The Alternate Neighbourhood Crisis Response (ANCHOR) has launched a dedicated 2-1-1 line pilot project to help individuals with mental health and substance use-related issues. The service is not unique to Ottawa; it was launched in Toronto in 2002 and has since been introduced in Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal, Niagara Region and Simcoe County. It is part of a province-wide United Way initiative to get the Government of Ontario to introduce 2-1-1 throughout Ontario.
ANCHOR is a collaboration between Centretown Community Health Centre (CCHC), Somerset West Community Health Centre (SWCHC) and Community Navigation of Eastern Ontario/211 East Ontario (CNEO/211) with funding from the City of Ottawa. The ANCHOR team also collaborated with the Ottawa Police Service, but the service is a “non-police, community-led, culturally sensitive and equity-centered” response to community crisis.
Anyone experiencing or witnessing someone in distress can now call 2-1-1, and a mobile team will be dispatched to assist those in need. The service is currently only available in Centretown: Ottawa River (north), Rideau Canal (east), Trans-Canada Highway 417 (south) and Preston Street (west). The pilot project will assess the success of the service and then make adjustments before the service expands across the city.
The 2-1-1 service will transfer the response of dangerous incidents where people are acting “erratic” or would benefit from a wellness check, intervention or de-escalation to ANCHOR. The service is being offered 24/7 and 356 days a year and is being manned by operators in both official languages with access to automatic translation for other languages. In the event that a call is deemed an emergency, it will be transferred to 9-1-1.
Speaking with Patricia Boal on CFRA’s Ottawa at Work, the Project Manager with ANCHOR, Morissa Dalia-Ellis, said that the ANCHOR teams are made up of people with “either lived or living experience of drug use and mental health issues” who have been specially trained in crisis response and de-escalation.
“ANCHOR’s Crisis Response Teams are trained to handle crises using a culturally sensitive, trauma-informed approach. Mobile teams of outreach and peer support workers will respond to non-violent, non-emergency calls and provide a wellness check or in-person support throughout a crisis.”
In addition to freeing up police resources for violent crimes, ANCHOR is focused on harm reduction and provides post-crisis follow-up to guarantee that individuals receive referrals for the necessary support, such as ongoing crisis care or counselling.
While the ANCHOR program is the right call for non-violent scenarios, the city advises residents to report public drug use or discarded needles and drug paraphernalia in public spaces by calling 3-1-1.
Alternately, if you or someone you witness is experiencing a mental health or drug crisis outside of Centretown pilot project boundaries, call 9-8-8 or the Distress Centre of Ottawa and Region at 613-238-3311. To speak directly with an online councillor, call The Mental Health Crisis Line: 613-722-6914 or 1-866-996-0991.
