Funded by the province, the teams are the first of their kind in B.C., pitched as an answer to complex mental health-related crises currently handled, for the most part, by police and hospital emergency departments
A downtown business owner sees someone sitting on the sidewalk outside their storefront, holding their knees to their chest, tears streaming down their face. When they try to help, the person becomes scared or angry, shouting at them to “go away.”
On Thursday, AVI Victoria was announced as the service provider for the city’s new team, known as PACT for peer assisted care team. The harm-reduction organization is one of the province’s first PACT providers, alongside the Purpose Society, which runs a similar team in New Westminster. AVI is in the process of staffing up and finalizing operating agreements, Jensen said, adding the agency is hopeful the program will be running early in the new year.
“So we’re going to be able to build off those relationships we already have built in community and some of those skills we already have on our team.”