregory Huron Expositor As the temperature warms up, the snow melts and local streams rise which is a good indicator that spring is around the corner. Regardless of the fact it may be sweater weather, the Ausable Bayfield Conser- vation Authority is warning Huron County and surround- ing areas that the water is still hazardous. "The thing we really stress is that it's dangerous to be around water courses," said Alec Scott, the water and plan- ning manager at the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority. "That's why we have a program where we go around to public schools to do a learning session with the students." "Just to make them aware of just how cold water is at this time of year and how quickly they will get numb, it's pro- moting the public's safety." Being so close to the March Break for most students in the region, Scott mentioned that children are outside more often than usual. If anybody has questions relating to water temperatures or programs available from the ABCA, their number is 519-235-2610. So far, floods are not an issue For the next couple weeks the forecast has predicted the outdoor temperature to be in Hockey Camp Returns August 1-5, 4016 On -Ice Instruction from NAHL coach Dan Wildfong and his instructors Off -Ice Training to improve performance on the ice Class Room Instruction teaches fundamentals, systems and positioning 9am-Ipm $275: ages 6-12 Maitland Recreation [entre gww.snuatcscorecamps.cot In the last five years Huron East originated 18 per cent of all mental health calls in Huron County. The "Situation Table," is a plan with more than 20 agencies to help assist those who struggle with mental health -like illnesses. proper resources to support those that are most vulnerable. Improving the well-being of those that are in a crisis or about to fall into a crisis is absolutely critical to building a stronger and safer community. the double digit figures result- ing in a big melt of the remain- ing snow leftover from recent winter storms. The upside of the thawing is most water areas are free of solid ice, which commonly results in ice jams and subsequently causes flooding. "Just because the snow has recently melted, the grounds are really saturated, if we get that much rain then very little We embrace this opportunity and we look forward to the many positive outcomes that will be achieved through the Huron -Perth Situation Table, stated the inspector for the Huron OPP, Jason Younan. is going to soak into the ground and it just runs off into the stream," Scott said. "The water levels are going to be higher (but) we don't expect there is going to be any significant flooding." Residents are reminded to stay clear from all waterways because the 'extremely' cold waters are dangerous as well as the slippery and unstable stream banks. 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