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988 mental health crisis hotline launches across Canada

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A new toll-free mental health crisis and suicide prevention hotline launched across Canada Thursday morning to connect those in distress with a trained responder immediately.

Those facing suicidal thoughts or any other mental health distress can now dial or text 988 to reach professional help at anytime and any where across the country.

“My main message that I want to say to Canadians is that we see you, we hear you, and that you’re not alone. That if you are struggling … there is a low-barrier, easy access, warm voice on the other end of the line,” said Ya’ara Saks, federal minister of mental health and addictions, in an interview before the launch.

The Public Health Agency of Canada has reported that around 12 people die by suicide each day in Canada, resulting in an estimated 4,500 lives lost each year. More than 200 people attempt suicide in Canada every day.

The greater than $158-million project is being both funded and overseen by the public health agency and led by Toronto’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

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“No one will be turned away. Anyone who reaches out to 988 will receive the support that they need,” said Dr. Allison Crawford, chief medical officer for the helpline and a psychiatrist at CAMH.

It’s explicitly a suicide prevention service and responders are trained in suicide prevention. But we also understand that people who are struggling with their mental health may not know that they have suicidal ideation,” she said in an interview.

“We do know that (those) people can be at increased risk and will benefit from connecting with 988,” Crawford said, adding that the helpline is also intended for use by those worried that someone else may be at risk for suicide.

The new helpline will expand on the existing Talk Suicide Canada helpline, that has a 10-digit toll-free number but does not have a 24-hour texting service.

The 988 line is staffed by more than three dozen partner organizations, including CAMH, Kids Help Phone and local mental health organizations across the country.

It is a network that has been designed to link users with a responder “as close to home as possible”, according to Crawford.

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That proximity remains important as the call is “the first step to getting help. And is often not the last step”, said Emma Potter, senior director of service systems at the partner agency CAMH branch in Edmonton.

Potential next steps are connecting the individual to local counseling, mental health or social support, which Potter says is easier if the responder is directly in the community.

The three-digit number is additionally expected to make a difference. Potter says the snappy number is much easier to remember for someone in crisis.

The Canadian line was created in close consultation with partners across the border, with the U.S. already having implemented a national suicide and crisis hotline with the 988 number.

Minister Saks says that one of the key lessons from her American counterparts was the strong demand for offering text options.

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Saks says that more than 1,000 responders have been trained thus far to work on the helpline and greater staff training is expected as the service continues to expand.

Those operating the line are based in a wide variety of organizations rooted in different cultures, she said, including the Indigenous agency Hope for Wellness.

While access to both English and French services will be readily available to anyone who uses the line, other languages will be available through these partner organizations, Saks said.

This report was created with files from The Canadian Press