Cornwall is doubling its police-led mental health crisis response. The Cornwall Police Service, in partnership with Cornwall Community Hospital, started running two Mobile Crisis Response Teams on September 1, 2026, so more people in crisis can get help from a trained officer and mental health professional at the same time.
The team pairs a police officer with a mental health worker. They respond to calls involving adults 18 and older who are having a mental health crisis. The goal is to help people stay safely in the community whenever possible, rather than going to hospital, while connecting them with the right supports.
The two teams are made up of Constables Matt Brush and Sam Dugas, along with mental health professionals Shannon Griese and Lisa Wilson from Cornwall Community Hospital. The program started in 2017 as the Vulnerable Sector Acute Response Team, after mental health calls to police jumped 155 per cent between 2006 and 2016.
Mental health calls have kept climbing. Cornwall Police handled 1,113 mental health occurrences in 2025, a 44 per cent increase over five years. Before the team existed, 81 per cent of mental health calls ended with a person being taken to hospital, and officers spent an average of nearly three hours waiting during those apprehensions.
The Ontario government put $240,000 over two years into the Cornwall team through the Mobile Crisis Response Team Enhancement Grant. That money helps pay for the mental health worker who rides with police.
The expansion was announced during Suicide Prevention Month. Anyone in crisis can call or text 988, Canada’s Suicide Crisis Helpline, which is available 24/7 and has answered over one million calls and texts since it launched. The local 24/7 mental health crisis line for adults 16 and older is 1-866-996-0991.
The two teams are expected to reduce wait times and give people a more supportive response when they need it most. Cornwall Police Service says the expansion means more specialized help is now available across the city.
