A move is being made toward seeing Police officers replaced by health care staff when dealing with an individual who is suspected of causing hurt to themselves, and is brought to the hospital for an involuntary exam. Nurses Union President Sandi Mowat explains Police officers currently bring such people to an emergency room and stay until a physician attends the person, due to the mental health act.

"The Health Act's recently been amended -- it hasn't been proclaimed yet -- so that the police officer or peace officer, could actually transfer custody to what's called a 'qualified person'," says Mowat. "Apparently they're targeting the fall to do three sites -- Brandon, Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg, and Selkirk General Hospital -- to have these designated persons."

Mowat says the Union's primary concern is workload. She explains nurses are already stretched to their limits, and this would add another to that. Next to that, concern is safety. Mowat notes if these people are a danger to themselves, then are they a danger to others or staff? She adds there's also the issue of detaining these individuals if they tried to leave.

She explains the Nurses Union recommendation is to have trained security people do this work instead of nurses, since they can perform an actual custody of such individuals.

Mowat adds rural centres are the biggest challenge of all.

She says sites must be identified by RCMP and other police services to receive these individuals. Such people, Mowat adds, cannot be taken to a small location with no access to psychiatry. However, she notes, they can be taken to a larger hospital such as in Portage. But without designated security staff on hand, the nurses or healthcare aids who receive the transfer of of custody in smaller centres would not be able to adequately meet the needs required.

Mowat says it's not only about workload, but also safety and care. She notes these individuals are already marginalized, and need access to care where they should not have to wait for hours. They need to be safe, as does everyone else around them. Mowat says it's too difficult to imagine a nurse having to sit with an individual for any length of time, or detain someone if they try to leave. She explains the Union will tell their nurses not to detain anyone for fear of putting themselves or the individuals themselves at risk.

She adds a letter of response is being written to the government to consider adding security to the sites they're currently looking at. Health Sciences Centre already has security, and Brandon will augment theirs. However, she notes, Selkirk doesn't have security on hand 24/7, and no one is dedicated particularly to the emergency room. Mowat says the pilot sites will require some headway to be made in Selkirk that will go a long way in helping rural locations prepare if this plan moves forward.

Mowat notes there may definitely be a cost for extra staffing. Currently the individual has to wait to see a doctor with police on hand to keep a close eye on the situation. She asks how that can be replicated in a facility where there is no peace officer or security guard on hand. Will designated or qualified people have to actually sit with those people waiting? If so, she says, that will certainly incur an added cost. Pulling staff away from somewhere will certainly take place.

"I mean these nurses are stretched pretty thin already. So, now we're adding another layer. And then we're concerned about these individuals who, 'A', could be a danger to themselves or others. Is that a concern for safety? And the other concern is the nurses who have been identified will not be able to detain these patients. And what if they tried to leave?"

"We actually believe very strongly that the best course of action would be to have trained security people at these sites who could actually assume custody of these individuals. I think rural is actually one of the biggest challenges."